History
The Yell Leader tradition dates to 1907. According to A&M lore, the Aggies were being soundly defeated and a large number of women who had taken the train from Texas Woman's University in Denton were threatening to leave. The upperclassmen ordered the freshmen to find a way to keep the women entertained. Several freshmen snuck into a maintenance closet and changed into white coveralls. They then began leading the crowd in yells and telling jokes from the track in front of the stands. It was an instant hit and was quickly incorporated into the gameday repertoire for the Aggies. However, the freshmen became a little too popular with the ladies and "it was decided that only upperclassmen would be allowed to participate in this entertainment in the future." While usually a position held by members of the Corps of Cadets, non-Corps students have been elected to the position. Ricky Wood, class of 2001, became the first non-corps Head Yell Leader in 2000-2001.
In the early 1990s, the student body elected its first African American yell leader, Ronnie McDonald, Class of 1993. In 1999, McDonald became the youngest African American to become a county judge in the history of Texas. Arouna "Boo Boo" Davies Jr., Class of 2002, became the second African American yell leader. In another exception, neither were members of the Corps of Cadets.
Read more about this topic: Aggie Yell Leaders
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