Lists and Rankings

Top College Fight Songs

These songs make opponents cower in fear at sporting events! Well, maybe not, but they'll at least pump up the crowd. William E. Studwell and Bruce R. Schueneman, authors of College Fight Song II, A Supplementary Anthology, rated these college fight songs.

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• 1. University of Notre Dame (Notre Dame, IN): "Notre Dame Victory March" ("the best-known and perhaps the most-borrowed")
• 2. University of Michigan — Ann Arbor (Ann Arbor, MI): "The Victors" ("most rousing and stunning; a very proud song")
• 3. University of Wisconsin — Madison (Madison, WI): "On Wisconsin" ("smooth and much-borrowed old classic")
• 4. Yale University (New Haven, CT): "Down The Field" ("another smooth and much-borrowed old classic")
• 5. United States Naval Academy (Annapolis, MD): "Anchors Away" ("very dynamic and uplifting")
• 6. University of Maine (Orono, ME): "The Maine Stein Song" ("great melody, but it's a drinking song")
• 7. University of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA): "Fight on, USC" ("brilliant, sparkling, and innovative")
• 8. Georgia Institute of Technology (Atlanta, GA): "Ramblin' Wreck from Georgia Tech" ("fine tune; great sense of humor")
• 9. The University of Texas at Austin (Austin, TX): "The Eyes of Texas" ("tune borrowed from 'I've been working on the railroad,' but has a lot of sweep and energy")
• 10. Ohio State University — Columbus (Columbus, OH): "Across the Field" ("smooth and active; takes one pleasantly across the field")
• 11. University of Minnesota — Twin Cities (Minneapolis, MN): "Minnesota Rouser" ("dynamic and rousing, as the title suggests")
• 12. Indiana University Bloomington (Bloomington, IN): "Indiana, Our Indiana" ("tugs at the heart while causing foot-tapping")
• 13. University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign (Champaign, IL): "Illinois Loyalty" ("smooth, sensitive, and flowing")
• 14. Washington and Lee University (Lexington, VA): "Washington & Lee Swing" ("very catchy and likable; well-named")
• 15. University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA): "Fight on, Pennsylvania" ("creative and different from the rest of the pack")
• 16. University of Oklahoma (Norman, OK): "Boomer Sooner" ("borrowed from 'Yale Boola,' but rocks the stadium")
• 17. University of Georgia (Athens, GA): "Glory, Glory to Old Georgia" ("uses the rouser 'Battle Hymn of the Republic' as a tune; a passing mention to the University of Colorado, which also uses the tune for its 'Glory, Glory, Colorado' ")
• 18. United States Air Force Academy (USAF Academy, CO): "U.S. Air Force Song" ("excellent uplifting march; also used as the Air Force's song")
• 19. United States Coast Guard Academy (New London, CT): "Semper Paratus" ("lesser-known but quite stirring march; also used as the Coast Guard's song")
• 20. Clemson University (Clemson, SC): "Clemson Fight Song" ("uses the delightful 'Tiger Rag' as its tune")
• 21. University of Tennessee at Knoxville (Knoxville, TN): "Down the Field" ("uses the exact same title and tune as Yale's 'Down the Field': F for originality, but A+ for taste")
• 22. United States Military Academy (West Point, NY): "On, Brave Old Army Team" ("We don't want to forget the Army; a good song with one terrific passage")
• 23. Northern Illinois University (DeKalb, IL): "Huskie Fight Song" ("lively and distinctive")
• 24. Cornell University (Ithaca, NY): "Far Above the Cayuga's Wasters" ("This is really an alma mater rather than a fight song, but is such a collegiate classic, how can one overlook it? If played with a lively enough tempo, it becomes a pretty good fight song")
• 25. University of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA): "Our Director March" ("Three universities all use this excellent tune, but not always as a fight song; if the melody had a clearer institutional identity, it would be in the top fifteen. Many other schools also use the tune, including the University of Southern California, for its 'Victory Song'"
• 26. University of Oregon (Eugene, OR): "Mighty Oregon" ("a very smooth song")

Honorable Mentions

• Auburn University (Auburn, AL): "War Eagle"
• Boston College (Chestnut Hill, MA): "For Boston"
• Columbia University (New York, NY): "Roar, Lion, Roar"
• Dartmouth College (Hanover, NH): "As the Backs Go Tearing By"
• Duke University (Durham, NC): " Duke Blue and White"
• Harvard University (Cambridge, MA): "The Gridiron King"
• Lamar University (Beaumont, TX): "Beg Red"
• Michigan State University (East Lansing, MI): "Michigan State Fight Song"
• Northwestern University (Evanston, IL): "Go U Northwestern"
• Ohio State University — Columbus (Columbus, OH): "Le Regiment"
• Pennsylvania State University — University Park (University Park, PA): "The Nittany Lion"
• Princeton University (Princeton, NJ): "The Princeton Cannon Song"
• Stanford University (Stanford, CA): "Come Join The Band"
• Syracuse University (Syracuse, NY): "Down, Down The Field"
• Texas A&M University — College Station (College Station, TX): "The Aggie War Hymn"
• The University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa, AL): "Yea, Alabama"
• Tulane University (New Orleans, LA): "Roll on, Tulane"
• University of California — Los Angeles (Los Angeles, CA): "Sing UCLA"
• University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign (Champaign, IL): "Pride of the Illini"
• University of Kentucky (Lexington, KY): "On, On, U of K"
• University of Missouri — Columbia (Columbia, MO): "Fight Tiger"
• University of Nebraska — Lincoln (Lincoln, NE): "Dear Old Nebraska U"
• University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA): "Fight on Pennsylvania"
• University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, PA): "Hail to Pitt"
• University of South Carolina — Columbia (Columbia, SC): "Carolina Fight Song
• University of Washington, Seattle (Seattle, WA): "Bow Down to Washington"
• Yale University (New Haven, CT): "Bingo, Eli Yale"

Notable or Exceptional Songs in Order of Superiority

• 1. Yale University (New Haven, CT): "Down the Field"; "Yale Boola"; "Bingo Eli Yale"
• 2. Harvard University (Cambridge, MA): "Our Director"; "The Gridiron King"
• 3. Ohio State University — Columbus (Columbus, OH): "Across the Field"; "Le Regiment"
• 4. University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign (Champaign, IL): "Illinois Loyalty"; "Pride of Illini"

Source: William E. Studwell and Bruce R. Schueneman. College Fight Songs II: A Supplementary Anthology. The Haworth Press, Binghamton, New York 13904, and personal conversation with Mr. Studwell.