The football tradition “More Cowbell” is the reason I came to Mississippi State University. My first game day experience here came after many game days at the dastardly school up north. Wanting to pursue journalism in college, I came here simply for the experience before making my final decision on where to spend the next four, now five years of college.

I went into the stadium and sat with my mom, and while awaiting the kickoff, I made my decision to come to Mississippi State. The Saturday Night Live skit in which Christopher Walken exclaims his need for “more cowbell” has been the reason behind my financial burden of the past five years.

For the first three years of my college career, every major media outlet that posted about SEC football traditions posted ours was the playing of “Don’t Stop Believin” by Journey at the end of the third quarter of each game. That, for all intents and purposes in a football context, is a song about losing.

Now that “Don’t Stop Believin” as a tradition has faded, although the need for it may have returned, “More Cowbell” remains our biggest and oldest tradition. In my opinion, it remains our best.

In my junior year, I was walking into the stadium during “more cowbell” before kickoff began, and I felt what I imagine opposing teams do before walking out of the tunnel each game. The coordinated ringing of 60,000 cowbells at once was nothing less than daunting. For an opposing quarterback who would eventually have to make decisions against a defense with Emmanuel Forbes while hearing these cowbells ring, “more cowbell” sets the tone.

“More cowbell” is not for us to decide to come to school here, however. It is not to intimidate the opposing team. I do not care about the context of the SNL skit in question either. “More cowbell” is for one thing and one thing only.

The cowbell makes Mississippi State the most unique college football environment in the country. No other University has an environment in which artificial noisemakers are allowed, but even then, that is not the point.

Mississippi State is no historic titan in any sport. While we do hold the mecca of college baseball and we of course have the 2021 national title, we do not have the history other schools do. What we do have is an utter marvel of a community.

“More Cowbell” is the fulfillment of the greatest community tradition in college sports. You cannot buy your first cowbell. It is the staple of the football experience in Starkville, what makes our games unique, yet you cannot partake in that culture unless someone buys you a cowbell.

Every Saturday, 60,000 fans ring out in support of Mississippi State football at the behest of Christopher Walken needing more cowbell. Sixty thousand fans that never bought their own cowbell. Sixty thousand cowbells were bought for friends, family or those simply wanting to join the community that both Starkville and Mississippi State have to offer.

“Don’t Stop Believin” for a long time stood to many as an excellent tradition, while to others it stood as as a symbol of an oncoming loss. “More cowbell” on the other hand remains as a war cry that does nothing if not in one moment show off the strength of the community here. A strength that, arguably, cannot be matched.