Touching Howard’s Rock is Clemson football’s iconic pregame ritual

College football is deeply rooted in tradition on and off the field

From marching bands and fight songs to rivalries and pregame rituals, college football’s pageantry binds generations of fans—making tradition as much a part of the sport’s identity as the games themselves.

“Dotting the i” in Script Ohio is one of college football’s most famous band traditions

Performed by The Ohio State University Marching Band since 1936, Script Ohio culminates with a sousaphone player ceremonially dotting the “i”—a revered honor that’s become an iconic symbol of Buckeye football Saturdays.

The cult of 'Rocky Horror' has its own rituals

The movie was initially a commercial failure, but it began amassing a loyal following through midnight showings, where audience members dressed as their favorite characters and acted out scenes from the movie in the aisles—a tradition that continues to this day.

Washington State’s flag has appeared on every College GameDay set since 2003

Known as “Ol’ Crimson,” the flag began flying at GameDay through a fan-organized effort to bring national attention to Washington State. Volunteers coordinate weekly to ensure it appears at every live broadcast location.

Rams player Fred Gehrke painted the NFL's first logo helmet

When the Rams took the field for their first preseason game of the 1948 season, they exited the tunnel with hand-painted ram horns on their helmets. It was the first logo painted on an NFL helmet and fans gave a 5-minute standing ovation.

Each player gets a full celebratory day with the Stanley Cup if their team wins, but not without supervision

During a player's special day, they aren’t just given the Cup and told to return it in 24 hours. Since 1995, it has been accompanied by the Keeper of the Cup.

The moment Bill Gates and the Rock announced the original Xbox at CES 2001

At CES 2001, Bill Gates and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson took the stage to unveil the original Xbox. This memorable moment marked Microsoft’s entry into gaming and set the tone for its console brand.

Auburn’s “Kick Six” in 2013 is one of college football’s most unforgettable finishes

In the 2013 Iron Bowl, Auburn’s Chris Davis returned a missed Alabama field goal 109 yards for a touchdown as time expired—securing a 34–28 win and instantly etching the play into college football lore.

'A lion never roars after a kill.'

-Coaching legend Dean Smith (1931-2015)

An immersive curation of the world's rock art

A living archive of humanity’s ancient art and symbols, our shared history that is embedded as rock art and cave art in the landscape

Three rock stars who made great country music

Steven Tyler, Tina Turner, and Darius Rucker all crossed into country. The author claims the trio shared a common trait: they weren't chasing a new audience. Instead, they were delving deeper into a sound already present in their work.

A history of the Masters Champions' Dinner, an annual golf tradition

The Masters Champions' Dinner is an annual tradition celebrated the Tuesday before the tournament begins. The previous year's champion sets the menu, leading to a history of eclectic meals. This resource from Today's Golfer provides a brief history of the tradition and then details every menu since 1986. It's an interesting window into the tastes of professional athletes (Tiger Woods, apparently, loves chicken fingers!) and the less-than-healthy habits from the sport's past.

Every MLB baseball needs to be rubbed with mud

When baseballs are done being hand-sewn and shipped to an MLB ballpark, they don't go straight to the field. Every ball that is put in play–an average of 100 per game–has to be rubbed with mud to give the ball a better grip. This video introduces the only family licensed to sell mud to MLB and shows what's special about this particular mud.

Some companies like to make their IPO day antics unique

An article details some of the wildest bell-ringing day stunts in recent history, from Clifford the Big Red Dog ringing the opening bell to one company's employees roasting marshmallows in a campfire on Wall Street as it went public.

In 1968, two American Olympians raised their fists while the anthem played

Tommie Smith won the gold medal in the 200-meter event at the 1968 Summer Olympic Games, followed closely by his teammate John Carlos, who earned the bronze. When they stood on the winner's podium while the national anthem played, the athletes raised their fists, mirroring a popular Black Power gesture.

The man behind the Preakness' iconic weathervane, which features every winner's name

Since 1988, Lawrence Jones has climbed into Pimlico's cherry picker to paint the Preakness winners' silks on its iconic weathervane—a tradition born in 1909. This America's Best Racing profiles Jones, a retired graphic artist, and how he has to meticulously paint the weathervane—even under challenging conditions. Learn the rich history of the event, and what happened to the weathervane after the 1966 fire.

Driving the 99 bends up China's Tianmen Mountain Big Gate

A huge rock gate sits atop a mountain in China's northwestern province of Hunan, where visitors climb 999 stairs to crest the natural wonder. For years, tourists used a cable car to reach the top, but a thrilling, curvy road was built in recent decades to allow for better access—and has become an attraction in itself.

The tradition of the graveyard picnic

This article from Eater shares a fresh perspective on eating amongst the dead. Writer Tiffany Leigh shares the cultural significance of picnicking in cemeteries during the Qingming Festival, also known as Tomb Sweeping Day, which is celebrated in Chinese culture. Her article explains how Qingming can be a tender and lighthearted event to remember the deceased and how that can differ from modern American attitudes toward death and cemeteries.

The story behind the greatest outburst in sports history

It's a line that's still perplexing all these years later: "Who do you think you are? I am!" Those words were uttered by Pete Weber, an iconic bowler who was somewhere between John McEnroe and Happy Gilmore. This oral history from the Ringer provides some context for the bizarre insult and a backstory that turns what appears to be a non sequitur into a triumphant celebration.

A timeline of the Rockefeller family

The Rockefeller family timeline (as it relates to the business world, at least) starts in 1839 with John D. Rockefeller’s birth. In the nearly 200 years since, his offspring have gotten involved in everything from the Watergate scandal to the McCormick & Company spice business.

70 years ago today, city officials in Santa Cruz, California, banned rock 'n' roll to protect its youth from corruption after witnessing a 'provocative' concert the night before.

Exploring the Larry Bird punch that almost changed March Madness

Watch Springsteen rip through ‘Because the Night’ backed by the Roots

The song may have been made famous by Patti Smith, but Springsteen co-wrote it, and it's since become a staple of his live shows. This 2010 performance on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” features some help from the Roots, who push the song to a new level.

Fearing the corruption of its youth, Santa Cruz, California, banned rock 'n' roll in 1956.

Audio and visual cues from "Titanic," Pink Floyd, and more can provoke goose bumps

These audio and visual snippets have been used in research studies to elicit goose bumps.

UMBC became the first 16-seed to ever beat a 1-seed, pulling off the biggest upset in March Madness history

In 2018, UMBC defeated the overall No. 1 seed Virginia 74-54, ending a 0-135 record for 16-seeds against 1-seeds and turning what was expected to be a blowout into one of the most unlikely results in sports history.

The Chicago Bears are the only professional sports team to score a Billboard Hot 100 hit

The 1985 track "The Super Bowl Shuffle" was recorded for charity, but the song (with its rudimentary raps and goofy taunts) became an unexpected hit, reaching No. 41 on the Hot 100 chart. This podcast digs into the history of the song and how it became an unexpected pop culture phenomenon.

The Ramones' 'Pet Sematary,' the theme song for the Stephen King novel of the same name, was written while the band was admiring the writer's collection of horror memorabilia.

A small portion of The Winstons' 'Amen, Brother,' an obscure '60s gospel record, is the basis for thousands of hip-hop tracks, making it one of the most sampled records ever that's informally known as 'the Amen break.'

Brandi Chastain, the star of the 1999 US victory over China in the 1999 Women's World Cup, was a last-second choice to take the penalty kick that sealed the victory.

Crows are believed to have intelligence on par with a seven-year-old child and demonstrate complex behaviors, from problem-solving with tools to recognizing human faces.

Apollo astronauts left items in the moon's 'toss zone,' including golf balls, family photos, and bags of human waste, to make room for lunar rocks.

In 1939, baseball star Lou Gehrig delivered his inspirational 'Luckiest Man' speech after retiring due to the health condition that now bears his name.

See the most iconic photos from four decades of LIFE magazine

Cultural norms about how to handle the bodies of loved ones in communities in West Africa have hampered Ebola responses.

The American cockroach is actually from Africa, an apparent hitchhiker aboard ships carrying enslaved people, with evidence suggesting the bug may have arrived in the New World as early as the 1600s.

Elk Cloner, the first computer virus to spread in public, was written as a practical joke by Richard Skrenta, a Pittsburgh high school student.

Up to a million Girl Scouts sell about 200 million cookie boxes every spring, generating $800 million, largely because refusing a child is frowned upon

Dorothy's famous entrance into Oz in 'The Wizard of Oz' relied on analog tricks, including a body double and sepia-toned paint, as much as it did on technology

Many legends about George Washington, including his supposed wooden teeth and the story of cutting down the cherry tree, lack evidence.

See how Budweiser's famous Clydesdales spend their days at Warm Springs Ranch, where roughly 70 to 80 of the beer brand's giant horses can be found at any given time.

The 19th-century painters of the Hudson River School were among the first American romantics, with portraits that displayed the natural beauty of the young country.

Tattoos remain visible on your skin thanks to immune cells called macrophages

Take a 3D tour of the Hajj, Islam's annual pilgrimage to Mecca, undertaken by over 1.5 million Muslims.

Power lines are dotted with large, brightly colored balls to improve the visibility of these thin wires to helicopters and small planes and help prevent potential crashes.

An initial public offering or 'IPO' is the process of a private company becoming public by putting shares of the company on the stock market for purchase.

Poison ivy's characteristic rash is caused by an allergic response to an oily compound in the plant called urushiol.

Some coin denominations have ridges etched on their sides, partly to prevent counterfeiting, in a practice called 'reeding.'

The first image of a black hole was captured by creating an Earth-sized virtual observatory from a network of eight radio telescopes.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps is independent of Iran's regular army and is one of the most powerful and influential military-political organizations in the Middle East.