Every year in November, Ouachita Baptist and Henderson State face off in the Battle of the Ravine. This matchup between two perennial GAC powerhouses is made even more interesting when you consider how close they are in distance. Both schools are located in Arkadelphia, so winning this game comes with some bragging rights. Since the schools are separated by only a two lane state highway, the “visiting” team dresses out in their locker room and then walks across the street to the game.
This close distance makes for some interesting pranks and traditions during Battle of the Ravine week. Of these, the most interesting is the tradition of “Guarding the Tiger” on Ouachita’s campus. The Tiger, carved by Ben F. Worley in lieu of his tuition payments for the year, was placed in the middle of Ouachita’s campus in 1935.
Henderson State students have sought out to vandalize The Tiger since its first year. In response to this, the Men of Rho Sigma started camping out by The Tiger during Battle of the Ravine Week. This tradition of guarding the tiger has been a mainstay in Ouachita culture ever since. Nearly every student that has been at Ouachita has taken part in this endeavor at least once.
To outsiders, this tradition seems pretty silly. The Reddies across the street laugh at Ouachita for how serious they are about protecting the Tiger. However, they miss the point of the Tiger. It is at the heart of Ouachita, both physically and emotionally.
When OBU students guard the tiger, they are not guarding the tiger itself; they are guarding what the tiger represents. It represents the values that Ouachita students share. The tiger represents Ouachita’s passion, not just about sports, also about faith, service, scholarship, and fellowship.
Ouachita’s alumni, staff, and students praise the campus for its strong “community.” While some of this is due to it being a small campus, a lot of it is can be attributed to Battle of the Ravine. This week forces everyone to come together, regardless of their class, clubs, organizations, ideals, majors or background.
When you camp out by the Tiger next week, remember why you are doing it. You are not doing it on the off chance that you’ll get to fight some Reddies. You are doing it to stand up for and defend Ouachita’s identity: its vision, integrity and service. You are doing it to become closer to your peers. You are doing it to show support to the football team, who will represent Ouachita’s passion at Cliff Harris Stadium this year. You are doing it to express the Tiger spirit that lives within all Ouachita students. You are doing it to protect the heart of Ouachita: The Tiger. n
