Halloween is the perfect time to dive into rituals around any team or school, but here at Drake, the Bulldogs have been setting themselves up for success since day one with the help of some strange, or quite practical, rituals.
Every sports team is different. The athletes that make up each individual team bring certain strengths to the group. Behind these star athletes are specific training schedules and rituals that lead the athlete of any sport to success, whether that is from lucky socks to a certain hairstyle that a team shares.
First off, leaving the dock with the women’s rowing team, the team starts off every race with a fist bump chain up the boat then wish each other good luck. This ritual may not seem like much, but given the team’s success against their biggest rivals, the Creighton University Bluejays, so far this season — along with multiple boats hitting shore with top-10 finishes in both the Head of the Mississippi and Iowa Chase this fall — this tradition could be more of a treat than a trick.
Following up the rowing team’s recipe for success, the women’s basketball team has some tricks and rituals of its own to help the now back-to-back Missouri Valley champions on and off the court.
“We have shoot-around five hours prior to the game,” head coach Allison Pohlman said in an email interview. “Pregame meal five hours prior to the game. When they get to the gym, they usually eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and then it is to warm-ups.”
Along with sandwiches and open gym prior to games, certain Bulldogs have their own pre-game rituals that may be a surprise. According to sophomore guard Brooklin Dailey, senior MVP Katie Dinnebier listens to tropical and Jamaican music, while junior Taedyn Gray goes around doing slick back hairstyles for her other teammates. Sophomore Shannon Fornshell specifically does a slick back ponytail with braids as her hairstyle of choice, while graduate Courtney Becker uses special pink pre-wrap for her ankle tape.
Despite losing power houses like graduates Grace Berg and Megan Campbell last spring, the team holds these rituals in its pocket, and if these are the keys to a March Madness three-peat, there is no doubt that the team has everything it needs from mental to physical strength to storm the court with style.
Kicking off the next list of rituals is the Drake men’s football team, and with the Bulldogs’ solid rituals in place, it could be predicted that they could improve the team that made it to the 2024 FCS playoffs for the first time in program history, followed up with a tie for first place against University of Dayton in the Pioneer League with a 5-1 overall record.
The team enjoys spaghetti and chicken the night before a game when they’re away, and some Bulldogs pray before each game, whether as a group or as an individual in the end zone, graduate quarterback Luke Bailey said in an email interview. Rituals like these show the importance of teammate bonding and boost Bulldogs’ mentality going into any game, according to Bailey.
Lastly, the track and cross country teams both hold pre-race rituals that are used to help the Bulldogs mentally, along with possibly intimidating their competition. Junior Aidan Simon said the team takes caffeine pills before they warm up to help boost overall energy but stay mostly quiet to help with any pre-race mental block or jitters that may occur while listening to music.
“About an hour before is when we come back together as a team,” Simon said. “We do our warmup, talk anything out like race strategies and such while also still working to keep the group’s energy high. We then get on the line 10-15 minutes early to do our strides before getting in a circle five minutes before the race to do our positive affirmations, remind the group of how much work they have put in and then finish it all off with our Bulldog chant.”
Simon also highlighted how rituals can improve an athlete’s mentality and keep them ready for anything thrown their way.
“Rituals are good because they help to ease your nerves and help you remember what you are going to do and even though we don’t always do as well as we hope it is a good way to keep us grounded,” Simon said.
Rituals come in all shapes and sizes, and for the athletes here at Drake University, it could be that these traditions and special actions can make all the difference, no matter if they win or lose.
