The Florida Gators are well known for their classic tradition – The Gator Chomp. Florida is famous across the country for its competitive schools and illustrious basketball programs, and the Gators always strive to lead the way, in everything. A strong team needs to have an equally strong tradition, one with bite. If it’s kickoffs, game-winning points, or a big play, any occasion is perfect for fans to stretch out their arms, clamp down and clap up the orange and blue.
This tradition is so much fun, partly because it can be also be turned around and used by Gator Haters, of which there are many. There is nothing a Florida fan hates more than when a rival player uses their patented move against them, performing a chomp in the end zone after a touchdown or when defeating their beloved team. It’s always hot and never boring in the Sunshine State when college sports traditions are involved.
Stanford University
The most intense football rivalry in the Pac-12 is between the Stanford Cardinals and the California Bears. This can be clearly seen when they face off every year in the aptly named Big Game, which started way back in 1892. Stanford students don’t get ready for this momentous event by throwing a wild party, instead they psych themselves up by holding a somber “bearial”. A mix of bear and funeral, get it?
The students gather around “the claw” fountain on campus to perform this unusual ritual. They take a stuffed animal of the California mascot, Oski the Bear, read it its last rites and impale it on the claw statue. It’s Stanford’s modern-day sacrifice to the gods of football. You’d be surprised to know that Stanford is not the only school with such morbid traditions. Keep reading to discover which other sports traditions include holding a funeral themed ceremony for rivals.
Ohio State University
Ohio State University definitely has some school spirit. Their marching band, simply known as The Best Damn Band in the Land has been crushing it for almost 150 years! OSU football is an integral part of the state, and the band’s signature formation, Script Ohio, starts off each game in an incredible way, making it one of the most remarkable college sports traditions.
Each member of the band marches on to the field while playing "Le Régiment de Sambre et Meuse" and they all spell out the word “Ohio”. During this complex formation, each member of the band is in continues motion. They finish the song off with a flourish by dotting the ‘i’. The band’s sousaphone (a brass instrument similar to a tuba) players take turns on i-dotting duty.
Utah State University
This chant was actually invented in the Naval Academy Preparatory School, then it was taken up by the Navy and was then apparently brought from high school to college by student Jay Rodriguez. The chant is a call and response and starts with a single word, adding one more each time through until all the voices come together and proudly yell, “I believe that we will win!” This is a tried and true method of keeping the energy up at football and basketball games. These fans don’t need energy drinks to stay awake like other college students, all they need is this chant to get their blood pumping.
This chant may sound simple but when everyone starts screaming in unison, it is completely mesmerizing. The effect is so overwhelming that it has taken the world of soccer by storm and has become the unofficial rally cry for the USMNT. Maybe we should teach the Greenpeace volunteers this chant. It will definitely pump them up and help them get way more signatures.
Texas A&M University
No matter how hard Seattle Seahawks fans try, only Texas A&M Aggies fans have earned the right to call themselves the real “12th Man.” These fans are all in, they stand from kickoff until the clock runs out. And that’s not all, to be Aggies tough you not only have to stand for hours, but you also have to wave some towels while doing it.
When the A&M game finally comes to an end, the 12th Man is truly worthy of his honorary title. Maybe they have not suffered all the blows as the guys on the field, but these students have been through some hard times and done some serious exercise. Coming up, the Aggies have more than one way to show their commitment.