True Aggie tradition lives on at USU
One of the questions commonly asked between USU students is whether or not they are True Aggies. The tradition of becoming a True Aggie has been going on at USU for nearly a century.
On the nights of Homecoming Week, A-Day and during every full moon, students gather together on the northeastern corner of the Old Main grounds for a chance to be kissed while standing on top of the Block A, a stone pillar erected in representation of Aggie pride.
This tradition is very popular around campus, and students will have an opportunity to become True Aggies Friday night as the full moon comes out. Students who don’t plan to leave Cache Valley for fall break will be able to take advantage of the shorter line for this True Aggie Night.
Kathryn Harwood, a junior studying dietetics, said her dream of becoming a True Aggie came true last month when she kissed her husband Jeff Harwood atop the Block
A on Homecoming night.
“The line was really long and it was hard to tell where exactly in the line we were standing because there were so many people,” she said.
Even though waiting in line took longer than the couple hoped, she said it was worth it to finally be able to say she is a True Aggie.
The tradition originated in 1917 when a group of male students known as the Benos formed the Block A. The Beno club has a few different explanations for how it came to be, but the most popular comes while a few of the members were attending school at West High in Salt Lake City.
According the the USU traditions website, The Beno members had asked their principal if they could start a club, but to their surprise he told them there would “be no” clubs. When they came to USU, the students had the idea of using their principal’s words to form their collegiate organization’s name.
In recent years, the university held the Guinness World Record for the most couples kissing simultaneously in the same place. Erin Carter, a sophomore going into nursing, looks forward to this weekends opportunity to become a true aggie with her boyfriend.
“It will be nice when people ask me, ‘Are you a True Aggie?'” Carter said. “I will finally be able to answer them ‘yes’ instead of giving the awkward ‘no.'”
– jared.dangerfield22@gmail.com