If you happen to see a raucous crowd tripping over piles of toast in a frantic attempt to uproot a football goal post, don't be alarmed -- they're just Penn students following an age-old tradition.
After more than 260 years, the University has accumulated dozens of idiosyncratic traditions, ranging from the sacred to the ridiculous. Consider this a guide to Penn's bizarre subculture so when you find yourself chewing on a styrofoam hat, you'll be prepared.
Econ Scream: It's an ear-shattering, agonizing communal howl, and the cheapest stress relief therapy around. And it's simple: At midnight before the first Microeconomics midterm, just open the window of your Quad dorm room and scream in unison with the hundreds of other freshmen cramming for the same exam.
Then go back to studying, satisfied that at least anyone not studying has felt your pain. A less popular Quad tradition: the Econ Streak.
Toast Throwing: Although certain beverages aren't allowed in Franklin Field, this wasn't always the case. Since the stadium's liquor ban, however, University students have devised a new way to offer a "toast to dear old Penn" -- in accordance with the lyrics of "Drink a Highball," a song traditionally sung at the end of the third quarter.
Never ones to overlook a cheap pun -- or to lose alcohol privileges without protest -- fans have hurled pieces of toast from the student section for years.
With a specially designed Zamboni designed by Engineering students, the toast tradition appears to be more secure than the six-pack tradition was, though it was threatened in 1992 when overzealous SpectaGuards confiscated loaves from fans.
Goalpost Upheaval: If there is any tradition that the administration has struggled to squelch, uprooting the football goal posts is it. When Penn wins the Ivy League title, hundreds of fans rush the field to tear down the goal post and heave it into the Schuylkill River.
But students who haven't been convinced to abandon the custom may have little choice; after last fall's win against Harvard, an estimated 300 fans were unable to tear up the posts.
Homecoming: Typically the second Saturday in November, Homecoming is a weekend filled with school spirit-building activities.
Saturday's events include a home football game at Franklin Field and home games for almost all of Penn's athletic teams. The Social Planning and Events Committee and other student groups organize barbeques, performing arts events, midnight pancake breakfasts and races for charity.
Spring Fling: Only at Penn could you wake up one morning to find Tiffany belting out '80s pop hits outside your window. Dozens of concerts are only one aspect of Fling, the annual pre-finals stint of indulgence.
During the weekend, the courtyard of the Quad is filled with carnival games and local bands, and the streets are crowded with block parties. But the most hyped event is the Friday night concert at Hill Field. Past acts have included well-known musicians like Ben Harper, the Roots, Ben Folds Five and A Tribe Called Quest.
Hey Day: On the last day of classes each spring, hordes of juniors flood Locust Walk from Hill Field to the green in front of College Hall, where the University president officially declares them seniors. While the juniors parade through campus clad in red shirts, carrying canes and taking bites out of each other's styrofoam boater hats, outgoing seniors gather at the Palladium to heckle them.
The Line: Although it's possible to get season tickets for Penn basketball without camping out overnight at the Palestra, the best seats go to those in "The Line." The date and location where tickets are sold are kept under wraps, and groups of four spend up to two days and two nights sleeping, eating and waiting in line, just to score coveted courtside seats.
Skimmer: A recently revived custom, Skimmer is an annual festival that takes place along Boathouse Row each spring. Formerly an annual party so rowdy that it was ended in 1972, Skimmer's newest incarnation includes local bands, barbeques and crew races on the Schuylkill.
