This kooky and somewhat cheesy tradition is allegedly inspired by cult classic The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The Ivy League is not the obvious choice when thinking about college football, but you may want to attend the University of Pennsylvania’s football games. They are apparently the toast of the town (pun fully intended).
When the school’s fight song comes on, students pelt the field with bagels, bread and all manner of baked goods as soon as the line “Here’s a toast to dear old Penn” is uttered. And to top it off, a toast shaped Zamboni rolls through the field post-game to clean everything up.
University of California, Los Angeles
The UCLA Bruins have been one of the top college basketball teams in the country for decades. The team regularly produces NBA talent and consistently ranks in the top 25. When celebrated coach John Wooden retired, the Bruins program needed a new burst of energy. Everyone felt the absence of Wooden, who had led the team to ten National Championships, so Bruins super fan Lawrence “Frisbee” Davis decided to step up.
Frisbee, who rarely if ever missed a UCLA sporting event, was inspired by a call-and-response cheer he saw at a water polo game. He adopted it, made a couple of tweaks and started an enduring college sports tradition.“Is this a basketball?” “Yes, that’s a basketball!” This goes on for a while, illustrating that UCLA will soon win the game while their opponents will clearly lose. The crowd finishes things off by screaming “U-C-L-A! Fight! Fight! Fight!”. This catchy shout has become a true Bruins classic.
The University of Iowa
Hawkeye football fans have a relatively new tradition but what it lacks in age, it makes up for in heart and has quickly earned its place on this list. Kinnick Stadium is situated right next to UI Children’s Hospital and when the Hawkeyes have a home game, the whole stadium turns as one to wave at the special fans next door.
At the end of the first quarter, a stadium filled with over 70 thousand fans turns around to perform this moving wave. The band also have their own special way to get in on the action. Coming up, marching bands play an important role in college sports traditions.
Wake Forest University
With a name like the Demon Deacons, no wonder every winning game is an excuse to play a Halloween-inspired trick. Wake Forest University students head to the quad and use toilet paper to emulate the sideburns of their Muppet-like and strangely adorable mascot, the Demon Deacon.
It’s a good thing for college sports fans that leaving high school and starting college does not magically make you more mature, especially regarding college sports traditions. If undergrads automatically became adults and only used toilet paper for its intended purpose, we would be robbed of some amazing and hilarious college sports rituals.
The University of Alabama
All hail mighty Alabama! The Crimson Tide are so easy to hate because veteran coach Nick Saban’s team is so darn hard to beat. Even their fans seem to be sick of winning all the team. To keep things interesting whenever they face another team, and especially in-state rivals, Auburn, they burst out with their infamous ‘Rammer Jammer’ cheer.
Feel free to use the chant and just replace ‘Auburn’ with whatever school you please, it is still guaranteed to burn when used: Hey Auburn! Hey Auburn! Hey Auburn! We just beat the hell outta’ you! Rammer Jammer Yellow Hammer, Give ‘em Hell, Alabama! Using so many ‘-er’ words seems to have been planned to disguise the fact that they don’t rhyme with Alabama. Who cares, just Rollllll TIDE!