College football fans may hear noisemakers through their TV speakers on any given Saturday in the autumn.  Whistles, airhorns and the like are all illegal in most stadiums across the country and can give the home team an unfair advantage.  Nevertheless, the existence of these devices are few and far between and are not part of the identity of that specific school.     

However, the clanging of a cowbell is synonymous with Mississippi State football.  Fans from across the Magnolia State descend on the town of Starkville with love in their hearts and cowbells in their hands.

The origin of the cowbell tradition cannot be precisely traced to a specific year.  However, www.mstateathletics.com says that in a “game between State and arch-rival Mississippi, a jersey cow wandered onto the playing field. Mississippi State soundly whipped the Rebels that Saturday, and State College students immediately adopted the cow as a good luck charm. Students are said to have continued bringing a cow to football games for a while, until the practice was eventually discontinued in favor of bringing just the cow's bell.”

Several efforts have been made to stifle the loud ring of the thousands of cowbells that create a decided home field advantage at Davis Wade Stadium.  In 1974, the SEC adopted a rule banning artificial noisemakers by a vote of 9-1 (the SEC consisted of only 10 teams at that time and the lone dissenting vote was cast by the MSU representative).  The main reason for the rule is that fans don’t only ring the cowbells after a big play.  They also will wait until the opposing offense breaks the huddle and approaches the line of scrimmage, making it difficult for the quarterback to communicate with his teammates.

The rule is specific to conference games, which means non-conference opponents must be ready to deal with the noise issue.  Signs are posted outside the stadium stating that if a fan brings in a cowbell, it is subject to confiscation but loyal Dawg fans are willing to take the risk and use their noisemaker.

Today, cowbells are a matter of fashion and pride for Dawg fans.  They range in size from the size of a hand to 18 inches tall.  In the 1960s, two MSU professors began welding long handles to the top of the cowbells to allow the bell to be run with “more convenience and authority.”  This trend caught on and visitors to Starkville memorabilia shops can find cowbells with handles for sale.  State fans also decorate their bells to give it a personalized look.  From, maroon and white ribbons to stickers to hand-drawn paint, die-hards show their Bulldog pride.

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