Thousands celebrate gaining their Aggie gold
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) – Over 4,300 Aggie Rings are distributed at the Clayton W. Williams, Jr. Alumni Center on Sept. 28 and 29.
Every hour, roughly 1,000 people pass through the Alumni Center for Aggie Ring Day.
“Over the course of the day and a half, we are expecting between 40 and 50 thousand total guests,” said Scot Walker, Vice President of the Association of Former Students. “There is no other ring program in the world that does the volume that we do, nor is there any university in the world that has the passion around their class ring that Aggies have for the Aggie Ring.”
Walker says the Aggie Ring is far more than an accessory.
“It is the most visible symbol of the worldwide Aggie Network and they are very eager to get it,” he says.
Many family members and friends gather to support the ring recipient.
“There is so much love, so much pride,” Walker said. “The ring recipients are proud of themselves for doing it and their parents are here, and their grandparents are here, and their friends are here. Everybody is so proud of the person who did it.”
Students say this day is something they have long anticipated.
“I have been dreaming of this day forever. I am a third-gen Aggie so I’m so excited to be here,” Texas A&M student, Kaylee Welsh said.
“I am so excited. I have been counting down the days for a long time,” Morgan Tanner, a student at Texas A&M said.
The new hardware connects each student to the Aggie Network.
“If you’re an Aggie or know Aggies, people recognize the Aggie Ring, they truly do,” Welsh said. They know the spirit of Aggieland and everyone recognizes it, so I just can’t wait for people to recognize my ring and ask me about it.”
