September 12, 2019
‘T. Rexes’ to take part in ‘Dino Dash’ at Saluki football game halftime Saturday night
A showdown for honor, pride and bragging rights will take place at halftime of the Saluki’s home football game against UT-Martin Saturday night in Saluki Stadium.
As a part of Family Weekend festivities, an inaugural “Dino Dash” featuring students and faculty representing each of the eight colleges is set. Participants will don inflatable “T. Rex” suits and try their best to use their short legs and arms to score a touchdown as they race against each other down the field. The game begins at 6 p.m.
An idea from Layla Murphy, Recruitment and Retention Coordinator in the College of Liberal Arts, the purpose is to not only make the contest a fun part of halftime, but more importantly, add to the list the memorable experiences of being a Saluki.
The plan might sound simple, but the tiny arms of the T. Rex add an element of difficulty to the challenge.
The T. Rexes will start at the south end of the field, run to the 50-yard line where they will try to pick up a football, and then run the rest of the way to the end zone. All of the dinos will start at the same time, with the first to score a touchdown winning.
A video of a similar T. Rex race at Emerald Downs racetrack in Auburn, Washington is here.
Each of the eight colleges will participate and Murphy anticipates about 11 entries this year. She hopes to find an appropriate traveling trophy for the winning college to crow about until next year’s race.
The goal is to have the race become an annual event with community dino sponsors and provide students “some fantastic memories of the crazy things they did and saw in college,” Murphy said.
This year, Saluki home football tickets are available to faculty and staff at a 50% discount price.