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Senior Yell Leader
GIB SEARIGHT
Gib Searight, a junior agro
nomy major from Amarillo, is run
ning for senior yell leader.
Searight says he wants to re
solve the growing differences be
tween students.
“As A&M grows it gets tougher
to channel everyone’s enthusiasm
to a positive direction,” he said.
“It’s important that both non-reg s
and c.t. s realize that we re all
pulling for the same team.”
“We have a great women’s
program here and they deserve
more attention than what they are
getting,” he said.
Searight says he would control
crowds by becoming involved
faster.
“I would start the yells faster, ”
he said. “This way it would be giv
ing the fans more outlets and let
them express themselves through
yells, i.e. ‘The Horse Laugh’ or
‘Sit Down, Bus Driver.’”
“The best way to instill tradition
is to be a fired-up example,” he
said, “and it will be my endeavor
to be just that.
Senior Yell Leader
SARAH FINDLAY
Sarah Findlay, a junior journal
ism major from Lindale, says she
is running for yell leader to ex
press her support and spirit for
Texas A&M.
She says her enthusiasm, out
going personality and ability to
work with people qualify her for
the position.
Findlay says she will try to get
off-campus Aggies more involved.
“I will serve as a representative
for off-campus Aggies’ school spir
it,” she said. “I will help to drum
up off-campus Aggies’ A&M spirit
and involvement so all students
could walk to the same beat.”
She will encourage a personal
relationship between students
and yell leaders so the two groups
would have more respect for each
other, Findlay says.
As for traditions, she says, “If a
large number of students are
straying from Aggie traditions,
then the traditions need to be
adapted to fit the new mode of
thinking — without pulling away
from the true Aggie traditions,”
she said.
Jr. and Sr. Y»
Yell leaders hi
to control Agg
By CINDY GEE can
Battalion Staff ^
The yell leaders — five men given the power to unc
control the spirited shouts of thousands of Aggie and
fans. tion
But that power hasn’t always been bestowed tun
upon yell leaders by a majority vote of the student mo 1
body. out
Mark Outlaw, head yell leader, said yell lead- C
ers originated before the turn of the century when leac
cadets’ dates for football games had to be im- han
ported from other schools. Upperclassmen met saic
the girls at the train depot, and got dates before reft
the freshmen did.
Thus, there usually weren’t enough dates for gro
all the freshmen. During halftime, trainers for the the
team would get the freshmen to sing songs, and the
do yells and skits to entertain the upperclassmen l
and their dates. lea<
Outlaw said the trainers all wore white, and ers
that’s how the tradition of an all-white uniform of t
started. However, another source had a different tea:
idea on how the uniform originated. He said the sho
freshmen, who then wore gray uniforms, would sch
take off their coats so their white undershirts
would distinguish them from the crowd. put
Except for three men, the yell leaders have “Bi
always been from the Corps. Outlaw said that the
within the Corps, sophomores and juniors will tha
nominate three or four juniors and four or five I
seniors that they want to run for yell leader. It’s a but
way of narrowing it down and assuring the Corps fish
Senior Yell Leader
ARTIE ANDERSON
Artie Anderson, a junior recrea
tion and parks major from Alta
Loma, says he is running for yell
leader because he feels civilian
students need to be represented
as well as members of the Corps of
Cadets.
Anderson says he feels Corps
and civilian students need more
equal representation.
“We each have our own styles
of doing things but we need to
direct all of our energies to back
ing the Aggies as best as possible,”
he said.
Anderson cited the recent lack
of crowd control as a lack of re
spect for the yell leaders by the
predominantly civilian student
body, since they did not elect
them.
Of traditions, Anderson says
the attitude has not changed, but
students are forming an attitude
favoring a different lifestyle not
based on the Corps.
“These students will accept
certain old traditions that they
love and respect, but they will also
start some of their own,” he said.
Senior Yell Leader
NORRIS HODGIN
Norris Hodgin, a junior animal
science major from Tilden, is run
ning for senior yell leader.
Hodgin says he would like to
represent Texas A&M and its tra
ditions. He cites leadership and
his ability tq communicate with
people as qualifications for the
position.
Hodgin says, “If the attitude of
the student body was moving
away from the traditions, I would
use the available media and yell
practices to bring about this reali
zation and inform the students
how vital traditions are at A&M. ”
“Hopefully if the students are
informed of what being an Aggie is
all about, then they will realize
that a large part of the role is con
ducting oneself in a manner that
upholds the meaning of the word
‘Aggie’,” he said. “This would in
clude being a sportsman regard
less of the outcome of the event. ”
Rick Vogel, a junior chemical
engineering major from College
Station, says he loves Aggie spirit
and is fulfilling a life-long dream
by running for yell leader.
Vogel is a member of the Corps
of Cadets and the Singing Cadets.
He says he has represented Texas
A&M in the past and has what it
takes to be an Aggie and a yell
leader.
Yell leaders are faced with the
task of maintaining the Aggie’s dis
tinctive identity and spirit as the
University grows, Vogel says.
He says he would do this by
educating students in Aggie tradi
tions.
“As a yell leader, I would
attempt to instiB in every student
the pride that Aggies have for
their school and its traditions,”
Vogel said.
Mike Thatcher, a junior agri
cultural economics major from
Spring, is running for senior yell
leader. Thatcher was a junior yell
leader for 1980-81.
Thatcher feels his position as a
junior yell leader and status as a
member of the Ross Volunteers
are qualifications for the role of
senior yell leader.
Thatcher says a more thorough
understanding of traditions and a
unified student body will allow
these traditions to remain an im
portant part of the University
without interfering with the
changing times.
Thatcher feels crowd control
must involve cooperation be
tween the crowd and the yell
leader.
“I feel the answer to the prob
lem of crowd control is to remind
the student body that it should
take it partially upon itself to
maintain a controlled atmos
phere,” he said. “The yell leaders
can only do what the crowd allows
them to do.”
John Nisbet, a junior marketing
major from Corpus Christi, is run
ning for senior yell leader.
Nisbet says he would like to see
greater exposure of Aggie tradi
tions presented to incoming
freshmen.
“The pride of being an Aggie
can never be preached enough,”
he said.
Nisbet says he would also like to
see the grode taken out of the role
of yell leader and more spirit and
excitement instilled in the Twelfth
Man.
“Yell leaders should be leaders
not only at sporting events, but in
every facet of Texas A&M,” he
said.
Nisbet says yell leaders should
“command the respect of the
Twelfth Man and initiate the
leadership needed to control the
rowdiness of the crowd.”
Nisbet is a first sergeant of
Company F-2 in the Corps of
Cadets and has worked with
Young Life.
Kent Toppert,
ter science major
stown, Ill., says h<
of the student bo<
ing away from A
but there is a lowe
ness of traditions.
“I would establ
program where
learn the reasons l
tions, so they
them,” he said.
If elected, T
would take a moi
teaching the Twe
the Aggie traditioi
would make hims
tive to suggestion
dent body.
“J feel that if d
understands the
Texas A&M, a bel
wottld develop bel
and myself as a j
said.
As a member <
Corps, Toppert s
veloped leaders
Page 6 — Vofer s Guide