>>> Rich Boehme wrote:
"When was the first incidence that you can remember hearing the
sieve cheer?".  The earliest I can recall was Oct 1982, when I was a freshman.
<<<
 
I was a freshman at Wisconsin in the fall of 1980 and can attest to the
fact that Wisconsin has been "Sieving" that long.  But, I also know that
the sieve cheer existed at Wis long before that.
 
A little clarification of the nature of the cheer (at least in my days!).
When a goal is scored, the cheer is led by the band.  The fans raise their
arms and make a circular motion with their fingers.  All the while the band
is playing some kind of cadence (help here current Wis band people).
Several times during the course of this the fans yell "Sieve" and point to
the goalie.  Then the fans begin the repetitive sieving.
 
I wanted to detail this because some fans of another midwestern school have
made Wisconsin's version of the cheer sound simple.  It's not.  It is
quite well organized, a ton of fun, and gets all the fans in the building
going!
 
Bill Balloni
Wisconsin '85  --  We'll get 'um next year!