Tag Archives: Baylor Line

7 Traditions All Baylor Freshmen Should Know About

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By Maggie Malone

With the recent announcing of awards for Baylor’s annual Sing participants, another great tradition has once again come to a close. In addition to Sing, there are so many great traditions to experience here.

Sing1. All University Sing Teams from Greek organizations compete in Broadway-style performances complete with their own themes, song choices, and costumes. Hours and hours of work are poured into each act. The one exception to mostly-Greek teams is called Sing Alliance, a group made up of any student who wants to participate in Sing. Tickets sell out fast so be sure you buy early!

Christmas2. Christmas on 5th Street Christmas at Baylor! This event happens right before finals week, and it is a good opportunity to chill with friends, sip some hot chocolate and enjoy the lights on campus. Also, there are talented choirs that perform, carriage rides, a live nativity, fantastic petting zoo and the annual tree lighting!

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3. Baylor Line One of the major experiences of being a freshman at Baylor! While wearing your personalized gold jersey, you and the rest of the freshmen run through the stadium before every home football game and line up to welcome the Baylor Bears onto the field. And by this I mean that there is a mad dash of hundreds of freshmen pouring onto the field. Right afterwards, the Line is able to enjoy fantastic seats … right behind the visitors’ bench! Sadly, because I perform with the marching band, I have never gotten to experience this tradition. But how do you join this esteemed Line of glory? You attend …

images-64. Line Camp Yes, we have Line Camp! And while it’s not mandatory for freshmen to attend, I highly, highly recommend it. You get to learn not only about the Line, but also about the rich history of Baylor University. You get to make your first friends at Baylor while having tons of fun. Hint: They have an amazing slip and slide.

Dr.Pepper

5. Dr Pepper Hour Every Tuesday in Barfield Drawing Room, Baylor serves up some delicious Dr Pepper floats! These floats are a nice cold treat, especially in the summertime when it gets really hot outside. Besides it being a great meet-up for friends, sometimes there are tables lined up featuring activities, clubs, study abroad information, and more! Bonus, you may even spot our president, Judge Ken Starr, and our mascot, Bruiser!

 

Mass Meeting

6. Freshman Mass Meeting This late night tradition during homecoming week is an important part of the Baylor experience. Freshmen gather together to listen to the story of the Immortal 10, some of Baylor’s finest students. I won’t spoil it for you, but it’s a great one. Afterwards, freshmen then go to help prepare what will become one of the greatest bonfires you will ever see. 

Dia

7. Diadeloso Ah, spring. Season of new life, warmer weather (hopefully), and Diadeloso! Meaning “day of the bear” in Spanish, and affectionately called “Dia” by Baylor students, this day off from school is a great chance to take a break from life and just have fun. It’s a university-wide holiday, which gives students the chance to hang out, go on a day trip, or just have a good time on campus. Baylor usually brings in cool shows to entertain as well. Last year we had an exotic petting zoo, a talented magician, and, at the end of the day, NEEDTOBREATHE. Grab your Dia tank and get out into that sunshine!

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I’ve only listed seven, but, as Baylor is an old university, we have plenty more traditions old and new to enjoy!

Fall Means Football In the South

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By Emily Martin

I have never been a huge fan of football. I lived overseas in Singapore for seven years, so the only “football” we had involving playing with a round ball and our feet. Attending Baylor has definitely changed my outlook on this popular American sport, and now it is one of my favorite things about this university.

My favorite football memory by far is my very first experience running the Baylor Line. I was in the very front of the Line, which seemed like a great idea at the time. However, as soon as the rope dropped and people started darting across the field, I was dragged down by a girl behind me and trampled until my roommate pulled me back up. It’s been a year, and I still have a scar from the turf burn. I love that scar because it reminds me of how much fun it was to run the Line. I never missed a chance to put on my Line Jersey and help to support my school.

This year is a little different now that I’m not running the Line, but it is still just as much fun to attend games! It is funny how you form such bonds with total strangers during a game. You’ll be high-fiving people you’ve never met before and bonding with your neighbor over a bad call made by the referees. Football definitely brings out a different side of people when the game intensifies!

Another aspect of football that I never really understood until I came to college is watch parties. I thought that football was boring, and I didn’t understand why people would want to waste four hours of their lives just to watch a game on TV. Now that I am a Baylor student, however, I absolutely love cheering on my team! My favorite watch party by far was for the OU game. All of the Waco Young Life leaders got together at my friend Sharon’s house and had a pancake watch party. Sharon’s husband, Ronnie, made us any kind of pancake we wanted (I had chocolate chip…SO GOOD!), and we all just hung out and cheered on the Bears! I think that is one of the best things about going to a Division 1 school – You have a team that you can actually watch on TV and cheer on even when they’re not playing at home. Of course, it helps when your school’s team is good, but it also gives you a reason to hang out and bond with the people you love.

Football never used to mean much to me, but now it is one of my favorite things about being a Baylor Bear. I have the privilege to go to an amazing school that has a wonderful Christian heritage, great academics, a beautiful campus, friendly students and an awesome football team! It’s hard to find a university with all five of those things, and Baylor definitely beats them all. Sic ‘Em Bears!

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That Good Old Baylor Line – Senior Edition (by P.J. Martinez)

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This past Saturday marked my last home football game as an undergraduate at Baylor. I seriously had anticipated this day since the last game of last year. Having done Line Camp for the past three years, I have a love for Baylor spirit and the idea of being a part of the Baylor Line. It’s always great to see the wave of gold jerseys run across the field before every home football game – I seriously get chills every time I witness it. Well, on the last football game, Baylor always invites the seniors to run the line one last time with the freshmen. I actually got excited when I received the invitation through our email.

The day arrived and I woke up eager to put on my jersey. My roommates were also on board to run with me. We arrived early to tailgate with some breakfast burritos and friends. Then, as soon as 10:30 hit, we made our way to entrance of the field and waited for our time to go. I even got a little emotional once I stepped foot on the field. It was a moment I probably will never forget. We sang the National Anthem, said a prayer, and waited for Judge Starr to lead the way. As soon as he ran his portion, off we went! We rushed the field, took pictures, and welcomed the football team. I seriously had such a fun time! Not to mention that fact that we also won, and now we’re going BOWLING!!! Seriously, the best senior year ever!!!

Football and the Baylor Line (by Hunter Gorman)

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Baylor Football sounds pretty good to most ears as of late and might mean different things for different people.  For alumni, it means getting those same seats that they’ve been sitting in since graduation; for the common fan, it means having old friends over to stuff their faces and watch the game on the big screen; and for Baylor students, it means something completely different.  For pretty much every student this means putting on that green and gold polo, khaki shorts, and tailgating for hours before the game, but for the Baylor freshman this means so, so much more…

 

For the Baylor freshman, Baylor Football means suiting up in a line jersey (imagine a football practice jersey with your name on the back) and partaking in one of the oldest Baylor traditions in the book; The Baylor Line. Long story short, you run between two ropes out onto the football field and then go to your seat.  I know it doesn’t sound like much, but boy is it a rush to be a part of something that almost every alumni can look back on and relate to, something that every upperclassmen wishes they did more, and something that has been at Baylor since 1970.

 

Running in the Baylor Line can be compared to wrestling a mountain lion, scaling Mt. Everest, or successfully completing the Iron Man triathlon.  It’s pretty incredible. But the best part  is pushing and shoving your way through what seems to be a sea of gold to find your seat as close to the front row as possible, only to watch the Baylor Bears defeat the SMU Mustangs in a 59 – 24 victory for the season opener. It’s the “Year of the Bear” and this was a great way to kick that off!

 

To get super pumped up about this awesome year ahead of Baylor Football click here!

 

Baylor Football in Four Parts (by Sophia Cooper)

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Growing up, my mother made sure I understood all the rules of football and could hold my own in a discussion about the sport.  But I didn’t truly understand the culture of football until I came to Texas two years ago.  Football games are an event to be revered, praised, and yelled about.  With our first home football game this past Sunday, the best time of the year has begun!

For you out-of-staters that don’t know about the Texan tradition of football, here is a preview of the four main parts of a Baylor football game:

1. Tailgating

Gather up your grill, water bottles, sunscreen, and pick-up truck and head to Floyd Casey Stadium at least three hours before kick-off. Tailgating is a great chance to socialize with friends, show off your new boots, and meet other Baylor fans. Walking around through other people’s tailgates is also a great way to get a college student’s favorite thing: free food! All different student organizations can host their own tailgates (the College of Engineering and Computer Science always hosts a few, and we have the best food!), so it is also a great way to meet people and get plugged into campus early during the year.  Just make sure to keep hydrated after your free hot dogs and hamburgers; Sunday’s game against SMU was over 100° in the shade!

2. The Baylor Line

This is a tradition only available at Baylor, and it is definitely one of my favorite things to watch. Before each home football, the entire freshmen class gathers up to rush the field in their line jerseys and make a tunnel for the football team to come through. The Line then swarms the stands right behind the opposing team so they can heckle in a Christian-like manner. Not only do the freshmen get the best seats in the house, they also get featured on Sports Illustrated as some of the best college super fans!

3. Cheers

You know it was a good football game if your voice sounds a bit gravely in following days.  If you truly bleed green and gold, you cheer your heart out saying “B-B-B-A-Y, L-L-L-O-R” and singing our Fight Song after every touchdown we score “BAYLOR BEARS FIGHT!” and helping our team to victory. The entire stadium roars with “Aaaaaaay SIC’EM BEARS!” at every kick off. Your right arm should be sore from doing sic’ems all game.

4. That Good Old Baylor Line

Faithful Baylor fans stay till the end of the fourth quarter, celebrating and wincing at every play with the team. At the conclusion of every Baylor sporting event, we put our sic’ems up and sing our school song, That Good Old Baylor Line. The team stays on the field to sing

as well, reminding us all to “fling our green and gold afar” and keep the Baylor Line strong. On the off chance you have a ridiculously good game (such as beating TCU or OU, as we did last season), you might even be able to storm the field and sing on the 50 yard line!

 

 

With this knowledge in mind, keep your eye on ESPN and Fox Sports Network for the Baylor football games! Our next game, which is against the Sam Houston State Bearcats, is on September 15 at 6:00pm CST.  Sic’em Bears!!!!

That Good Old Baylor Line (by Kristen Ritch)

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Being in the Baylor Line is something akin to being in a cattle drive, I’m sure. We’re rounded up into a pen, each branded with a cute nickname or, if you’re me, just “Kristen.”  After about 40 “sic ‘em, Bears!” they finally open the gates, and we flood into the holding area to listen to the national anthem and size up the opposing team’s crowd. Then, you sprint, and, honestly, the spirit is pumping through your veins and you just want to make sure your friends are keeping up with you, that your shoes aren’t untied, and you don’t lose anything on the field. But, boy, is it a rush. 

Everyone waiting to run onto the field.

As the largest incoming class of freshmen ever, I don’t know if there was exactly space for us in Baylor Line section, so we were shuffled down a secret passage until we finally ended up in the bleachers. At this point, it didn’t matter if we had curled our hair or done our make-up because everyone was sweaty and gross and smelled like BO. But, we were already up 7-0 by the time we made it to our seats, so I wasn’t complaining.

The Baylor Line is nothing like anything I’ve ever experienced. Everyone is screaming and jumping and siccing ‘em, Bears. I’m pretty sure that my right arm’s going to be ripped by graduation.

Watching the game–Sic ’em Bears!

Despite our incredible “Year of the Bear” last year, I was truly skeptical about our team this year. I’m not used to being a fan of a team that wins. I was a Baylor Bear back in the 1990s, and, let me tell you, it was not the Year of the Bear. I’ve always been a Rangers fan and, until recently, it was generally disappointing. And, my high school’s team, the good ol’ Pine Tree Pirates, only won one district game from 2008-2012.

My heart said that the Bears could do it without most of our 2011 offense and our Heisman winner, but my head said no. But Baylor’s come back with something we didn’t even have in 2011—a defense. A boy behind me in the stands said, “Wow, Baylor’s defense is so much better this year!” and my only thought was, “Wow, we actually have a defense this year!”

ScoreCenter had a brief segment dedicated to “Replacing RG3” with QB Nick Florence, which, I’m sure, was already in the works to prove that Baylor was nothing without RG3. But with a 59-24 win over the SMU Mustangs with Florence accredited for 341 yards, 4 TDs and a 70% completion rate, it looks like we’re in for another Year of the Bear!

Sic ‘em, Bears and Sic ‘em, Florence!

Line Camp (by Lexa Johnson)

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As I was flying down to Waco on Tuesday, I was feeling a combination of excitement and nervousness.  I was so excited to get to spend a week on the beautiful Baylor campus and get to meet new people.  However, I was also nervous about meeting the right people and making genuine friends.  I was on my way to hopefully meeting some of my future best friends.

As line camp began, we broke into small groups and the awkwardness within my group was immediately broken by our leader.  I was blessed to not only have such an amazing leader, but amazing people in my group as well.  This week I definitely experienced incredibly genuine and loving people this week.  Everyone shared each other’s excitement to finally be at Baylor and taking part in some memorable Baylor traditions.  Our week at Baylor was filled to the brim with exciting activities and Baylor traditions.  The first night on campus, all of the students were bussed over to Floyd Casey Stadium where we were greeted by the Baylor Cheerleaders.  We all ate dinner together in the club level and learned the cheers for the football games.  Afterward, we walked down to Gate 8 where the Baylor Line traditionally enters the stadium to run the football team out.  We assembled down on the field and practiced for the fall.  We ran the cheerleaders onto the field as they cheered.  This glimpse into what the football season will be like this fall was amazing.  I did not think it was possible, but my excitement for the football season has only increased.  The second day at camp we all drove together to Independence, Texas where the original Baylor campus once was.  We all ate dinner together and then gathered in the church and listened to an alumni talk about her experience at Baylor and how Baylor has changed her life.  The leaders then released us campers to explore Independence and some of the landmarks there.  Upon conclusion of our exploring, we took a bus ride across the river to where the four original columns still stand.  God had painted the perfect setting for official initiation into the Baylor Line with an absolutely breathtaking sunset.  All of the freshmen gathered in front of the four columns and we all worshipped together.  It was so amazing to glorify God together with my future classmates as we prepared to be initiated into the Baylor Line.  During this worship time, we were told to think about what becoming a part of the Baylor Line means to us.  As I reflected on this, I became overwhelmed with excitement as God introduced me to these amazing people I am fortunate enough to spend the next four years with.  For me, being part of the Baylor Line means having amazing friends to spend the next four years with, to share in triumphs and heartache.  It also means that I have the opportunity to glorify God through my relationship with others and community service in Waco.

The third day of camp was jut as exciting as the first two as we explored what God’s calling for us is.  It was really helpful to get to spend time on what my specific calling is from the Lord.  We then broke off into teams and competed in a series of games and relays.  Following our “Bearing the Elements” competition we walked over to Common Grounds where we were given coffee and listened to live music.  The atmosphere at the coffee shop was really neat as it has been decorated with couches and has several tables outside.  They have an outdoor stage where the musicians played and we gathered at the many tables and couches.  Going to Common Grounds was such an amazing and unique experience.  The fourth day of Line Camp was my favorite by far.  We began the day by learning the importance of community gardens in Waco.  These gardens are used to provide fresh vegetables to families who have no other way obtaining them.  Afterward, we broke into our groups and each set out to volunteer at different community gardens in Waco.  I absolutely loved this service project because it directly helps the Waco community and was truly useful.  The main events that constituted that evening were the final banquet and the Sing competition.  We were fortunate enough to hear from a really inspiring speaker about taking hold of our dreams and learning form our mistakes.  The Sing competitions that night were very fun as each team strutted their stuff and displayed their creative performances.  The fourth day of Line Camp was my personal favorite because I felt that we were able to take part in experiences that encompass what Baylor stands for.

Line Camp was truly an amazing experience for me that I thoroughly enjoyed.  The activities that we were able to take part in truly extended a glimpse of what life at Baylor University will be like. However, what I enjoyed most about Line Camp was my small group.  We were thirteen strangers on the first day of camp but 13 best friends by the end of those five days.  Our nickname throughout camp was “The Smurfs.”  Everyone at Line Camp knew our group because we were always so loud and yelling our own Smurf cheer.  While discussing such in depth topics such as friendship and God’s calling for us, we really grew close.  It is exciting to know that when I step onto campus in two and a half weeks, I will have 12 best friends to reconnect with.  Although I was feeling nervous at the beginning of Line Camp, when I left on Saturday I was feeling completely excited to return in three weeks.  Now I am just counting down the days until I can move into my dorm at Baylor and reconnect with some of the amazing people I have already met. Move in day will officially mark the start of the beginning of my life at Baylor University.