It’s that time of year again; Super Bulldog Weekend is upon us. Traffic gets a little crazy. The smell of barbecued pork fills our nostrils and the Gators from the Swamp have descended onto Dudy Noble Field to battle our Diamond Dogs for some major baseball triple-header action. As thousands of people enter into the state from all over the country, many are greeted by billboards. This year, billboards are adorned by none other than the head honcho of football, Coach Dan Mullen. However, if you look closely, you may also notice the billboards are not only an advertisement for Mississippi State and our football program; they also sub as a welcome sign with the words “Welcome to Our State,” written for all fans of all schools to see and admire. For this weekend, the featured homecoming splashed across the billboards also now serve as this year’s theme, “This is Our State.”
Each year, new themes and featured T-shirts are advertised in support of Super Bulldog Weekend activities. This conjuring of a theme is not a one-man army; it’s a team effort between the Mississippi State Athletic Department and Adidas, the official outfitters for MSU athletics. As a group, the MSU Athletic Marketing Department comes up with the concept, and with the help of Adidas, a design is formed that fully embodies the theme. “This is Our State” is a play off the same idea as the billboards.
“We are the People’s University,” Mike Nemeth, senior associate athletic director, said. “We want our folks to realize and grasp the fact that we are going to be aggressive when it comes to the ownership of this state.”
Nemeth also said he wants people to be proud of the institution in which they support. This year’s theme is an affirmation of that statement.
Scott Stricklin, MSU athletic director, said this year’s theme and T-shirt design incorporates everything that makes MSU great.
The T-shirt design for this year’s Super Bulldog Weekend festivities features a picture of the state of Mississippi on the back with “This is Our State” written in the word-mark style underneath. Inside the design lies an array of slogans, logos and words that materializes everything about Mississippi State, a representation well received by students and local retail stores.
“The design is in the shape of Mississippi,” Kim Fron, senior international business major, said. “It focuses on the whole state as opposed to just the university.”
Sherry Neal, manager of The Lodge, said it is nice to have the one T-shirt that represents all the sports, as opposed to a different T-shirt for every sport.
Over at Campus Book Mart, both customers and workers alike have expressed their approval of this year’s theme and T-shirt design.
“I love the shirt,” the Bully Shop Manager at Campus Book Mart, Susie McClelland, said. “I love the fact that it basically says ‘Welcome to Our State’.”
McClelland also said many customers who enter the store expressed their admiration for this year’s design.
Kathy Brown, the buyer at Campus Book Mart, also said she loved the shirt.
“It’s great,” said Brown. “It’s the best Super Bulldog Weekend T-shirt we’ve had in years.”
Super Bulldog Weekend T-shirts can be purchased at The Lodge, Barnes & Noble and both Campus Book Mart and the Downtown Book Mart.