#BeatOU: Social Buzz From Last Night’s Torchlight Parade & Rally

By Jordan Schraeder in Blog, Special on October 10, 2013 at 11:34 am | No Comments

Even a thus-far disappointing season couldn’t squash the enthusiasm of the Longhorns who turned out for last night’s annual Torchlight Parade and Rally, a Texas tradition since 1916.

Hosted by the newly-formed Texas Exes Student Leadership Committee, the event—which aims to pump up the Texas football team before it heads to Dallas for the OU game each year—kicked off with a mass of students parading down the Drag, lit torches in hand. The march ended at the base of the UT Tower, where members of Texas Cheer, the Longhorn Band, the Pom Squad, and other student spirit organizations were on-hand to rally the Horns for their upcoming faceoff against the Sooners.

The rally, which was broadcast live on the Longhorn Network, was the culmination of UT’s inaugural Longhorn Traditions Week, which featured Tower tours, picnics, and a concert by student carillonneurs in the days leading up to the main event.

Embattled head coach Mack Brown was in good spirits as he took to the mic onstage.

“We kept it close last week for the ratings,” he joked about the Longhorns’ 31-30 victory over Iowa State last Thursday.

Originally begun in 1916 before the Thanksgiving game against A&M, the Torchlight Parade and Rally was revived by the Texas Exes in 1987 after a 20-year hiatus in the ’60s and ’70s.

Here’s a look at what Longhorn tweeters had to say about last night’s event.

Tags: longhorn band, mack brown, Pom Squad, Student Leadership Committee, Texas Cheer, Torchlight Parade and Rally