Will the Aggies be forced to change their poem?

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“The Last Corps Trip” poem is read every year at Muster ceremonies around the world and lives on as a beacon of the Aggie Spirit.

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The late Philo "Buddy" DuVal '51 was the author of "The Last Corps Trip" poem that so many Aggies hold dear.

When the Corps of Cadets left campus early for a Corps trip to a football game in 1949, one snide comment from a professor would sow the seeds for a tradition near and dear to the hearts of all Aggies.
“That Cadet Corps could have a one-way ticket to hell and they would leave two days early,” remarked the professor.
Philo “Buddy” DuVal ’51, a studious mechanical engineering cadet, heard the remark and was appalled. Something had to be done, so Buddy began scribbling a response: a poem about how the cadets made a trip to heaven, not hell. Little did he know that his retort to a rude professor would become ingrained in Aggie culture forever as “The Last Corps Trip.”

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And out in front with Royal Guard
The reviewing party stood;
St. Peter and his angel staff
Were choosing bad from good.

First he surveyed the Aggie team
And in terms of an angel swore,
“By Jove, I do believe I’ve seen
This gallant group before.

I’ve seen them play since way back when,
And they’ve always had the grit;
I’ve seen ‘em lose and I’ve seen ‘em win,
But I’ve never seen ‘em quit.

No need for us to tarry here
Deciding upon their fates;
Tis plain as the halo on my head
That they’ve opened Heaven’s gates.”

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And when the Twelfth Man heard this,
They let out a mighty yell
That echoed clear to Heaven
and shook the gates of Hell.

“And what group is this upon the side,”
St. Peter asked his aide,
“That swelled as if to burst with pride
When we our judgment made?”

“Why, sir, that’s the Cadet Corps
That’s known both far and wide
For backing up their fighting team
Whether they won, lost or tied.”

“Well, then,” said St. Peter,
“It’s very plain to me
That within the realms of Heaven
They should spend eternity.

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