The Daily Toreador - Student Newspaper of Texas Tech

Issue date: 11/14/01 Section: Opinions

Among all the bad vibes flying through the air and the reputation of Texas Tech being hurt by last weekend's goalpost incident, there was one positive.

Tortillas.

I saw students show their support of the football team by refusing not to let go of a tradition. The administration decided to ban tossing tortillas at games because of recent complaints of rocks being put in the tortillas. How do you put a rock "inside" a tortilla? I hope I'm not the only person who thinks that makes no sense.

If throwing tortillas is your way of showing school spirit, then so be it. It's been done for years here at Tech. I remember throwing tortillas at games when I was a kid.

The tortilla tradition reached its height in the '95 season when the Red Raiders reached the Cotton Bowl. During the game, a field reporter did a story on the tortilla tradition and thousands of tortillas went in the air at opening kickoff.

I was glad to see a few dozen tortillas soar through the air against the Aggies. It was the students' way of saying they will not let this tradition die.

One thing I know, Tech takes pride in is being a school rich in tradition, but I am confused as to why one traditions is completely banned while another is completely changed around. The schedule for Homecoming this year was all sorts of messed up. Why did we crown the King and Queen after the parade? Why was the parade Friday night?

What amazes me is the administration has basically said throwing tortillas is not a real tradition. Why? Because you don't like it?

I am calling to arms all students, alumni and fans who wish to show school spirit and refuse to let a tradition die. If the administration refuses to accept throwing tortillas as a tradition, then 50,000 people should make it one.

When the Oklahoma Sooners come to town Nov. 17, if thousands of tortillas found their way in to the air, I think the administration would have no choice but to accept the tortilla tradition. Security can't throw out 4,000 students or 50,000 fans. It's not feasible. I only saw one student escorted out of Jones SBC Stadium on Saturday for throwing tortillas.

There are things to be considered, however. Like the 15-yard penalty the football team would get for objects being thrown on the field. Answer to this problem: don't throw them on the field, and don't throw them at opposing players or coaches. Simply throw it in the air and cheer for the Red Raider football team. It can be that easy. Pegging an opponent in the head with a tortilla is not showing school spirit. That's showing stupidity and lack of class, and after the donnybrook following the Aggie game I think Tech needs to show it has some class.

Go to the store. Buy some tortillas, so when the Sooners come, a Tech tradition will be reborn. The Tech Tortillas Tossing Tradition. National television is a pretty easy and good place to get noticed, too.

David Wiechmann is a sophomore journalism major from Lubbock.

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