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Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?

Posted by Sydney Reade 
Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Sydney Reade (---.cit.cornell.edu)
Date: April 13, 2015 12:47PM

Hey Cornell alums!

I am writing a research paper on the origins of some of the hockey traditions. Anyone know/remember when and why we started shouting "Red!" during the national anthem when we reach the appropriate lyric? Any help is much appreciated.

SR '15
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Roy 82 (128.18.14.---)
Date: April 13, 2015 01:47PM

Sydney Reade
Hey Cornell alums!

I am writing a research paper on the origins of some of the hockey traditions. Anyone know/remember when and why we started shouting "Red!" during the national anthem when we reach the appropriate lyric? Any help is much appreciated.

SR '15
Don't know the answer (I would go with Jeff Hopkins or the Bolshevik revolution) but I clearly heard "Red!" at the NCAA Championship Game.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Trotsky (---.dc.dc.cox.net)
Date: April 13, 2015 02:13PM

I have a feeling the first time I heard it was in the early 90s, and remember thinking, "Well, that's obvious -- why didn't we ever do that?" I'm pretty sure we never did it when I was an undergrad (through 86).

I cannot remember whether Clarkson did it first. I know RPI and Union copied.
Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 04/13/2015 02:15PM by Trotsky.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: tominvb (---.hsd1.fl.comcast.net)
Date: April 13, 2015 02:35PM

I heard it in Lincoln at a Nebraska football game.

TS
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: RichH (---.northgrum.com)
Date: April 13, 2015 03:34PM

Trotsky
I have a feeling the first time I heard it was in the early 90s, and remember thinking, "Well, that's obvious -- why didn't we ever do that?" I'm pretty sure we never did it when I was an undergrad (through 86).

It was established enough to be included in the Cornell-produced "student handbook" publication I was given in Fall 1992 (my freshman year), and it was being done at all sporting events I attended.

There was a cover article on the history of the building and fans in the Cornell Alumni Magazine (Jan/Feb '93, Volume 95, Issue 6) that features a neat little timeline of approximate years certain cheers appeared/evolved. I wouldn't treat it as gospel, since it got Mike Schafer's graduation year wrong, but it's pretty interesting. I'm happy to have found it, but unfortunately for this thread, there's no mention of the "RED!" thing.

In several visiting rinks, old, salty fans would come up to our section and scold us for being so disrespectful. I would point out that we proudly sang every word of the anthem, while the home fans would be chatting away, not paying much attention at all.
Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 04/13/2015 03:39PM by RichH.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: RichH (134.223.230.---)
Date: April 13, 2015 03:39PM

I've noticed that fans of the Washington Capitals are doing the "RED" now, and regionally, the Orioles fans will also bring their "O!" to any event.

A list, then, from a googling session:

"O!" -- Orioles (started in the '70s)

say can "U!" see -- Union (I have heard "U C!!" in the past)

"WHOSE!" broad stripes -- UVa ("Hoos" )

and bright "STARS!" -- Dallas Stars

And the "ROCKETS!" -- A small group of Houston Rocket fans called the Red Rowdies

"RED!" glare -- Cornell Big Red, RPI, Washington Caps, Florida Panthers, Calgary Flames, Carolina Hurricanes, Nebraska, probably more

proof through the "NIGHT!" -- Clarkson, Atlanta Thrashers (for Atlanta Knights)

"O!!" say .. -- Orioles, and Duke somehow.

and the home of the "xxxxx!" -- Atlanta Braves, University of North Dakota, KC Chiefs, probably dozens more.


------------

Canada: "TRUE NORTH!" -- Winnipeg Jets (for the ownership group, True North Sports & Entertainment Ltd)
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/13/2015 03:43PM by RichH.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Chris '03 (---.dyn.optonline.net)
Date: April 13, 2015 04:24PM

No mention of Vermont? "Rock CATS red glare"

Unless I'm misremembering them trying to get ahead of the "red"

 
___________________________
"Mark Mazzoleni looks like a guy whose dog just died out there..."

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/13/2015 04:25PM by Chris '03.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: ACM (---.twcny.res.rr.com)
Date: April 13, 2015 05:19PM

This history of the Clarkson pep band implies that Cornell fans were shouting "Red!" during the anthem at least as far back as the 1991-92 season. (Look for the "Final Four at Lake State ('91-'92)" link.)
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Trotsky (---.dc.dc.cox.net)
Date: April 13, 2015 05:29PM

RichH
There was a cover article on the history of the building and fans in the Cornell Alumni Magazine (Jan/Feb '93, Volume 95, Issue 6) that features a neat little timeline of approximate years certain cheers appeared/evolved. I wouldn't treat it as gospel, since it got Mike Schafer's graduation year wrong, but it's pretty interesting.
I think I recall somebody researching that by asking people on hockey-l. I believe we have reached a mobius strip.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Scersk '97 (---.hsd1.ct.comcast.net)
Date: April 13, 2015 06:03PM

ACM
This history of the Clarkson pep band implies that Cornell fans were shouting "Red!" during the anthem at least as far back as the 1991-92 season. (Look for the "Final Four at Lake State ('91-'92)" link.)

Although marked as '91–'92, the Lake State trip being recalled by that particular author was actually in '90–'91…

"Fuzzy Memories" (to the tune of "Tiny Bubbles" )!
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/13/2015 06:05PM by Scersk '97.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Beeeej (Moderator)
Date: April 13, 2015 09:23PM

I'll narrow it down a little further between Greg's and Rich's recollections; I'm roughly 95% certain that we weren't doing it when I started attending games in November, 1987, and that we were doing it by either the Boston Garden semifinal loss to RPI in 1990 or the Boston Garden semifinal loss to SLU in 1991.

Sorry I can't be more specific.

 
___________________________
Beeeej, Esq.

"Cornell isn't an organization. It's a loose affiliation of independent fiefdoms united by a common hockey team."
- Steve Worona
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Sydney Reade (---.twcny.res.rr.com)
Date: April 13, 2015 10:28PM

Thank you all, you've been a great help!
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: David Harding (---.hsd1.il.comcast.net)
Date: April 13, 2015 11:45PM

Sydney Reade
Hey Cornell alums!

I am writing a research paper on the origins of some of the hockey traditions. Anyone know/remember when and why we started shouting "Red!" during the national anthem when we reach the appropriate lyric? Any help is much appreciated.

SR '15

Nothing to to do with the origins of the cheer, but my favorite related memory is from the first MSG game against BU in 2007. They brought in a mercenary trumpeter (a famous name from some late night TV show, IIRC) to play the Star Spangled Banner. He apparently hadn't gotten the scouting report and nearly dropped his trumpet when we blasted him with "RED".
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: billhoward (---.hsd1.nj.comcast.net)
Date: April 14, 2015 06:37AM

Sydney Reade
Hey Cornell alums! I am writing a research paper on the origins of some of the hockey traditions. Anyone know/remember when and why we started shouting "Red!" during the national anthem when we reach the appropriate lyric? Any help is much appreciated. SR '15
This must be a good course to be in.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Jim Hyla (---.syrcny.fios.verizon.net)
Date: April 14, 2015 08:32AM

Sydney Reade
Hey Cornell alums!

I am writing a research paper on the origins of some of the hockey traditions. Anyone know/remember when and why we started shouting "Red!" during the national anthem when we reach the appropriate lyric? Any help is much appreciated.

SR '15

Once it's done, please provide a link to your paper.:-)

 
___________________________
"Cornell Fans Made the Timbers Tremble", Boston Globe, March/1970
Cornell lawyers stopped the candy throwing. Jan/2005
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Jeff Hopkins '82 (204.27.156.---)
Date: April 14, 2015 08:38AM

Wasn't me, Roy.

I started the newspapers during intros, and I know you and I (along with my roommate) started the "Somebody else, too" addition to Screw BU in 1980, but that's all I can take credit (responsibility?) for.

I know it wasn't done when I was a student, and I don't remember it from the tournament at the Garden in the mid 80's. The first time I remember hearing it was at Lake Placid in '96.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/14/2015 08:39AM by Jeff Hopkins '82.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Robb (---.lsanca.fios.verizon.net)
Date: April 14, 2015 08:54AM

Beeeej
I'll narrow it down a little further between Greg's and Rich's recollections; I'm roughly 95% certain that we weren't doing it when I started attending games in November, 1987, and that we were doing it by either the Boston Garden semifinal loss to RPI in 1990 or the Boston Garden semifinal loss to SLU in 1991.

Sorry I can't be more specific.
I'm as certain as I can be about anything 25 years later that RED was yelled at my very first Cornell hockey game (yes, I was there for the warmups, kiddies - get with it!) which would have been fall of 1990. Funny thing about traditions - when you hear it for the first time, you just always assume 'twas always thus. I had no idea the tradition was so "young" when I heard it first.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Trotsky (---.dc.dc.cox.net)
Date: April 14, 2015 12:14PM

Robb
Funny thing about traditions - when you hear it for the first time, you just always assume 'twas always thus. I had no idea the tradition was so "young" when I heard it first.
I never knew "x too" began in 1980. When I first heard it in the fall of 1981 I assumed it was ancient.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: marty (---.sub-70-209-141.myvzw.com)
Date: April 14, 2015 12:20PM

Trotsky
Robb
Funny thing about traditions - when you hear it for the first time, you just always assume 'twas always thus. I had no idea the tradition was so "young" when I heard it first.
I never knew "x too" began in 1980. When I first heard it in the fall of 1981 I assumed it was ancient.

I'm losing it perhaps? I thought it was done in the fall of '70 when first was lucky enough to sit in Lynah.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Jeff Hopkins '82 (204.27.156.---)
Date: April 14, 2015 01:11PM

marty
Trotsky
Robb
Funny thing about traditions - when you hear it for the first time, you just always assume 'twas always thus. I had no idea the tradition was so "young" when I heard it first.
I never knew "x too" began in 1980. When I first heard it in the fall of 1981 I assumed it was ancient.

I'm losing it perhaps? I thought it was done in the fall of '70 when first was lucky enough to sit in Lynah.

It may have been done in '70, but it certainly wasn't being done in '78 when I arrived on campus.

That said, nothing's ever original. Full disclosure: I stole the newspaper idea from the University of Scranton.
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 04/14/2015 01:14PM by Jeff Hopkins '82.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Trotsky (---.dc.dc.cox.net)
Date: April 14, 2015 01:27PM

Jeff Hopkins '82
That said, nothing's ever original. Full disclosure: I stole the newspaper idea from the University of Scranton.
I don't recall the newpapers being shaken at first, and that was much more effective. Mystery, Alaska was terrible, but the one thing it got right was the newspaper scene. Complete silence.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/14/2015 01:29PM by Trotsky.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: jkahn (---.whitingcorp.com)
Date: April 14, 2015 02:12PM

Jeff Hopkins '82
marty
Trotsky
Robb
Funny thing about traditions - when you hear it for the first time, you just always assume 'twas always thus. I had no idea the tradition was so "young" when I heard it first.
I never knew "x too" began in 1980. When I first heard it in the fall of 1981 I assumed it was ancient.

I'm losing it perhaps? I thought it was done in the fall of '70 when first was lucky enough to sit in Lynah.

It may have been done in '70, but it certainly wasn't being done in '78 when I arrived on campus.

That said, nothing's ever original. Full disclosure: I stole the newspaper idea from the University of Scranton.
It's been discussed before, but in the 1972 NCAA tournament, Wisconsin fans added "and Cornell too" to our Screw BU cheer. BU's band constantly played what was their "GO BU" cheer, so it was BU's band that was playing it during the tournament, and it always was met with a loud "Screw BU" from the large Cornell contingent. Not liking that their team wasn't in the final, Wisconsin fans added their tag line so both finalists were included.

 
___________________________
Jeff Kahn '70 '72
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: ugarte (---.dyn.optonline.net)
Date: April 16, 2015 12:45AM

Beeeej
I'll narrow it down a little further between Greg's and Rich's recollections; I'm roughly 95% certain that we weren't doing it when I started attending games in November, 1987, and that we were doing it by either the Boston Garden semifinal loss to RPI in 1990 or the Boston Garden semifinal loss to SLU in 1991.

Sorry I can't be more specific.
My first semester on campus was January '90. It was already a thing. Maybe it started earlier that year, but the freshmen I knew - who told me when I transferred in to find a way to get hockey tickets - made it sound like it wasn't new that year.

 
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: KenP (---.ssmcnet.noaa.gov)
Date: April 16, 2015 02:02PM

I remember using that cheer at football games in fall 1988. My first hockey game was fall 1990 and it was there too.

Interesting that it was so new at the time. I would never have guessed!
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/16/2015 02:02PM by KenP.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: adamw (---.phlapa.fios.verizon.net)
Date: August 31, 2015 06:17PM

Just seeing this now.

My freshman year at IC was Fall of 1988. I attended/covered my first Cornell hockey game that fall ... so, say, November or December 1988. I know for a fact "RED" was chanted then - because I distinctly remember nearly jumping out of my skin when it happened, because I completely wasn't expecting it. Which elicited a chuckle from who I was there with - which leads me to believe it had been done before, as well.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Trotsky (---.hsd1.md.comcast.net)
Date: August 31, 2015 07:09PM

So we have it narrowed down. It didn't exist yet during the '86 run, but it was common enough in '88 that it scared a freshman. :)

Sounds like it happened during the '87 season; one of the few bright spots not starting with the letters "Nieu."
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: bigred91 (---.hsd1.ma.comcast.net)
Date: February 04, 2024 11:29AM

I know this is a necro post, but I have always wanted to set the record straight on this. I know the answer because I was there when it first happened. It was during the 88-89 season.

The first time this was done I was standing next to Shehriyar "Shay" Antia, class of '92 I think he was, when he just did it spontaneously. It cracked everyone up in our section (D or E, can't recall which) and the next game a few more of us did it. It caught on quickly and by season's end it was a mainstay. A few seasons later Clarkson copied the idea and started shouting "Knight" when "proof through the night" came around.

So there you have it. Shay Antia, 88-89 season!
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/04/2024 11:31AM by bigred91.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: block (---.ptld.qwest.net)
Date: August 18, 2025 07:50PM

Just came across this - I am the originator of the "red" during the national anthem. I started doing it probably in late season '87 or possibly '88 (I'm class of '89). I was a big Orioles fan at the time and thought it was a no-brainer to chant "red" during the anthem. I got several of my roommates to help out but it didn't catch on until we roadtipped to Clarkson and St. Lawerence and sat near the Cornell band. They obviously heard it and started to do it themselves. The rest is history.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: CU2007 (---.res.spectrum.com)
Date: August 18, 2025 09:39PM

My dad told me he did it in 1981
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: The Rancor (73.214.97.---)
Date: August 19, 2025 07:38AM

I think our season tickets started in '85-'86 and I vaguely remember it being a thing.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Trotsky (---.ph.ph.cox.net)
Date: August 19, 2025 10:40AM

It started after I graduated (86 season) and before I started going to games as an alumnus (90 season). I distinctly remember thinking, "that's new."
Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 08/19/2025 10:42AM by Trotsky.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: ugarte (---.nycmny.fios.verizon.net)
Date: August 19, 2025 08:01PM

CU2007
My dad told me he did it in 1981
my suspicion is that it happened from time to time throughout cornell hockey history but i trust that if trotsky thought something was new after he graduated it wasn't a regular thing while he was there and i wouldn't trust him with much

ftr i arrived on campus january 1990 and was told about the "tradition" by a frosh, so it had become part of the gestalt by then.

 

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/19/2025 08:02PM by ugarte.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Trotsky (---.ph.ph.cox.net)
Date: August 20, 2025 01:43AM

Yes, I am also assuming various people screamed Red! during the anthem, and one night the stars aligned and it stuck.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: hypotenuse (---.nycmny.fios.verizon.net)
Date: August 21, 2025 11:06AM

An interesting project. As a 1973(!) graduate, I feel that like a game of telephone, or that Star Trek episode with the Coms and the Yangs, some of the cheers have become garbled over the decades. The one I miss most is the cheer after we score, which went ONE! WE WANT MORE, hopefully followed by ONE! TWO! WE WANT MORE,, etc. This was done slowly and deliberately, so the full impact of our scoring prowess could be absorbed by our adversary.
Over the last decade(?), the words are said, but without any understanding why, IMHO.
As for RED, I always thought we stole it from someone else, maybe Colgate. It was not done during my era.

One funny anecdote. At the first game at MSG on Thanksgiving weekend, maybe 10 or so years ago. The Garden had some guy on hand to sing the Star Spangled Banner. No one had bothered to tell him about our little tradition, and so when he got to rockets red glare, and the place erupted with RED, he literally stopped for several beats while he tried to figure out WTF. A highlight of the evening.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Will (---.cit.cornell.edu)
Date: August 21, 2025 12:08PM

hypotenuse
The one I miss most is the cheer after we score, which went ONE! WE WANT MORE, hopefully followed by ONE! TWO! WE WANT MORE,, etc. This was done slowly and deliberately, so the full impact of our scoring prowess could be absorbed by our adversary.
Over the last decade(?), the words are said, but without any understanding why, IMHO.

The Lynah Faithful haven't done the slow post-goal count in at least a quarter century. When I arrived in 1999, we were already doing the quick count, followed by "WE WANT MORE!", "SIEVE!" (x8), and "IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!" (x4) all in rapid succession.

 
___________________________
Is next year here yet?
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Trotsky (---.ph.ph.cox.net)
Date: August 21, 2025 12:15PM

Will
hypotenuse
The one I miss most is the cheer after we score, which went ONE! WE WANT MORE, hopefully followed by ONE! TWO! WE WANT MORE,, etc. This was done slowly and deliberately, so the full impact of our scoring prowess could be absorbed by our adversary.
Over the last decade(?), the words are said, but without any understanding why, IMHO.

The Lynah Faithful haven't done the slow post-goal count in at least a quarter century. When I arrived in 1999, we were already doing the quick count, followed by "WE WANT MORE!", "SIEVE!" (x8), and "IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!" (x4) all in rapid succession.
It was dying already when I was an undergrad (early 80s) as I recall upper classmen bemoaning the enshitifcation.

tldr: everything has been going to hell since 1648. There are occasional bursts of resistance, but Ow My Balls is the future, until we strangle the last salesman with the entrails of the last advertiser.
Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 08/21/2025 12:18PM by Trotsky.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: jtwcornell91 (Moderator)
Date: August 21, 2025 05:18PM

hypotenuse
One funny anecdote. At the first game at MSG on Thanksgiving weekend, maybe 10 or so years ago. The Garden had some guy on hand to sing the Star Spangled Banner. No one had bothered to tell him about our little tradition, and so when he got to rockets red glare, and the place erupted with RED, he literally stopped for several beats while he tried to figure out WTF. A highlight of the evening.

He's in good company.

 
___________________________
JTW

@jtwcornell91@hostux.social
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: David Harding (---.hsd1.il.comcast.net)
Date: August 21, 2025 08:44PM

hypotenuse
An interesting project. As a 1973(!) graduate, I feel that like a game of telephone, or that Star Trek episode with the Coms and the Yangs, some of the cheers have become garbled over the decades. The one I miss most is the cheer after we score, which went ONE! WE WANT MORE, hopefully followed by ONE! TWO! WE WANT MORE,, etc. This was done slowly and deliberately, so the full impact of our scoring prowess could be absorbed by our adversary.
Over the last decade(?), the words are said, but without any understanding why, IMHO.
As for RED, I always thought we stole it from someone else, maybe Colgate. It was not done during my era.

One funny anecdote. At the first game at MSG on Thanksgiving weekend, maybe 10 or so years ago. The Garden had some guy on hand to sing the Star Spangled Banner. No one had bothered to tell him about our little tradition, and so when he got to rockets red glare, and the place erupted with RED, he literally stopped for several beats while he tried to figure out WTF. A highlight of the evening.

I remember that first MSG game well. It was 2007. They had a famous trumpeter from one of the late night TV shows play the national anthem standing on a carpet out on the ice. He almost dropped his horn when we screamed "RED".
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Jeff Hopkins '82 (---.229.167.165.res-cmts.sm3.ptd.net)
Date: August 21, 2025 11:00PM

David Harding
hypotenuse
An interesting project. As a 1973(!) graduate, I feel that like a game of telephone, or that Star Trek episode with the Coms and the Yangs, some of the cheers have become garbled over the decades. The one I miss most is the cheer after we score, which went ONE! WE WANT MORE, hopefully followed by ONE! TWO! WE WANT MORE,, etc. This was done slowly and deliberately, so the full impact of our scoring prowess could be absorbed by our adversary.
Over the last decade(?), the words are said, but without any understanding why, IMHO.
As for RED, I always thought we stole it from someone else, maybe Colgate. It was not done during my era.

One funny anecdote. At the first game at MSG on Thanksgiving weekend, maybe 10 or so years ago. The Garden had some guy on hand to sing the Star Spangled Banner. No one had bothered to tell him about our little tradition, and so when he got to rockets red glare, and the place erupted with RED, he literally stopped for several beats while he tried to figure out WTF. A highlight of the evening.

I remember that first MSG game well. It was 2007. They had a famous trumpeter from one of the late night TV shows play the national anthem standing on a carpet out on the ice. He almost dropped his horn when we screamed "RED".

We've spooked quite a few singers at Lake Placid, too.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Dafatone (---.sub-174-234-148.myvzw.com)
Date: August 22, 2025 01:17AM

Jeff Hopkins '82
David Harding
hypotenuse
An interesting project. As a 1973(!) graduate, I feel that like a game of telephone, or that Star Trek episode with the Coms and the Yangs, some of the cheers have become garbled over the decades. The one I miss most is the cheer after we score, which went ONE! WE WANT MORE, hopefully followed by ONE! TWO! WE WANT MORE,, etc. This was done slowly and deliberately, so the full impact of our scoring prowess could be absorbed by our adversary.
Over the last decade(?), the words are said, but without any understanding why, IMHO.
As for RED, I always thought we stole it from someone else, maybe Colgate. It was not done during my era.

One funny anecdote. At the first game at MSG on Thanksgiving weekend, maybe 10 or so years ago. The Garden had some guy on hand to sing the Star Spangled Banner. No one had bothered to tell him about our little tradition, and so when he got to rockets red glare, and the place erupted with RED, he literally stopped for several beats while he tried to figure out WTF. A highlight of the evening.

I remember that first MSG game well. It was 2007. They had a famous trumpeter from one of the late night TV shows play the national anthem standing on a carpet out on the ice. He almost dropped his horn when we screamed "RED".

We've spooked quite a few singers at Lake Placid, too.

Nebraskans did not appreciate it at UNO in 2012 or so.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Trotsky (---.ph.ph.cox.net)
Date: August 22, 2025 01:40AM

Dafatone
Jeff Hopkins '82
David Harding
hypotenuse
An interesting project. As a 1973(!) graduate, I feel that like a game of telephone, or that Star Trek episode with the Coms and the Yangs, some of the cheers have become garbled over the decades. The one I miss most is the cheer after we score, which went ONE! WE WANT MORE, hopefully followed by ONE! TWO! WE WANT MORE,, etc. This was done slowly and deliberately, so the full impact of our scoring prowess could be absorbed by our adversary.
Over the last decade(?), the words are said, but without any understanding why, IMHO.
As for RED, I always thought we stole it from someone else, maybe Colgate. It was not done during my era.

One funny anecdote. At the first game at MSG on Thanksgiving weekend, maybe 10 or so years ago. The Garden had some guy on hand to sing the Star Spangled Banner. No one had bothered to tell him about our little tradition, and so when he got to rockets red glare, and the place erupted with RED, he literally stopped for several beats while he tried to figure out WTF. A highlight of the evening.

I remember that first MSG game well. It was 2007. They had a famous trumpeter from one of the late night TV shows play the national anthem standing on a carpet out on the ice. He almost dropped his horn when we screamed "RED".

We've spooked quite a few singers at Lake Placid, too.

Nebraskans did not appreciate it at UNO in 2012 or so.

The common clay of the New West.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: ugarte (---.nycmny.fios.verizon.net)
Date: August 22, 2025 12:17PM

Dafatone
Jeff Hopkins '82
David Harding
hypotenuse
An interesting project. As a 1973(!) graduate, I feel that like a game of telephone, or that Star Trek episode with the Coms and the Yangs, some of the cheers have become garbled over the decades. The one I miss most is the cheer after we score, which went ONE! WE WANT MORE, hopefully followed by ONE! TWO! WE WANT MORE,, etc. This was done slowly and deliberately, so the full impact of our scoring prowess could be absorbed by our adversary.
Over the last decade(?), the words are said, but without any understanding why, IMHO.
As for RED, I always thought we stole it from someone else, maybe Colgate. It was not done during my era.

One funny anecdote. At the first game at MSG on Thanksgiving weekend, maybe 10 or so years ago. The Garden had some guy on hand to sing the Star Spangled Banner. No one had bothered to tell him about our little tradition, and so when he got to rockets red glare, and the place erupted with RED, he literally stopped for several beats while he tried to figure out WTF. A highlight of the evening.

I remember that first MSG game well. It was 2007. They had a famous trumpeter from one of the late night TV shows play the national anthem standing on a carpet out on the ice. He almost dropped his horn when we screamed "RED".

We've spooked quite a few singers at Lake Placid, too.

Nebraskans did not appreciate it at UNO in 2012 or so.
A BC fan seemed ready to take a swing at me in Providence before the Mankato game.

 
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Jeff Hopkins '82 (---.229.167.165.res-cmts.sm3.ptd.net)
Date: August 22, 2025 03:20PM

Trotsky
Dafatone
Jeff Hopkins '82
David Harding
hypotenuse
An interesting project. As a 1973(!) graduate, I feel that like a game of telephone, or that Star Trek episode with the Coms and the Yangs, some of the cheers have become garbled over the decades. The one I miss most is the cheer after we score, which went ONE! WE WANT MORE, hopefully followed by ONE! TWO! WE WANT MORE,, etc. This was done slowly and deliberately, so the full impact of our scoring prowess could be absorbed by our adversary.
Over the last decade(?), the words are said, but without any understanding why, IMHO.
As for RED, I always thought we stole it from someone else, maybe Colgate. It was not done during my era.

One funny anecdote. At the first game at MSG on Thanksgiving weekend, maybe 10 or so years ago. The Garden had some guy on hand to sing the Star Spangled Banner. No one had bothered to tell him about our little tradition, and so when he got to rockets red glare, and the place erupted with RED, he literally stopped for several beats while he tried to figure out WTF. A highlight of the evening.

I remember that first MSG game well. It was 2007. They had a famous trumpeter from one of the late night TV shows play the national anthem standing on a carpet out on the ice. He almost dropped his horn when we screamed "RED".

We've spooked quite a few singers at Lake Placid, too.

Nebraskans did not appreciate it at UNO in 2012 or so.

The common clay of the New West.

Indeed.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: adamw (---.hsd1.co.comcast.net)
Date: August 23, 2025 10:38AM

hypotenuse
An interesting project. As a 1973(!) graduate, I feel that like a game of telephone, or that Star Trek episode with the Coms and the Yangs, some of the cheers have become garbled over the decades. The one I miss most is the cheer after we score, which went ONE! WE WANT MORE, hopefully followed by ONE! TWO! WE WANT MORE,, etc. This was done slowly and deliberately, so the full impact of our scoring prowess could be absorbed by our adversary.
Over the last decade(?), the words are said, but without any understanding why, IMHO.
As for RED, I always thought we stole it from someone else, maybe Colgate. It was not done during my era.

One funny anecdote. At the first game at MSG on Thanksgiving weekend, maybe 10 or so years ago. The Garden had some guy on hand to sing the Star Spangled Banner. No one had bothered to tell him about our little tradition, and so when he got to rockets red glare, and the place erupted with RED, he literally stopped for several beats while he tried to figure out WTF. A highlight of the evening.

I was an Ithaca freshman during the 1988-89 season - my first game at Lynah as a reporter would've been November 1988 or maybe January 1989. Back then, there was no press box - just a press row of seats, about 3 rows off the glass. The crowd was definitely doing the "Red" thing then - because I distinctly remember nearly having a heart attack when it happened. I was totally unprepared.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: ACM (---.res.spectrum.com)
Date: August 24, 2025 08:32AM

adamw
hypotenuse
An interesting project. As a 1973(!) graduate, I feel that like a game of telephone, or that Star Trek episode with the Coms and the Yangs, some of the cheers have become garbled over the decades. The one I miss most is the cheer after we score, which went ONE! WE WANT MORE, hopefully followed by ONE! TWO! WE WANT MORE,, etc. This was done slowly and deliberately, so the full impact of our scoring prowess could be absorbed by our adversary.
Over the last decade(?), the words are said, but without any understanding why, IMHO.
As for RED, I always thought we stole it from someone else, maybe Colgate. It was not done during my era.

One funny anecdote. At the first game at MSG on Thanksgiving weekend, maybe 10 or so years ago. The Garden had some guy on hand to sing the Star Spangled Banner. No one had bothered to tell him about our little tradition, and so when he got to rockets red glare, and the place erupted with RED, he literally stopped for several beats while he tried to figure out WTF. A highlight of the evening.

I was an Ithaca freshman during the 1988-89 season - my first game at Lynah as a reporter would've been November 1988 or maybe January 1989. Back then, there was no press box - just a press row of seats, about 3 rows off the glass. The crowd was definitely doing the "Red" thing then - because I distinctly remember nearly having a heart attack when it happened. I was totally unprepared.

There was a pressbox at Lynah, at the top of section C, but it was very small, only had room for WHCU, the visiting radio, the SID, and the Ithaca Journal reporter. All others with media credentials sat, as Adam described, in a row behind the timekeeper and announcer, who were directly behind the single penalty bench.
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: adamw (---.hsd1.co.comcast.net)
Date: August 25, 2025 02:12PM

ACM
adamw
hypotenuse
An interesting project. As a 1973(!) graduate, I feel that like a game of telephone, or that Star Trek episode with the Coms and the Yangs, some of the cheers have become garbled over the decades. The one I miss most is the cheer after we score, which went ONE! WE WANT MORE, hopefully followed by ONE! TWO! WE WANT MORE,, etc. This was done slowly and deliberately, so the full impact of our scoring prowess could be absorbed by our adversary.
Over the last decade(?), the words are said, but without any understanding why, IMHO.
As for RED, I always thought we stole it from someone else, maybe Colgate. It was not done during my era.

One funny anecdote. At the first game at MSG on Thanksgiving weekend, maybe 10 or so years ago. The Garden had some guy on hand to sing the Star Spangled Banner. No one had bothered to tell him about our little tradition, and so when he got to rockets red glare, and the place erupted with RED, he literally stopped for several beats while he tried to figure out WTF. A highlight of the evening.

I was an Ithaca freshman during the 1988-89 season - my first game at Lynah as a reporter would've been November 1988 or maybe January 1989. Back then, there was no press box - just a press row of seats, about 3 rows off the glass. The crowd was definitely doing the "Red" thing then - because I distinctly remember nearly having a heart attack when it happened. I was totally unprepared.

There was a pressbox at Lynah, at the top of section C, but it was very small, only had room for WHCU, the visiting radio, the SID, and the Ithaca Journal reporter. All others with media credentials sat, as Adam described, in a row behind the timekeeper and announcer, who were directly behind the single penalty bench.

right, of course, my bad ... Arthur correcting me has also been a very important part of my Cornell hockey history :)
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: Trotsky (---.ph.ph.cox.net)
Date: August 25, 2025 02:30PM

As a C season ticket holder both as a student and then as an alum after they (stupidly) took the section from the students, the press box was a fun part of the experience as a fan. If you made friends with the right person you got line sheets, and certain visiting radio guys were... shall we say... easy to wind up (lookin at you, SLU and UVM).
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: stereax (147.93.149.---)
Date: August 26, 2025 10:56AM

Trotsky
As a C season ticket holder both as a student and then as an alum after they (stupidly) took the section from the students, the press box was a fun part of the experience as a fan. If you made friends with the right person you got line sheets, and certain visiting radio guys were... shall we say... easy to wind up (lookin at you, SLU and UVM).
Line sheets popcorn
 
Re: Origin of "Red!" during national anthem?
Posted by: ugarte (---.nycmny.fios.verizon.net)
Date: August 26, 2025 04:57PM

stereax
Trotsky
As a C season ticket holder both as a student and then as an alum after they (stupidly) took the section from the students, the press box was a fun part of the experience as a fan. If you made friends with the right person you got line sheets, and certain visiting radio guys were... shall we say... easy to wind up (lookin at you, SLU and UVM).
Line sheets popcorn
they put them on the internet now but there was a time...

 
 

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