Clash of the Colleges: Wichita State's Tradition of Fun Competition

Clash of the Colleges takes place at the beginning of each school year and determines bragging rights for one of Wichita State's seven academic colleges. This tradition includes team sports, competitions and fun for students to engage in while battling for the coveted Clash championship.

We caught up with Shockers Riley McMillan and Abby Otten to hear about their experience at Clash of the Colleges.

Matt Crow/Undergraduate Admissions

Riley

Clash of the Colleges is one of the largest events of the year, and it is a fantastic opportunity for new students at Wichita State University to connect with other students. I have participated in Clash for the past two years - the first as a freshman participating in the games and the second as a Transition Mentor (TM), helping lead the Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) students through the games they played. When I participated as a freshman, I met so many people while harboring a friendly rivalry between the other academic colleges. It was an incredible way to end my first week of classes at Wichita State.

This year, as a TM, it was even more special because I was able to see many new and old faces, and everyone was so determined to win the championship for their college. When it was announced that the Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences won Clash for the first time in history, everyone within LAS went crazy. To be a part of it was the best way to kick off the school year. I hope everyone who participated had a great time! Congrats to the College of Engineering for winning the Spirit Award and to my  College of Liberal Arts and Sciences for taking home the trophy!

- Riley McMillan

Matt Crow/Undergraduate Admissions

Abby

“COLLEGE OF!” “ENGINEERING!” “COLLEGE OF!” “ENGINEERING!!!”

This call and response is one of many classic chants that the College of Engineering screams whenever
we are preparing for one of the biggest events on campus. All the academic colleges have their own,
unique chants to get everyone riled up.

As a student in the College of Engineering, I know that Clash is very important to us. Engineers at WSU
are known to be very competitive both inside and outside of the classroom, so we have a strong desire
to win. We bring our competitiveness to the Clash each year, winning countless awards
since the games started. This year we brought our competitiveness, sportsmanship and enthusiasm to win third place overall and the Spirit Award.

Engineering starts prepping for the event early and heavily advertises it to the incoming freshman class
during orientation so that we have a huge turnout. However, upperclassmen also make up a large
portion of the Engineering team as well. Engineering does everything we can to get hyped up and sign up to participate.

However, Clash is so much more than the games. It is a time to get to know fellow classmates and total strangers in an environment that is very different from the traditional campus atmosphere. We all bond
through the competitive climate.

Last year, I dressed in the College of Engineering’s traditional color of green and yelled at the top of my
lungs until I almost lost my voice. This year, I wanted to take it to the next level so showed up in a
dinosaur costume. Everyone loved it and it was so much fun to cheer on Engineering in all the events. I
love to mingle at these events, so the dinosaur costume was a perfect icebreaker for anyone to talk
about. Even with the heat, I stayed in the costume the majority of the time and cheered on all the
competitors.

Clash has been and always will be my favorite event on campus.

- Abby Otten, Dino Lady