Things I saw on my trip across the state
On Saturday, LSU brought back the “tradition” of having a live tiger at the football game. This was done at the behest of the governor and the surgeon general of the state of Louisiana because they saw it as one of the great traditions that makes Louisiana great. Governor Jeff Landry would not have known about this tradition from his time attending college and seeing his school play games, though. His alma mater, then known as the University of Southwestern Louisiana and now known as the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, did not play LSU during his time as an undergrad or at any time between 1939 and 2001.
That whole debacle got me thinking about the great traditions of Louisiana college football I’ve been lucky enough to see during the 2024 season. From Week 1 to Week 10, I took a visit to every college football team in the state of Louisiana except for LSU, my alma mater. Louisiana has 13 college football teams. 5 play FBS football (LSU, Tulane, Louisiana Tech, ULL and ULM), 6 play FCS football (Grambling, McNeese, Nicholls, Northwestern State, Southeastern Louisiana and Southern), 1 plays D3 football (Centenary) and 1 plays NAIA football (Louisiana Christian). Over the course of my trips, I got to see the incredible parts of this state I wouldn’t have thought to go to otherwise. At each stop, I saw traditions that were a hundred times better than LSU having a live tiger on the field. From the quaint to the cool to the downright weird, here are 12 Louisiana college football traditions better than a live tiger on the field listed in the order in which I saw them.
ULM: Air Raid Sirens
The University of Louisiana at Monroe Warhawks play at Malone Stadium. Prior to an NCAA ruling on Native American mascots, the teams were known as the Indians, something that lingers in the war chant song you’ll hear from The Sound of Today. The switch to Warhawks honors the legacy of World War 2 Maj. Gen. Claire Lee Chennault, an LSU alumnus whose air force unit used Curtiss P-40 Warhawks in combat. In keeping with the theme, ULM uses the sound of an air raid siren throughout their games. Note that I only got to stay for the first quarter of their opener vs Jackson State due to a rain delay.
ULL: The World’s Largest Flag of Louisiana
The University of Louisiana at Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns play at the currently under construction Our Lady of Lourdes Stadium. They leaned into the current state of the stadium by giving out a cheap plastic hard hat at their opener. The school tries its hardest to lean into its branding as the University of Louisiana by playing “You Are My Sunshine” as part of their pregame and, most amazingly, by unfurling what they call the largest Louisiana state flag in the world. I can’t verify if it’s true or find a good picture online, but it’s definitely a large flag.
Centenary: Go Houlas
This is the biggest stretch of any of these and it’s still better than the live tiger. The Centenary College of Louisiana Gents play at Atkins Field in Shreveport. Centenary, the oldest college and smallest college by enrollment with athletics in Louisiana, didn’t have football from 1947-2022, but they restarted the program with a practice season as an unclassified team in 2023. I went to their first game as a full D3 member, so they didn’t have any traditions for the team itself. However, the school uses the Catahoula Leopard Dog as a secondary mascot, and it’s painted at midcourt in the Gold Dome. They also gave out foam fingers with “Go Houlas” on them. If they got a live version of Houla, it would be perfect, unlike a live tiger.
Southeastern Louisiana: Lion King Trap Remix Entrance
The Southeastern Louisiana University Lions play at Strawberry Stadium in Hammond, America. Their entrance is the most over-the-top ridiculous thing I have ever seen at a football game. Would you like to see a lion on a motorcycle ride out with pyro as the speakers blast the most out-of-place song ever created? Note: I would recommend bringing someone who does not know what is about to happen to see how they react. I laughed far too hard.
Louisiana Christian: Running Down the Hill
The Louisiana Christian University Wildcats play at Wildcat Stadium in Pineville. The school was known as Louisiana College until they earned university status. The school is located down the road from Pineville High School, and the stadium itself is a set on stands with a small press box on the west side of the field (the same is true for Atkins Field). There is a berm that sits behind the south endzone, and when the team enters right before kickoff, they run down the hill. It’s simple, but it works.
Tulane: Hullabaloo
The Tulane University of Louisiana Green Wave play at Yulman Stadium in Uptown New Orleans. They’re the team in the state we’re all a bit too familiar with thanks to them being consistent rivals in baseball and former rivals in football. As such, the following will probably bring great annoyance to you all.
“A One, A Two, A Helluva Hullabaloo
A Hullabaloo Ray Ray
A Hullabaloo Ray Ray
Hooray-Hooray Vars Vars Tee Ay
Tee Ay, Tee Ay Vars Vars Tee Ay
Tulane!”
That is some Ole Miss-style garbage and it’s still better than the stupid live tiger on the sideline thing.
Southern: Community Recognition
The Southern University Jaguars play at A. W. Mumford Stadium in the Baton Rouge neighborhood of Scotlandville. I know the Human Jukebox is the best tradition of Southern Jaguar athletics, but it’s not the one I wanted to highlight. I only got to enjoy the first half of the Southern-Nicholls game held during LSU’s first bye week thanks to my phone nearly dying because I was watching Vanderbilt beat Alabama. During that half, they recognized some local group or sponsor at every break possible. It wasn’t just your standard thing with a game ball for a sponsor, it was highlighting community organizations, awarding scholarships, recognizing the Louisiana Black Caucus and more. That strong sense of community in the HBCU world is something I’ll never forget as someone who is an outsider.
Louisiana Tech: Terry Bradshaw Encouragement Videos
The Louisiana Tech University Bulldogs play at Joe Aillet Stadium in Ruston. Have any of you seen a Louisiana Tech football game this year on TV? If you have, you will remember the part of it where Terry Bradshaw appears with his arm resting on a bronze bulldog statue. Fun fact: that’s not the only clip he recorded with his arm resting on a bronze bulldog statue. Throughout the game I went to, a 48-21 Bulldog victory, the video board displayed several clips of Terry encouraging the crowd to cheer on the defense. He looks so joyful, I love it.
Grambling: The Sound of The Hole
The Grambling State University Tigers play at Eddie G. Robinson Memorial Stadium, a stadium nicknamed The Hole because it is built into a hole in the ground. I had seats in the lower level on the west side of the stadium near the 50, and I got in some good exercise going down and coming up to get concessions. Because its built into the ground, the sound escapes differently than it does in any other stadium I’ve been to. The bands, Grambling’s and Alcorn State’s, sounded better than any band I heard in my trip across Louisiana, and I’m not talking the quality of their performances. It was acoustic perfection.
Nicholls: Colonel Tillou
The Nicholls State University Colonels play at Manning Field at John L. Guidry Stadium in Thibodaux. LSU had never played Nicholls in football until this season, so there’s a chance you’ve never seen their mascot before.
He looks like M. Bison from the “Street Fighter” movie. This may not be his look all the time, they can swap out the hat and clothes, but it gives you a good idea of what I got to see at 11 a.m. the morning I went.
Northwestern State: Spirit of Northwestern
The Northwestern State University Demons play at Harry Turpin Stadium in Natchitoches. Their football team has been ice cold this season, but their band was incredible live. Its membership rivals that of the SWAC bands at over 300 members, and while they may not be as smooth as the Human Jukebox, they are incredible. My favorite part of seeing them live was that their halftime show included a transition from a movement from “Planets” by Gustav Holst to “Not Like Us” by Kendrick Lamar. Their theme was space, and that nearly sent me to orbit.
McNeese: The Masked Rider
The McNeese State University Cowboys play at Cowboy Stadium in Lake Charles. This stadium is also undergoing renovations, but it’s only being done to the press box and not an entire side of the stadium like in Lafayette. Right before the team runs out onto the field, a masked man on horseback comes onto the field and does a lap down from the north endzone to the south endzone and back. I thought it was pretty cool seeing it live, but your mileage may vary.
Epilogue
The live tiger tradition is one that represents all the bad things about Louisiana we hate admitting. It looks bad, it’s dangerous, it hurts the animal and it wants to leave for somewhere it can prosper. These traditions represent what we love about Louisiana. They’re our fun side, our party side, our little slice of life we call home that we make our own. While it may be annoying to live here quite often, we know it’s our home and we still love it.