The night of Oct. 10th was the night CCSU hosted their annual pep rally to honor the Blue Devils football team, and all of the other fall athletics on campus. Students were lined up outside Elihu Burritt Library at 7:30 p.m. to snag a raffle tickets, free t-shirts and vouchers for a food truck. Students were given the option of fried dough, tacos or Ben and Jerry’s ice cream.
The rally, called Kizer’s Rodeo, was a rodeo themed so in addition to the t-shirts, there were also cowboy hats handed out in both white and pink to recognize breast cancer awareness.
The opening ceremony was the main event of the night. To kick things off, Montgomery “Montee” Rios shouted out her fellow cheerleaders, and then introduced the football team. Rios said pep rallies have many benefits for students.
“I believe the pep rally is very important because it’s a great way to show your school spirit,” Rios said. “It’s also a way to build connections, and to support your fellow Blue Devils.”
After the football team walked out of Breakers Game Room through a tunnel of cheerleaders, head football coach Adam Lechtenberg gave his thanks and team captain Jack Barnum, a junior, thanked all of the students for coming out to show their support. Barnum said that through pep rallies, fans can make an impact on home games.
“[The fans] give a different level of energy to guys on the field. Looking up and seeing people you go to class within the stands really hypes up the team.”
Barnum said this year’s pep rally was better than last year’s.
“This year was a step up from last year,” Barnum said. “It was really great to see everyone. It’s been great to see the Blue Devils come together.”
The Brazen Blue Devils were the last people to speak at the opening ceremony, and representing them was Vice President Jenna Bulmer, a senior. Bulmer said she really enjoys being part of the Brazen Blue Devils.
“It’s my fourth year at Central and as a freshman [the Brazen Blue Devils] helped me get introduced to a lot of people and feel welcomed,” Bulmer said. “I want to make [freshmen and transfer students] feel the same way I did when I was a freshman.”
Afterwards, students were met with a variety of activities in the Student Circle. To fit in with the rodeo theme, there was a mechanical bull and pig, along with a “Succulent Care” station where you could adopt a cactus to bring back to your dorm. The night was capped off with a handful of students dancing to the “Cupid Shuffle” and “The Wobble.” Overall, the night had a great turnout where students had a lot of fun representing the school pride here at CCSU.
