Kelley Curren
Dear Troy Students,
Stop wearing Auburn and Alabama attire around campus.
It is extremely insulting to the school that you currently attend to wear another college’s logo.
If you want to be at Auburn or Alabama, go there.
Otherwise, appreciate the school that’s giving you an opportunity to better yourself.
Troy, not Alabama or Auburn, accepted you and is allowing you to earn a degree.
Perhaps it’s because of the lower tuition or the majors offered, but whatever the reason you still ended up at Troy and have been given the opportunity to receive a higher education here.
It’s not just the Auburn and Alabama stuff either, it’s the Florida and Georgia and even Mississippi gear too.
As a Texan, I have strong loyalties to my fightin’ Texas Aggies and also to my dad’s alma mater, the Arizona State Sun Devils.
However, the minute I signed with Troy, all the T-shirts from A&M, ASU, and even Rice and University of Houston (as I am from Houston and attended all their volleyball camps) got pushed to the back of the closet and later sold in a garage sale.
I am a Trojan through and through, and I hate that people always assume I’m either an Alabama or Auburn fan.
For example, when my team was flying to Texas to play UTA and Texas State a man on the plane asked, “So, are you Auburn or Alabama?”
Mind you, I was fully decked out in Troy volleyball gear at the time.
I said, “I’m a Troy fan,” and hinted at my shirt.
So he replied with, “Yeah, but like, what about for football?”
And I said again, “I’m a Trojan,” meaning I am a Troy Trojan for every sport no matter what.
It is extremely frustrating that thanks to our own insistence, there are only two colleges that exist in Alabama to outsiders and even the majority of Alabamians.
For some reason, Troy is considered second rate.
And I get it. It’s the same in Texas when you compare Texas A&M and University of Texas to schools like Texas Christian University or Texas Tech or University of Houston.
The difference is, when you walk onto TCU, Texas Tech, or the University of Houston campuses, you don’t see people wearing UT and A&M colors.
Maybe UT was a student’s first choice, but they didn’t get in so they had to go to the University of Houston instead.
But even though that person was disappointed, they still appreciate the University of Houston and are a full-blown University of Houston Cougar now.
Let’s make it our mission as Trojans to come together and stop considering Troy a second rate university.
Let’s show off our Trojan pride and show the world we can and do compete with Alabama and Auburn.
Baseball has proven that time and time again, and softball and volleyball have put up one heck of a fight year after year with that elusive victory just around the corner.
So the next time you think about putting on that Bama cap or that Auburn hoodie, consider that you are supporting a school that you don’t even go to, a school that your university competes against and is one of your in-state rivals.
Your money, your time, and all your effort is spent at Troy.
Wouldn’t it make sense to respect the school you are giving four years of your life to?
Take pride in your university and its accomplishments and wear the name of the school you actually pay tuition to on your chest instead.
Be proud to be a Trojan and, at the very least, be thankful to the university that is giving you a chance to excel in the real world.
We truly are Trojans one and all.
