Editing Texas A&M University (section)

==Traditions==
{{Main|Traditions of Texas A&M University}}
{{See also|Glossary of Texas A&M University terms}}
[[File:AggieRing.jpg|thumb|Aggie ring for the class of 2004|alt=Close-up of gold ring. On the top, the words Texas A&M University 1876 encircle an eagle atop a shield over the numbers 0 and 4. The left side contains a large star and an oak. The right shows a cannon, saber, and rifle with the crossed flags of the United States and Texas.]]

Texas A&M culture is a product of the university's founding as a rural military and agricultural school. Although the school and surrounding community have grown and military training is no longer mandated, the [[History of Texas A&M University|university's history]] has instilled in students, according to Paul Burka, "the idealized elements of a small-town life: community, tradition, loyalty, optimism, and unabashed sentimentality".<ref name="burka2000">{{Cite news|last=Burka|first=Paul|title=The Aggie Bonfire Tragedy|newspaper=[[Texas Monthly]]|date=April 2000|page=116|edition=Vol. 28, Issue 4}}</ref> ''[[Texas Monthly]]'' posits that Texas A&M students' respect for school traditions and values is the university's greatest strength.<ref name="burkaNov2006">{{Cite news|last=Burka|first=Paul|title=Agent of Change|newspaper=[[Texas Monthly]]|date=November 2006|pages=155–159, 250–264}}</ref> These traditions enable and encourage students and alumni to cultivate the Aggie Spirit, a strong sense of loyalty and respect for the university.<ref name="tresaugue">{{Cite news|last=Tresaugue|first=Matthew|title=Gift has nice ring to it|newspaper=[[Houston Chronicle]]|page=A1, A8| date=July 7, 2007}}</ref> They dictate many aspects of student life, including greeting others using the official school greeting of "Howdy!",<ref name="hallett">{{Cite news | last=Hallett | first=Vicky | title=The Aggie Way of Life | newspaper=[[U.S. News & World Report]] | year=2005 | url=https://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/college/articles/brief/05texas_brief.php| access-date =June 25, 2007 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050826033718/http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/college/articles/brief/05texas_brief.php | archive-date=August 26, 2005}}</ref> personal conduct at university sporting events, and students' word choices in conversation.<ref name="gravois">{{Cite news|title=Memorandum|last=Gravois|first=John|date=January 5, 2007|newspaper=[[The Chronicle of Higher Education]]|volume=53|issue=18|page=A6|edition=Short Subjects}}</ref>

A visible designation tradition among senior undergraduates, graduate students nearing the end of their programs, and former students is wearing an [[Texas A&M ring|Aggie Ring]], whose design has been relatively unchanged since its introduction in 1894.<ref name="kane">{{Cite news|last=Kane |first=Maureen |title=Tradition sets A&M aside as the oldest institution of higher learning in Texas |work=[[The Battalion]] |date=October 30, 2001 |url=http://media.www.thebatt.com/media/storage/paper657/news/2001/10/03/Ams125th/Tradition.Sets.Am.Aside.As.The.Oldest.Institution.Of.Higher.Learning.In.Texas-515916.shtml |access-date=June 30, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929095443/http://media.www.thebatt.com/media/storage/paper657/news/2001/10/03/Ams125th/Tradition.Sets.Am.Aside.As.The.Oldest.Institution.Of.Higher.Learning.In.Texas-515916.shtml |archive-date=September 29, 2007}}</ref><ref name="ring2">{{cite web|url=http://www.aggienetwork.com/ring/csreqs.aspx|title=Aggie Ring Requirements|access-date=May 24, 2007|publisher=The Association of Former Students|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509123508/http://www.aggienetwork.com/ring/csreqs.aspx|archive-date=May 9, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> Although not sanctioned by the university, many students "dunk" their newly acquired Aggie Rings into a pitcher of beer and drink the entire pitcher in seconds.<ref name="ring3">{{Cite news|last=Wirt |first=Ashley |url=http://media.www.thebatt.com/media/storage/paper657/news/2006/09/14/News/Aggies.Find.New.Ways.Of.ring.Dunking-2271747.shtml |title=Aggies find new ways of 'ring dunking' |date=November 9, 2006 |access-date=May 18, 2007 |work=[[The Battalion]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080119120629/http://media.www.thebatt.com/media/storage/paper657/news/2006/09/14/News/Aggies.Find.New.Ways.Of.ring.Dunking-2271747.shtml |archive-date=January 19, 2008}}</ref>

[[File:AggieMuster.jpg|thumb|The [[Texas A&M University Corps of Cadets#Ross Volunteers|Ross Volunteers]] perform a rifleman's [[salute]] as candles are lit for the deceased at the 2007 [[Muster (Texas A&M University)|Aggie Muster]] at [[Reed Arena]].|alt=21 cadets in white uniforms perform a salute with a rifle]]

Texas A&M students have created two major traditions to honor deceased former students. The [[Muster (Texas A&M University)|Aggie Muster]] is a ceremony of remembrance held annually on April 21, the anniversary of the [[Battle of San Jacinto]], to honor current and former students who died the previous year. Alumni also typically socialize and remember their time at the university. Over 300 Musters are held around the world, the largest taking place at [[Reed Arena]] on the university's main campus.<ref name="lozano">{{Cite news|last=Lozano|first=Juan A.|title=Especially solemn rite of Muster|date=April 22, 2000|url=http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl?id=2000_3209862|access-date=August 16, 2007|newspaper=[[Houston Chronicle]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090623220416/http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl?id=2000_3209862|archive-date=June 23, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> All Muster ceremonies feature the Roll Call for the Absent, in which names of deceased alumni are called. A family member or friend answers "here" and lights a candle to symbolize that although their loved one is not physically present, his or her spirit will shine forever. This is traditionally followed by a [[three-volley salute]].<ref name="lopez">{{Cite news|last=Lopez|first=John P.|title=Tragedy strikes A&M family|date=November 26, 2002|newspaper=[[Houston Chronicle]]|access-date=August 16, 2007|url=http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl?id=2002_3603773|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090623220431/http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl?id=2002_3603773|archive-date=June 23, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="silvertaps">{{Cite journal|last=Eisterhold|first=Michelle|journal=[[Houston Chronicle]]|publisher=Houston Community Newspapers|title=Klein youth killed while walking near A&M campus|date=October 18, 2006|url=http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/archives/klein-youth-killed-while-walking-near-a-m-campus/article_ab2f451a-417d-5edf-8526-72c13b1aa70c.html?mode=jqm|access-date=June 23, 2008|archive-date=October 19, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211019161118/https://www.chron.com/neighborhood/article/Klein-youth-killed-while-walking-near-A-M-campus-9636991.php|url-status=live}}</ref> The event received nationwide attention during World War II, when 25 Texas A&M alumni held a brief Aggie Muster during the [[Battle of Corregidor]].<ref name="tutt">{{Cite news|last=Tutt|first=Bob|title=Enemy shells at Corregidor couldn't stop Aggie Muster|newspaper=[[Houston Chronicle]]|date=April 16, 1994|access-date=August 16, 2007|url=http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl?id=1994_1196332|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090623220147/http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl?id=1994_1196332|archive-date=June 23, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref>

Students who die while enrolled at Texas A&M are honored at Silver Taps, a ceremony that is held, when necessary, on the first Tuesday of the month. This tradition began as a memorial for former Texas A&M president Lawrence Sullivan Ross.<ref name="hegstrom">{{Cite news|last=Hegstrom|first=Edward|title='Silver Taps' honors Aggie Bonfire victims|date=December 8, 1999|newspaper=[[Houston Chronicle]]|url=http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl?id=1999_3182335|access-date=August 16, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090623220404/http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl?id=1999_3182335|archive-date=June 23, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> On the day of the ceremony, flags fly half-staff and notices are posted throughout campus. At 10:15&nbsp;pm, lights around campus are extinguished and hymns are chimed from Albritton Tower while students and faculty gather in the Academic Plaza. Following a three-volley salute by the Ross Volunteer Firing Squad, six [[Bugle (instrument)|buglers]] play "Silver Taps", a choral version of the bugle call "[[Taps (bugle call)|Taps]]", from the dome of the university's Academic Building. The song is played three times: once toward the north, once toward the south, and once toward the west. The song is not played to the east, symbolizing that the sun will never again rise on the deceased student.<ref name="silvertaps"/>

===Sports===
[[File:2007-SBF.jpg|thumb|upright|The 2007 Student Bonfire|alt=Large flames engulf the top layer of a circular three-tier structure of logs; the logs are vertical to the ground.]]

At university sporting events, Texas A&M students collectively are called the [[12th Man (football)|12th Man]]; in the context of football games, this symbolizes students supporting the eleven players on the field and being willing to enter the game if necessary. To symbolize their zeal and motivation, it is traditional for students to stand throughout the sports game.<ref name="12thMan">{{Cite web|url=http://aggietraditions.tamu.edu/12thman.shtml |title=Twelfth Man |access-date=December 31, 2006 |publisher=Texas A&M University |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061229030439/http://aggietraditions.tamu.edu/12thman.shtml |archive-date=December 29, 2006}}</ref> The tradition of standing for games began on January 2, 1922, at the [[Dixie Classic (bowl game)|Dixie Classic]], in which Texas A&M played [[Centre College]]. Texas A&M had so many injuries [[head coach|Coach]] [[Dana X. Bible]] feared he would not have enough men to finish the game. He called into the stands for [[E. King Gill#History|E. King Gill]], a reserve who had left football after the regular season to play basketball, to prepare to play in the game. Texas A&M won 22–14 but E. King Gill was the only player left available on the sidelines for the team.<ref name="beano">{{cite web|last=Cook|first=Beano|title=Ten Days That Shook the Sport|publisher=[[ESPN]]|url=https://www.espn.com/college-football/news/story?id=2615391|date=October 8, 2006|access-date=July 26, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070210025140/http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=2615391|archive-date=February 10, 2007|url-status=live}}</ref> In recent decades, the 12th Man is represented on the field by a [[Walk-on (sport term)|walk-on]] player who wears a number-twelve jersey and participates in kick-offs.<ref name="heater">{{cite news|last=Heater|first=Jay|title=LaMantia A&M's Main 12th Man|newspaper=Oakland Tribune|date=December 27, 2006|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-5761605.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120509181413/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-5761605.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 9, 2012|access-date=April 30, 2007}}</ref>

The 12th Man uses a variety of school yells, rather than cheers, to support Aggie teams. Each year, the student body elects five students to serve as Yell Leaders.<ref name="alvaradoyell">{{Cite news|last=Alvarado |first=Nicole |title=Yell Leaders represent Aggie Spirit past, present, and future |newspaper=[[The Battalion]] |date=April 20, 2007 |url=http://media.www.thebatt.com/media/storage/paper657/news/2007/04/20/News/Yell-Leaders.Represent.Aggie.Spirit.Past.Present.And.Future-2870762.shtml |access-date=May 29, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929110448/http://media.www.thebatt.com/media/storage/paper657/news/2007/04/20/News/Yell-Leaders.Represent.Aggie.Spirit.Past.Present.And.Future-2870762.shtml |archive-date=September 29, 2007}}</ref> At midnight before each home football game at Kyle Field, or at a designated location at away games, fans gather to practice yells for the next day's game at an event called [[Midnight Yell Practice]].<ref name="hallett"/><ref name="drehs">{{cite web|last=Drehs|first=Wayne|title=Follow the yell leaders!|date=November 26, 2003|publisher=[[ESPN]]|url=https://www.espn.com/page2/s/drehs/031126texasam.html|access-date=June 30, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070704132114/http://espn.go.com/page2/s/drehs/031126texasam.html|archive-date=July 4, 2007|url-status=live}}</ref> Led by the Yell Leaders and the Fightin' Texas Aggie Band, the 12th Man practice yells, sing the [[wikisource:Aggie War Hymn|War Hymn]], joke about their opponents, and practice celebrating.<ref name="drehs"/><ref name="mugdown">{{Cite news|last=Haskins|first=Maggie|title=The Perfect Week|newspaper=[[Sports Illustrated]]|date=November 4, 2004|url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/sioncampus/11/03/perfect1104/|access-date=August 20, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050905205047/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/sioncampus/11/03/perfect1104/|archive-date=September 5, 2005|url-status=dead}}</ref> ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'' named Midnight Yell as one of the "100 Things You Gotta Do Before You Graduate".<ref name="si100">{{cite magazine|title=The 100 Things You Gotta Do Before You Graduate (Whatever the Cost)|date=September 24, 2003|magazine=[[Sports Illustrated]]|url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2003/sioncampus/09/24/100_things0930/|access-date=June 30, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070707120928/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2003/sioncampus/09/24/100_things0930/|archive-date=July 7, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref> At home football games, the 12th Man consists of more than 36,000 Texas A&M students and forms the largest student section in [[college football]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Texas A&M's 12th Man Sells Out Student Section Again|url=https://www.kagstv.com/article/sports/texas-ams-12th-man-sells-out-student-section-again/499-bc61bba0-8143-4bc8-bcf7-17a571bf9064|work=[[KAGS-TV|KAGS-LD]]|date=September 3, 2021 |access-date=April 2, 2022}}</ref> When singing the war hymn, A&M students cause the stands to sway; visiting press are warned prior to the game.<ref>{{cite news|title=Kyle Field reinforcements swaying Aggies' concerns|date=July 4, 2015|work=[[Houston Chronicle]]|url=https://www.houstonchronicle.com/sports/aggies/article/Kyle-Field-reinforcements-swaying-Aggies-concerns-6366773.php|access-date=April 2, 2022|first=Brent|last=Zwerneman}}</ref>

Almost every year since 1909, Texas A&M students have built a large bonfire to celebrate their rivalry with the [[University of Texas at Austin]].<ref name="smith2007">{{cite journal|last=Smith|first=Jonathan M.|year=2007|title=The Texas Aggie Bonfire: A Conservative Reading of Regional Narratives, Traditional Practices, and a Paradoxical Place|pages=182–201|doi=10.1111/j.1467-8306.2007.00530.x|journal=Annals of the Association of American Geographers|volume=97|s2cid=144443161}}</ref> Aggie Bonfire was traditionally lit around [[Thanksgiving (United States)|Thanksgiving]] in conjunction with the festivities surrounding the annual college football game between the universities.<ref name="bernstein"/> Although it began as a trash pile,<ref name="as">{{Cite news|title=Vanities of the Bonfire |newspaper=[[American Scientist]] |date=November–December 2000 |url=http://www.americanscientist.org/template/AssetDetail/assetid/23826/page/2;jsessionid=aaa5LVFO |access-date=February 28, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090624200603/http://www.americanscientist.org/template/AssetDetail/assetid/23826/page/2%3Bjsessionid%3Daaa5LVFO |archive-date=June 24, 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Aggie Bonfire evolved into a massive, six-tiered structure, achieving a then-world-record height for a bonfire of {{convert|109|ft|m|-1}}.<ref name="bernstein">{{Cite news|last=Bernstein |first=Alan |title=Aggie Bonfire holds distinction as Texas symbol |newspaper=[[Houston Chronicle]] |date=November 18, 1999 |url=http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/special/bonfire/386353.html |access-date=February 28, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071225220124/http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/special/bonfire/386353.html |archive-date=December 25, 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="WorldRec">{{cite news|url=http://www.salon.com/books/it/1999/12/08/bonfire/index.html|last=Morris|first=Dave|title=Memories of an Aggie bonfire boy |work=[[Salon.com]] |access-date=August 14, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070211063748/http://www.salon.com/books/it/1999/12/08/bonfire/index.html |archive-date=February 11, 2007 }}</ref><ref name="SixTier">{{cite news|url=https://www.statesman.com/story/news/2021/11/18/texas-a-m-university-remembers-nov-18-1999-bonfire-collapse-aggie-accident/8665016002/|author=American-Statesman staff|title=Virtual tour commemorates Nov. 18, 1999, Texas A&M Bonfire collapse |work=[[Austin American Statesman]] |access-date=January 8, 2022 }}</ref> On November 18, 1999, the Aggie Bonfire collapsed during construction. Eleven enrolled students and one former student died and twenty-seven others were injured. The accident was later attributed to improper design and poor construction practices.<ref name="homeland">{{Cite web|last=Cook|first=John Lee Jr. |title=Bonfire Collapse|publisher=[[U.S. Department of Homeland Security]]|url=http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/downloads/pdf/publications/tr-133.pdf|access-date=March 3, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080917170255/http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/downloads/pdf/publications/tr-133.pdf|archive-date=September 17, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> The victims' family members filed six lawsuits against Texas A&M officials, Aggie Bonfire officials, and the university. Half of the defendants settled their portion of the case in 2005,<ref name="kapitan">{{Cite news |last=Kapitan |first=Craig |title=Bonfire case under scrutiny by court |newspaper=[[The Bryan-College Station Eagle]] |location=Bryan-College Station |date=September 3, 2006 |url=http://archive.theeagle.com/stories/090306/am_20060903005.php |access-date=April 2, 2009 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130411222254/http://archive.theeagle.com/stories/090306/am_20060903005.php |archive-date=April 11, 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref> and a federal appeals court dismissed the remaining lawsuits against the university in 2007.<ref name="vanderwerf">{{Cite news |last=Van Der Werf |first=Martin |title=Appeals Court Upholds Dismissal of Lawsuits Over Texas A&M Bonfire Accident |newspaper=[[The Chronicle of Higher Education]] |date=April 25, 2007 |url=http://chronicle.com/news/article/2169/appeals-court-upholds-dismissal-of-lawsuits-over-texas-am-bonfire-accident |access-date=May 24, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930180559/http://chronicle.com/news/article/2169/appeals-court-upholds-dismissal-of-lawsuits-over-texas-am-bonfire-accident |archive-date=September 30, 2007 |url-status=live }}</ref> Following the collapse, the university suspended the official sanction of the bonfire, but the tradition continues off-campus.<ref name="milloy">{{Cite news | last=Milloy |first=Ross E.| newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E03E5DA113DF936A35751C0A9649C8B63 | date=February 5, 2002 |access-date=March 3, 2007 |title=Southwest: Texas: Aggie President Cancels Bonfire |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071112085122/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E03E5DA113DF936A35751C0A9649C8B63 | archive-date=November 12, 2007 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="badger">{{Cite news|title=Off-campus Texas A&M bonfire brings out thousands |newspaper=[[The Badger Herald]] |url=http://badgerherald.com/news/2002/11/26/offcampus_texas_a_m_.php |date=November 26, 2002 |access-date=March 3, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071110225606/http://badgerherald.com/news/2002/11/26/offcampus_texas_a_m_.php |archive-date=November 10, 2007}}</ref>