Inside the Racer Tradition
If you’re planning on attending a Murray State sporting event anytime soon, prepare to incorporate one important phrase into your game day vernacular: “Shoes Up!”
A more recent campus tradition, students have used this phrase to portray their Racer pride since 2010. But how exactly did it originate and why has it endured?
In an interview for Murray State OVC Extra in 2014, former Racers football coach Chris Hatcher said the phrase debuted among the football team as their pregame chant. Hatcher coached from 2010 to 2014.
“We’re fired up about being Racers,” Hatcher said in the video. ”I mean we have a very unique name, unique mascot. We’re all Racers and we ought to be very proud of it, so it’s just a simple gesture that links us all together.”
At the time, Hatcher said he was “fired up” the women’s soccer team began to adopt the phrase too.
“I think if everybody buys in, it’s something that our fans will really enjoy for many years to come,” Hatcher said.
And he was right.
Since then, all the Murray State athletic teams have adopted the phrase. The phrase also has made its way into non-sport events on campus and even into everyday conversation among students.
Student leaders make sure to teach the phrase, and the corresponding horseshoe-inspired hand gesture, to new students since it is inevitable that they will hear it around campus.
As a Summer O counselor, student ambassador and a sorority member, Jovondra Coffey, a senior from Louisville, Kentucky, said she is not trained to teach “Shoes Up” but still does.
“It’s so prominent in the culture, it’s like second nature to teach them,” Coffey said. “I’m not obligated by any means, but I almost feel like I have to because of how much of a role it plays on campus.”
During her time at Murray State, she said she has noticed students say “Shoes Up” casually when something good happens and they want to celebrate in Murray State fashion.
On the contrary, Coffey said she has even heard students flip the phrase and say “shoes down” when they’re not pleased with something.
Rachel Renik, a senior from West Frankfort, Illinois, has also been involved on campus through her sorority and as a Summer O counselor. She said she has heard plenty different uses of the phrase.
Calling it a “simple and quick way to say ‘go racers,’” Renik said she has noticed it’s become an everyday saying.
Though this one is common, Murray State has no shortage of traditions.
“Shoes Up” is enjoyed by both. However, Renik said other traditions she enjoys include All Campus Sing and Tent City, while Coffey said the Shoe Tree is her favorite.
“I think having these traditions makes a college campus feel more like a community rather than just a place where you go to school,” Coffey said. “When I was touring schools, I paid a lot of attention to what was unique about each one. It’s something you can brag about and feel good about because there’s nothing like that specific tradition at any other school.”
So as you head to your next game, or just out and about around campus, remember, #ShoesUp, Racers!