Graci Vlattas
Deadline Editor
Tradition! A crucial and fun part of a routine that helps whoever excited about their end goal, whether those traditions are around the holidays, during tech week or before a big game. Though in the athletics department, superstitions also hold a strong hold over players, where the wrong pair of socks could be the “reason” the team lost. As parent’s weekend passes us by, where Sewanee teams faced rivals such as Rhodes and Centre, some of our fearless fall athletic teams were asked the question, “what do you or your team do to get hype before a game weekend?” This is what they said.
Offensive Lineman Josh Locklear (C ‘27) shared the main traditions that the team carries out. “The football team carries a combination of two traditions that a good number of the guys continue to this day. The first being the Railroad Spike. Above our locker room door there is a railroad spike that is from the train tracks that the 1899 team traveled on their way to an undefeated and dominating season that’s still talked about to this day,” he said. “The second is the giant rock outside the stadium with the Sewanee S on it. When running out over the ridge, we touch the rock as a sign of unity and to give our everything to what’s ahead of us. This tradition is newer, but we’re hoping it carries on for decades to come.” Members of the football team touch the Railroad Spike on the way out of the locker room and use their traditions as a memory of those who came before them as motivation every practice.
Women’s soccer, a powerhouse team on campus, has Sonia Djurasovic (C ‘28) as a captain. For a personal tradition, she always jams out to music while doing her game hair. Before Sewanee, her go-to game hair was a “ponytail braid every game with black pre-wrap.” Djurasovic also likes to “look at the scores of a team’s previous games” to get herself hype.
When asked about their traditions as a team, Djurasovic noted the team’s love for music and the specific songs they use for adrenaline. “The team has quite a few traditions together. We get to the locker room extra early to sing and dance together before we play to get hyped up. Our main tradition is that before every game [both home and away] we get in a huddle in the locker room and scream ‘Live Like You Were Dying’ by Tim McGraw,” she said. “We also do a specific chant before we play that has been in the [team] for many, many years.” The team has recently spoken to an alumna that was recently inducted into the Hall of Fame. The alumna graduated in 2004 where she did the WSOC chant all four years, meaning that the chant has been a tradition for over 25 years. Djurasovic expressed that the tradition of singing and screaming has been going on for at least eight years.
The famous chant of the women’s soccer team, photo credit by Sonia Djurasovic
Music is a great way to get in the mood. Everyone has a certain song or playlist that gets them in the mood for absolute domination. Or, in the case of women’s volleyball, a specific speaker is the key. “After preparing in practice and reviewing film throughout the week, the way our team gets hyped before a game weekend is by listening to music in the locker room on our speaker that we named Bruce. This gets our team loose, morale high, and the vibes good,” said Sophia Caruso (C ’27), captain and libero/defensive specialist of the team.
Although athletics is incredibly important and a strong culture here at Sewanee, we must also support our “athletes of the arts.” The theatre and choir programs have their own traditions that members do for good luck before a big performance. Anne Marie Florida (C ‘29), an integral member of both programs, shared the traditions within the performing arts community. First, for choir, she said, “Before important and special services, which include Convocation, Evensong, Lessons and Carols, and more, the University Choir sings the Alma Mater acapella outside of All Saints Chapel at the sundial. We all pile in and circle up around the sundial with seniors touching the sundial. Then, other choristers place their hands on a senior’s shoulder, and others place their hands on their shoulders, connecting the whole Choir. Once we are all in our conglomeration, a pitch is hummed by all to start us off. Then, we all sing the Sewanee Alma Mater in a beautiful, unifying four-part harmony. This is definitely one of my favorite traditions of the University Choir because it unites us, connects us to other choristers who have come before us, and gives us a time to breathe before a service.”
Theatre departments are famous for their traditions and superstitions, so we were happy to hear about their ways to get ready and excited. “In the Sewanee Theatre at the Tennessee Williams Center, there is not one single pre-performance tradition, but a theme I have been blessed to experience is small gifts before opening night,” said Florida. “When I have walked into the dressing room during ‘The Oresteia’ and ‘A Puppet Play’, I open my locker to find sweet notes and gifts from cast mates, directors, and faculty. I have always felt loved by this gift-giving tradition and hope to write a couple letters to my castmates in ‘Bright Star’ in just a couple of weeks.” Be sure to support our amazing actors and actresses in the university’s production of “Bright Star”, a bluegrass musical, from Oct. 14 to Oct. 18.
Lastly, the field hockey on campus likes to include all of Sewanee in their traditions. As a member of the field hockey team, I have a favorite: they are called drive-arounds. We all pile in cars at The Pit, start blasting music and cruise around campus. We visit places like Greensview and The Cross where we all scream and get really hype, as well as visit out-of-the-way dorms on campus to include them in the fun. The best part, though, is the rule that whenever we pass a pedestrian, we yell and cheer for them to come to our game and what time to be there.
The field hockey team also has many team cheers for before a game. The most prevalent being YSR. The team gathers in a huddle, arms around each other, and gets very low. Leaning from side to side, the team chants “YSR” while getting faster and louder with every sway. This cheer, noted by captain Natalie Bevier (C ‘28), started as a tradition against the school Centre, whose team Sewanee field hockey recently beat in a 5-1 game.
The YSR cheer from the field hockey team, photo credit by @sewaneefh Instagram
Traditions help keep this small school large in spirit. They play a big role in Sewanee sports, but also in various sectors of student life from the moment you start freshman year. One of the first things you will learn in orientation is the tradition of avoiding contact with the seal in All Saint’s Chapel or the notion that on the mountain, “if you do it twice, it’s a tradition.” October on the mountain is always a full docket of sports, family and alumni events. We are excited for an eventful month of traditions–old and new–and the opportunity to share them with the entire Sewanee community.