Go, You Redbirds

Last updated May 09, 2024

Go, You Redbirds is the fight song for the athletic teams of Illinois State University. It was written in 1932 by Kenyon S. Fletcher. The words have been changed from time to time. Prior to the fight song we know today, the Illinois State fight song was "Normal Loyalty." At sporting events when an ISU athletic team enters the field or floor, the students and fans sing the first stanza of “Go, You Redbirds.” A new growing Redbird tradition amongst several redbird teams is to sing the fight song with the marching band to the home crowd after victories. The line "Lets win this game" is changed to "We've won this game."

Lyrics

Go, you Redbirds! On to battle, fight for ISU.
Raise the banner, red and white,
to this emblem we'll be true.
So let us cheer the Redbirds on to victory.
Every voice proclaim (GO STATE!),
we've got the fight,
we've got the might,
Let's win this game!
(ISU, GO!)

Related Research Articles

Illinois State University (ISU) is a public research university in Normal, Illinois. It was founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University and is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is recognized as one of the top ten largest producers of teachers in the US according to the American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity".

Idaho State University (ISU) is a public research university in Pocatello, Idaho. Founded in 1901 as the Academy of Idaho, Idaho State offers more than 250 programs at its main campus in Pocatello and locations in Meridian, Idaho Falls, and Twin Falls. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity ".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CEFCU Arena</span> Arena in Illinois, United States

CEFCU Arena, formerly known as Redbird Arena, is a 10,200-seat multi-purpose arena located in Normal, Illinois, on the campus of Illinois State University. Built in 1989, the building is notable for its use of a Teflon-coated roof that gives off a "glow" during night events. Three Illinois State Redbirds athletic teams use the facility as their home court: men's basketball, women's basketball, and women's volleyball.

The Illinois State Redbirds are the athletic teams that represent Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois. Teams play at the NCAA Division I level. The football team competes in the Missouri Valley Football Conference while most other teams compete in the Missouri Valley Conference. The fight song is Go, You Redbirds.

"Buckeye Battle Cry", composed by vaudeville performer and songwriter Frank Crumit, is one of two fight songs of the Ohio State Buckeyes, with the other being "(Fight The Team) Across the Field". Every football game in Ohio Stadium begins with Ramp entrance by The Ohio State University Marching Band, performed to "Buckeye Battle Cry". The tradition of Script Ohio ends with the singing of one chorus of the fight song by band members. The song is also played after every Buckeye score.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reggie Redbird</span>

Reggie Redbird is the mascot for Illinois State University located in Normal, Illinois. Reggie is present at all home football games, women's volleyball matches, men's basketball games, women's basketball games, and appears at various other athletic events. Reggie also does numerous of appearances at schools and events within the Twin Cities, the state of Illinois, and the country.

The Illinois State Redbirds football program is the intercollegiate American football team for Illinois State University located in the U.S. state of Illinois. The team competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and are members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference. The school's first football team was fielded in 1887. The team plays its home games at the 13,391 seat Hancock Stadium. They are coached by Brock Spack.

The Indiana State Sycamores are the NCAA Division I intercollegiate athletic teams of Indiana State University. Since the 1977–78 academic year, Indiana State has been a member of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC). The Indiana State football team has competed in Division I FCS since the 1982 season, and has been a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) since it was spun off from the Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference (Gateway) when the latter league merged into the MVC in 1992. Past conference memberships include the Indiana College Athletic League (1895–1922), the Indiana Intercollegiate Conference (1922–1950), the Indiana Collegiate Conference (1950–1968) and the Midwestern Conference (1970–1972). The women's teams were Gateway members from the league's 1982 founding until its absorption by the MVC. In 1986, a year after the Gateway took on football as its only men's sport, the Sycamores football team joined that conference.

Kristi Mary Rose Cirone is an American basketball coach and former player. She played collegiately for Illinois State University and led the school to three national postseason tournaments in 2007 through 2009 while also being named the Jackie Stiles Player of the Year all three years. After her college career, she played professionally with the WNBA's Connecticut Sun and in Europe.

Bob Donewald, Sr. is a retired American college basketball coach. He was the first coach to lead Illinois State University to the NCAA post-season national tournament, and he did so for three consecutive seasons. His 1983 team gave Illinois State its first Missouri Valley Conference basketball championship and his 1984 team captured Illinois State's first Division I NCAA Tournament victory. He coached at South Bend St. Joseph's High School for 8 seasons, from 1965–66 to 1972–73.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009–10 Big Ten Conference women's basketball season</span> Sports season

The 2009–10 Big Ten Conference women's basketball season marked the continuation of the annual tradition of competitive basketball among Big Ten Conference members.

Duffy Bass Field is a baseball venue in Normal, Illinois, USA. It is home to the Illinois State Redbirds baseball team of the Division I Missouri Valley Conference. It was built in 1988 and has a capacity of 1,200 spectators, 1,000 of which is seated. The field is also home to the University High School Pioneers baseball team.

The 2011–12 Baylor Bears basketball team represented Baylor University in the 2011–12 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team finished 30–7 overall and 12–6 in Big 12 Conference play to finish in a third-place tie with Iowa State. In postseason play, Baylor lost to Missouri in the 2012 Big 12 men's basketball tournament championship game and Kentucky in the Elite Eight of the 2012 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament.

The Illinois State Redbirds women's basketball team represents Illinois State University, located in Normal, Illinois, in NCAA Division I basketball competition.

Daniel Paul Muller is an American college basketball coach, formerly the men's basketball head coach at his alma mater Illinois State University.

The Mid-America Classic is a long-standing American college football rivalry game played in most years since 1901 between the Panthers of Eastern Illinois University and the Redbirds of Illinois State University. The 2023 season marked the 111th meeting between the two teams with Eastern Illinois’ win making the series to 59–43–9, with Illinois State leading.

DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell is a Trinidadian-American professional basketball player for Lokomotiv Kuban of the VTB United League. He played college basketball for Eastern Oklahoma State and Illinois State. Standing at 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m), he usually plays the small forward position.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Illinois State Redbirds baseball</span>

The Illinois State Redbirds baseball team is the varsity intercollegiate athletic team of Illinois State University in Normal, IL. The team competes at the Division I level of the NCAA and is a member of the Missouri Valley Conference.

The 1967 Illinois State Redbirds football team represented Illinois State University as a member of the Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) during the 1967 NCAA College Division football season. Led by third-year head coach Larry Bitcon, the Redbirds compiled an overall record of 8–2 with a mark of 2–1 in conference play, sharing the IIAC title with Central Michigan. Illinois State played home games at Hancock Stadium in Normal, Illinois.

The 2021–22 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team represented Illinois State University during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Redbirds played their home games at Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena in Normal, Illinois as members of the Missouri Valley Conference. The team finished the season 13–20, 5–13 in MVC play to finish in eighth place. They defeated Indiana State in the first round of the MVC tournament before losing to Northern Iowa in the quarterfinals.

References

Trophy, w. t., years, t. R., & [+], h. w. (n.d.). Illinois State University Official Athletic Site - Traditions. Illinois State University Official Athletic Site. Retrieved March 20, 2011, from https://web.archive.org/web/20110711113646/http://www.goredbirds.com/trads/ilsu-trads-school-songs.html
Trophy, w. t., years, t. R., & [+], h. w. (n.d.). Illinois State University Official Athletic Site - Traditions. Illinois State University Official Athletic Site. Retrieved March 20, 2011, from https://web.archive.org/web/20101231151811/http://www.goredbirds.com/trads/fight-song.html

This 1930s song article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This article about an Illinois institution of higher education is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This article related to sports in Illinois is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

v t e Illinois State University
Academic colleges	Applied Science and Technology Arts and Sciences Business Education Fine Arts
Athletics	Men's basketball Women's basketball Fight song Football Reggie Redbird
Facilities	Duffy Bass Field Fell Arboretum Hancock Stadium John W. Cook Hall Horton Fieldhouse CEFCU Arena University High School Watterson Towers
News and radio	The Vidette WGLT WZND-LP
Related	List of Illinois State University alumni

v t e Illinois State Redbirds football
Venues	Hancock Stadium (1963–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Eastern Illinois: Mid-America Classic
Culture & lore	Reggie Redbird "Go, You Redbirds"
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1887 1888–1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898–1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910–1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024

v t e Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball
Venues	John W. Cook Hall (1898–1925) McCormick Gymnasium (1925–1963) Horton Field House (1963–1988) CEFCU Arena (1989–present)
Rivalries	Bradley
Culture & lore	Reggie Redbird "Go, You Redbirds"
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1898–99 1899–1900 1900–01 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24