Numerous Georgia Tech legends and traditions have been established since the schools opening in 1888, some of which have persisted for decades. Over time, the school has grown from a trade school into a large research university, and the traditions reflect that heritage. One of the cherished holdovers from Techs early years, a steam whistle blows every weekday at various times to mark the changing of classes. Its for this reason that the faculty newspaper is named The Whistle.
Some of the traditions are well-known, the most notable being the now-banned tradition of stealing the "T" from Tech Tower. Tech Tower, Techs historic primary administrative building, has the letters TECH hanging atop it on each of its four sides. A number of times, students have orchestrated complex plans to steal the huge symbolic letter T, and on occasion have carried this act out successfully. One especially well-known tradition that has existed nearly since the schools establishment is Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate, Georgia Techs heated, long-standing and ongoing rivalry with the University of Georgia. The first known hostilities between the two schools trace back to 1891.
Several legends originated at Georgia Tech. George P. Burdell, Techs ever-present fictional student, was created in 1927 when a student filled out two application forms. Burdell went on to lead a long life; he earned several degrees, fought in World War II, and almost won Times 2001 Person of the Year award. Georgia Tech is also known for the largest margin of victory in a football game, achieved in their 222-0 thrashing of Cumberland University in the 1916 Cumberland vs. Georgia Tech football game.
Techs historic and primary administrative building, Tech Tower, has the letters TECH hanging atop it on each of its four sides. Since 1969, students on several occasions have orchestrated complex plans to scale Tech Tower and steal the huge symbolic letter T off the building. The T was first stolen in April 1969 by a secret group of Georgia Tech students calling themselves the "Magnificent Seven." The students, who were inspired by a similar prank that had taken place in 1968 at Harvard University, planned the theft as a means of commemorating Institute President Edwin D. Harrisons retirement. The T was returned several days later via helicopter at the behest of Atlanta mayor Ivan Allen.
Following successful thefts, the T would then be returned at the halftime of the homecoming football game or would be returned to the lawn of the presidents mansion, and the students achievement would be celebrated. Tradition dictates that the first T to be stolen should be the one facing east, as this can most easily be seen from the I-75/I-85 Downtown Connector. Although the administration used to turn a blind eye to this practice, it is now officially discouraged, due to the risk of fatal falls and the potential for damage to the building, and equated to criminal activity (trespassing and theft). In recent years, this has become a serious offense, and perpetrators today would face a hefty fine to repair damages done to the building and a minimum of a semester-long suspension for attempting the feat, if not outright expulsion.
Security features such as security cameras, pressure sensitive roof tiling, and fiber optic cabling running throughout the letters have been added to the T to help prevent its theft and aid in catching the perpetrators. In 1999, the T was successfully stolen by a group of "six or seven people" on the morning of June 3. The location of that T is still unknown. In 2001, two members of the fraternity Beta Theta Pi were caught and suspended in an attempt to steal the T. In October 2005, a replica of the T was stolen from the Student Services Building and returned two days later. Despite the lack of physical danger involved in stealing the spare T, the theft was still strongly criticized. The most recent successful theft of the T occurred during Georgia Techs spring break on March 18, 2014, which was the first time since 1999 that it had been successfully stolen.
The term Ramblin Wreck from Georgia Tech refers to either current students or alumni, the school mascot (also referred to as the Ramblin Reck), or the various sports teams. Georgia Tech alumni, working on the construction of the Panama Canal, were called Ramblin Wrecks for the ingenious machines that they devised to transport themselves in and out of the jungles of Panama. These devices and their creators were nicknamed Ramblin Wrecks from Georgia Tech. Since then the term Ramblin Wreck has been applied to a graduate or current student of Georgia Tech. The actual Ramblin Reck is a 1930 Ford Model A Sports Coupe first acquired by then-associate dean of students James E. Dull, in 1961. The first Ramblin Wreck mascot reference was in 1926 to Dean Floyd Fields 1914 Ford Model T. Sports teams of Georgia Tech are also called the Ramblin Wreck.The fight song for Georgia Tech Im a Rambling Wreck begins with the lyrics, "Im a Ramblin Wreck from Georgia Tech and a hell of an engineer." The song is sung at sporting events, official school functions, and always at the end of every graduation ceremony.
A steam whistle that blows at various times throughout the day to mark the end of classes. This tradition is a hold over from the trade school days, originally used to mark the end of a shift in the shops; now it is used both to mark the end of classes and as a fifteen-minute warning to the beginning of the next classes. It is also blown when Georgia Techs football team scores a touchdown or wins a game, and at each springs "When the Whistle Blows" remembrance ceremony.
Although not as popular as "stealing the T," the whistle has been stolen several times. The first ever Tech whistle installed in the late 1890s was stolen in 1902. The whistle was returned to Dean Griffin in 1949 as a retirement gift. The second theft of the whistle occurred in 1963, when a group of students nicknamed the "Magnificent 7" stole the whistle. Fearing Institute repercussions, the group returned the whistle in the spring of 1964. The whistle was again stolen in 1978 by a group nicknamed the "Committee of Five". The whistle was also stolen in 1969 and 1997. Both times the whistle was returned almost immediately after its theft. In 1969, the whistle was given to the student body president as a graduation gift a month after its theft and the 1997 theft was solved when President Clough found the whistle on his lawn a day after its theft.
The current steam whistle, located near Tech Tower, was built by the GTRI Machine Shop and installed in 2004. Prior to the Fall 2017 semester, the Whistle blew five minutes before the hour, every hour from 8:55 am to 5:55 am, but following a modification of the class schedule, the whistle now follows a modified blowing schedule. The Faculty newspaper is also named The Whistle.
Georgia Tech has an ongoing rivalry with the University of Georgia, often simply called "georgia" for short. The rivalry was called Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate by Atlanta Journal-Constitution columnist and UGA supporter, Lewis Grizzard. An annual issue of the Institute newspaper, The Technique, focuses on this rivalry with an issue that spoofs The Red and Black, the newspaper of the University of Georgia. As a dig at the rival school, the Technique will typically refer to it as "the university (sic) of Georgia" (sometimes shortened to "u(sic)GA") in articles. "To Hell With Georgia" (abbreviated "THWG" or "THWUGA"or "THWg") is also known as "The Good Word." In 2009, the Georgia Tech Cable Network (GTCN), produced a show, about the history of Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate To Hell With Georgia. If one student asks the word from another ("Whats the Good Word?"), the response is always "To Hell with georgia!" If asked about the Bulldogs ("How bout them Dawgs?"), an old tagline from the "University of Georgia" expression, the correct answer is, "Piss on em!"
Every year, a number of freshmen, most notably those in the marching band, wear gold caps known as RAT caps at each football game. RAT is short for Recruit At Tech, although recently the Student Government has begun incorrectly using Recently Acquired Tech Students or Recently Acquired Techie. The RAT caps are decorated with the football teams scores, the freshmans name, hometown, major, expected graduation date, and "To HELL With georgia" emblazoned on the back of the cap. It is important that HELL should be in all capital letters, while georgia should be all lowercase. Students who intend to utilize the cooperative education program circle the top button on the cap, and fill it in once they have completed their involvement.
The tradition began in 1915, and freshmen were required to wear the RAT caps every day until the Thanksgiving weekend game with UGA (if Georgia Tech won) or until end of the school year (if Georgia Tech lost). If Tech did not play UGA that year, freshmen were allowed to stop wearing their caps after a homecoming game victory. If the team lost, then the previously stated rules applied. Freshmen caught not wearing the cap faced varying degrees of hazing, including having their hair shaved into the shape of a letter tee ("T") or a T-Cut. Anti-hazing laws in the 1960s led to the virtual elimination of the tradition, although the use of RAT caps is still actively maintained by the marching band.
The RAT rules enforced by upperclassmen and in particular the Ramblin Reck Club are presented in the July 17, 1964 edition of the Technique. The rules are listed below:
Juniors Grill was a restaurant located in East Campus next to Tech Tower. The restaurant was first opened in 1948 under the name Pilgrims and was originally located on the corner of North Avenue and Techwood Drive. Its name changed to Juniors Grill in 1958, and it moved locations twice since then. Juniors Grill moved to its former location in the Bradley Building in 1994 when it was forced out of its old location by the need to construct apartments for the 1996 Summer Olympics. It was owned and operated by Tommy Klemis, a Tech EE grad.
The former restaurant housed pieces of Tech history, including aerial photographs of campus from various years, assorted Georgia Tech memorabilia, portraits of prominent individuals in Techs history, and a section of the goalpost from Techs 1990 National Championship game in the Citrus Bowl.Juniors Grill closed April 2011, citing slow business as the reason.
Georgia Tech Homecoming is a celebration held once a year for alum of the Institute to return to campus and take part in several festivities and Institute traditions. The themed homecoming festivities all lead up to a Saturday football contest. The events are usually led off with various Greek sports tournaments followed by the Mini 500, Freshman Cake Race, and the Wreck Parade. Every year the student body elects a Mr. and Ms. Georgia Tech. These are two individuals who have excelled in academics and extracurriculars on Tech campus. The titles changed from homecoming king and queen to Mr. and Ms. Georgia Tech in 1987 at the request of Dean James E. Dull.
The first homecoming was organized by ANAK in 1916. In 2008, Georgia Tech hosted the Virginia Cavaliers for its 92nd homecoming celebration and ended a twelve game win streak in homecoming contests. Tech is 44-13-1 since 1949 in its homecoming football games.
The Mini 500 is a tricycle race held during homecoming every year that requires teams to complete laps around Peters Parking Deck on East Campus. Men must complete 15 laps, while women must complete 10. There are mandatory pit stops in which the front tire must be rotated 3 times during the course of the race. Because the average racer weighs more than the average 5-year-old, the car is allowed one support brace to be welded onto the frame.
The race traces its roots back to the early 1960s, when fraternity pledges were forced to ride tricycles around campus as a form of hazing. The race was eventually formalized in 1969, and rules were instituted to make the Mini 500 an instant classic.
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