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FactsSlang
- Death Valley - Tiger Stadium, home to 90,000 of your closest friends on a Saturday night in football season.
- Fratty - Term to describe the dress and general behavior of Greek fraternity and sorority members.
- Free Speech Alley - The area in front of the Union where people can pass out fliers and preach their religious beliefs. Open to all students and anyone with a strong opinion. Avoid if you don’t like being bombarded with papers or told you are going to hell; still, a great way to waste time in between classes.
- Geaux - This is the proper way to spell “Go” when referring to LSU or the Tigers—it’s French.
- MC - Mass Communication department.
- Miller Mansion - Miller dorm—the sorority dorm—also known as seven floors of (you fill in the blank on that).
- North Gate - The area directly by the North Gate of campus. Home to bars, restaurants, and a couple of empty buildings.
- PAWS - The LSU e-mail system.
- SG - Student Government.
- Shack - To sleep at someone else’s dorm or house; can have sexual connotations or not.
- TA - Teacher’s Assistant; the person who grades your tests for a majority of classes, which can be your best friend or your worst enemy.
- The Drunk Bus - The late-night CATS buses that go from the bars to the apartments and campus.
- The Parade Grounds - The area in front of the Bell Tower and the Union. A gathering ground for people skipping classes to lay out, play Frisbee, or bring their dogs.
- The Quad - The area where most classes are located. People sit around on the grass or on benches in between classes. People make out here in the middle of the night.
- The Row - West Lakeshore Drive, the street all the sorority houses are on, also called Sorority Row.
- The Tunnels - The underground tunnels supposedly built by Huey P. Long.
- The Union - The mecca for most things LSU, home to dining, concerts, coffee shops, places to study, bookstores, and tons of campus organizations.
- Tigerland - The cluster of bars around Jennifer Jean and Nicholson, known for being home to drunken debauchery and freshmen and Greek students.
- TOPS - Tuition Opportunity Program for Students, which gives the majority of students from Louisiana free tuition and makes out-of-state students really angry.
Things I Wish I Knew Before Coming To School
- Don’t lose your student ID.
- Get involved in student organizations as soon as possible.
- How awful parking is.
- How much fun it was going to be.
- How much I had to make myself learn as opposed to doing something fun.
- How much the focus seems to be away from academics.
- How Southern everyone is.
- My Social Security number.
- That I was going to be one in 25,000.
- That those 25,000 people would be so interesting.
- The number of different majors available.
- Which dorm would actually be good to live in.
- You will get written up for having a coffee pot in your dorm.
Tips to Succeed
- Be an extra in a movie that films in Baton Rouge.
- Check out teacher profiles before scheduling a class.
- Check the semester book religiously.
- Cramming all night at Charlie’s Coffee is not good enough to get an A.
- Develop an obnoxious hatred for rival schools (Ole Miss or OU to start).
- Do your homework when profs assign it, not when it’s due.
- Don’t procrastinate, even though everyone here does.
- Eat at Cane’s and Louie’s at 2 a.m. or later.
- Get ice cream from the Dairy Store on campus.
- Give one lost freshman (or spring tester) directions (it’s about karma).
- Go “around the world” at the Chimes.
- Go see a local band.
- Go talk to your professor, even if they seem mildly-psychotic.
- Go to an LSU football game and sit in the student section.
- Go to class, even when its raining, even when it’s nice outside, even when it’s the Friday before game day.
- Go to see a counselor when you schedule each semester.
- Go to the Chancellor’s Pancake Breakfast.
- Kiss someone in front of the Bell Tower.
- Listen to the crazy religious speakers in Free Speech Alley.
- Look into classes that will fulfill your requirements, and find ones you like.
- Make friends with someone in your class and get their phone number or e-mail.
- Pick a major you like, not one that’s popular or will make you money.
- Ride the drunk bus.
- Roll down the Indian Mounds.
- Take a class in the Cox Auditorium.
- Take classes with people you know.
- Use LSU’s resources: the Writing Center, the Center for Academic Success, the Math Lab.
- Walk the LSU lakes.
Urban Legends
- Animal House was based on an LSU fraternity.
- Huey Long built a system of underground tunnels from the DEKE house to the football stadium and around campus so his son wouldn’t have to walk to football games in the rain.
- Hugely successful Raising Cane’s fried chicken restaurant was a business project for its founders before they graduated. They got a C!
- Pleasant Hall, the old hotel on campus, is haunted by several visitors who committed suicide and one guest who attempted to kill her lover and then herself.
- To be a true LSU coed, you have to kiss someone under the Bell Tower at midnight.
Traditions
- Chancellor’s Pancake Breakfast - A tradition begun by former Chancellor Emmert; the Pancake Breakfast gives students a chance to have a free, late-night breakfast in the dining halls during finals, as well as a chance to meet the esteemed leader of LSU. Swipe any working LSU ID for a huge plate of pancakes and a chance to meet the man in charge of your education.
- Fall Fest - Every fall, this event boasts free food and a chance for students to find out more about the University they began attending. As music blares through the Quad, students can check out the many ways to get involved on campus, as well as score plenty of free stuff.
- Free Speech Alley - LSU sanctions this venue in front of the Union for everyone, from campus organizations to local religious groups to share their views with the LSU campus. This walkway is crowded with students handing out pamphlets and wearing sandwich boards to promote their cause. Nearly anything goes from students handing out free food to taping themselves to poles for several hours to telling passer-bys they are going to hell. Some students avoid it like the plaque, while others will spend hours listening to whatever rallying cry that might be present.
- Groovin’ on the Grounds - This substance-free and free concert, thrown by Students on Target, gives students an opportunity to see big-name acts on the Parade Grounds. Most of the time, students don’t live up to the substance-free aspect of the event, but the concert is for a cause. It’s usually held the last night of Spring Invitational, and has featured a wide array of acts from the Ying-Yang Twins to Ryan Cabrera.
- Homecoming - Sure, every school has Homecoming, but few have Homecomings of the epic proportions of LSU’s. From the all-day scavenger hunt to the crowning of the queen and king to the nearly 20-foot decorations constructed by student organizations, Homecoming is the pinnacle of LSU traditions and spirit.
- Kissing at the Bell Tower - LSU tradition used to hold that students were not real coeds until they had been kissed under the Memorial Bell Tower at midnight. Nowadays, the coed rule is not as strictly enforced, but it still remains a popular place for students to smooch. On Valentine’s Day, it’s a mass-makeout as couples head for the traditional midnight kiss, and on more than one night a year, you can expect to see a proposal as the clock tolls.
- LSU Darling - The tradition began in 1936 when the most attractive female was chosen to represent the campus; however, with its return after a 33-year hiatus, the goal is to choose a male and female student who represent the campus with a high level of involvement and social standing. The darlings officially present the yearbook, the Gumbo, to campus in the fall.
- Natty Night at the Natatorium - A tradition begun by the most popular tailgating group, the Third Row Tailgaters, after a neighboring tailgating group stole their spot in front of the Natatorium one week in 2000. In retaliation, the group decided to throw a party the night before the game and wait out their spot-stealing neighbors. Once the group realized they had gotten away with having a keg of Natural Light in an on-campus building, they decided to continue the party as tradition and now has one every football season.
- Pajama Game - In the olden days of LSU, freshmen were required to wear pajamas to the first home football game of the year. The tradition died under hazing regulations, but has been revived by student government in recent years. Now it usually occurs near the beginning of the season with the student government selling special PJs for the game.
- Songfest - Fraternities and sororities pair up for a heated competition of song and dance. Each set of Greek organizations comes up with a five-or-so-minute routine based around dancing and singing. Each picks a specific theme and makes costumes and chooses songs accordingly.
School Spirit
The football slogan, “I Bleed Purple and Gold,” is not an understatement. Ask any LSU student or grad—there is something unique about this University that makes it undeniably wonderful. The pride in LSU extends beyond just SEC sports, but it’s a greater sense of pride. Students may agree on some of the University’s pitfalls, whether it be lacking academics or poor parking, but most LSU students can’t imagine being anywhere else. During events like Homecoming and Spring Invitational, students just seem to have an extra spring in their step. Year-round, it’s easy to spot students wearing some piece of purple or gold flair, and the majority of cars in the parking lots bear at least one LSU sticker. Students feel a sense of belonging at LSU. Maybe it’s because of the huge numbers or the generally welcoming attitude of students, but it doesn’t take long for even the most cynical student to be screaming, “Geaux Tigers.”
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