Mizzou Football Traditions.

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Homecoming

The nation's first Homecoming celebrations happened at Mizzou in 1911, when the MU football coach and director of athletics, Chester Brewer, invited alumni to "come home" to Columbia for the annual football game against the University of Kansas. While this tradition has spread, Mizzou still boasts the largest student-run Homecoming in the nation. The annual events include a parade, a blood drive, a talent competition and tailgating.

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Marching Mizzou

Marching Mizzou is the reason why the fans are so excited for Tiger football way before the game even starts. Before we even enter the stadium there is a plethora of pre-game traditions to be done. Small pep bands of about 15-20 members play at the bridge by the football teams practice field as they walk across and inside the Hearnes Center for all alumni and groups in attendance. Then everyone meets outside the Hearnes Center where different instrument sections duke it out with their section cheer songs. Some of these cheer songs are “French Tiger” for the trumpets, “Low Rider” for the trombones, “Tone Wars” for the Baritones, and “Bare Necessities” for the Tubas.

When the drum majors whistle blows the band scatters into parade block formation like a bunch of scurrying ants at a picnic. The drum majors count us off and we march all through the tailgates to the beat of the drumline. “Go Tigers” and “Best darn band in the land” echoing through our ears, we stop in between the Hearnes Center and Faurot Field to play the fight song and get the crowd pumped up. Then we proceed through a mesh of anxious fans to enter the stadium and bring home the glory with Marching Mizzou’s infamous pregame.

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Annual Whitewashing the Rock

The stone "M" guarding the north end zone of Faurot Field was created as a pre-game stunt by some zealous freshmen following a Tigers win against Kansas State in 1927. In the 1950s pranksters changed the "M" to an "N" the night before the Missouri-Nebraska game. A groundskeeper rallied some volunteers to help return the "M" to its original state before the game. The "M" still receives its traditional whitewash each year by MU student volunteers.

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Harpo's goal post tradition

Since 1971, there has been no doubt about the destination of the goal posts anytime they have been torn down following a home football game. 1971 marked the first year in which the goal posts ended up at Harpo's Bar and Grill at 29 S. Tenth Street in Columbia. Although no concrete reasoning is known behind the tradition, it is suggested that Harpo's became the destination because of its popularity among alumni returning to Columbia on game days and because the restaurant is one of the few places that had remained under consistent ownership without any name changes, so alumni and students all easily identify with the establishment. Following the 2005 season, removable goal posts were installed, which are lowered at the close of each home game.

In 2010 the goal post tradition was revived following the victory against BCS #1 ranked Oklahoma. Thousands of fans began to swarm the field before the final play had even ended. Although there were event staff and highway patrol encircling the field, security was unable to prevent fans from storming the field and removing the north end zone goal post from the stadium.

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Big MO

Big MO is a 6-foot, 150-pound bass drum featured at Mizzou football games. Big MO's handlers are actually University of Missouri alumni rather than student members of Marching Mizzou. Big MO is used to lead fans in the traditional MIZ-ZOU cheer. The drum has been a Mizzou football tradition since 1981.

In April 2011, the Mizzou chapters of Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma kicked off a fundraising campaign to replace Big MO, which has deteriorated over several decades of use. The new Big MO will weigh 800-plus-pounds and have a 9-foot diameter and a 54-inch width, making it the largest collegiate bass drum as well as largest bass drum in the United States.

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