Sawdust Magazine

The Big Dip

Feature Story

Continued from "Traditions 'Neath the Purple and White" story

Alumni ring replica, Stone Fort yearbook 2002
Alumni ring replica, Stone Fort yearbook 2002

After earning a minimum of 60 hours, students are eligible to purchase their SFA ring and celebrate what has been voted as the "best tradition on campus" by participating in The Big Dip ceremony.

Started in 2002, The Big Dip is a ceremony held at the end of the fall and spring semesters. A more recent tradition added in 2019 has ROTC cadets stand guard outside the Stone Fort Museum, where SFA rings are placed the night before The Big Dip.

At the ceremony, participants receive their rings and then dip their right hands into a mix of purple dye and water gathered from the Surfin' Steve fountain. The act symbolizes students' full immersion into the life and traditions of SFA.