College football is in full swing in the South, and so is gameday fashion.
SEC schools are known for their high-stakes sports, especially football. It’s more than a game; it’s an all-day occasion. Families set up tailgates the night before and wake up early the next day to get started.
Students’ fashion choices during the season also reflect the high-stakes atmosphere. From sundresses to cowboy boots, game day fashion is taken seriously across universities in the South.
On a typical day at LSU’s campus, you’ll see women attending classes in athleisure, t-shirts and leggings. But on Saturday nights in Death Valley, women adorn their best clothes and full faces of makeup. 
Emma Gardener, a sophomore studying psychology at the University of Mississippi, said she sees a lot of the same at Ole Miss.
“People don’t dress up much for class, so getting to show my style during the weekend is great,” Gardener said. “Game day is an event here. I know that my friends and I all have our outfits picked out before school even starts.”
Building up a wardrobe builds anticipation for game days, when women dress up in their best clothes, full faces of makeup, and styled hair to spend several hours outside in the heat. To an outsider, this may seem less than ideal, but to Gardener, it’s all about tradition.
“We’ve always just dressed up for games,” Gardener said. “My mom did it. I do it. My friends do it.”
Emily Taylor, a junior studying communication at the University of Tennessee, said one of her favorite game day fashion trends is wearing a customized button to represent her sorority.
“It started out as a way to tell frats what sorority you were in to get into their tailgates,” Taylor said. 
The trend has grown to include all kinds of buttons with creative slogans and designs. Here at LSU, women often hand out stickers representing their sorority. It’s not unusual to see a man walking around the student section proudly wearing a Phi Mu sticker on his chest.
For many students who grew up tailgating and attending college football games, it’s a natural decision to wear their school spirit any way they can. 
“I love dressing up for these games,” Gardener said. “It’s such an enjoyable thing about our culture.”

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Matthew Perschall

A trio of girls walks down Victory Hill on Saturday, Sept. 11, 2021, prior to LSU's win over McNeese State at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, La.