Gig 'em!

"Gig’em, Aggies!"—a phrase known by Aggies everywhere, dates back to the time when Texas A&M was an all-male military school. Usually accompanied with a "thumbs up" hand signal (or just on it’s own), "gig’em" has been part of Aggie jargon for decades. There are a few stories as to this tradition's origin, but these are the most likely:

• Back in ol' army days, minor demerits given by sophomores to derelict fish during uniform inspections were called "gigs." Apparently there was one sophomore who was notorious for going overboard while inspecting the fish, giving an excessive number of gigs. His sophomore buddies would get a kick out of watching him go nuts on the fish and would say, "Yeah, gig 'em Pinky!" (the guy's nickname). It stuck from there.

• Another legend tells that "gig 'em" originated in the old Southwest Conference days when the Ags played the TCU Horned Frogs. At a Yell Practice before the 1930 A&M/TCU game when the Horned Frogs were a nationally ranked football program, Pinky Downs ’06, who was then a member of the Board of Regents, shouted out, "What are we going to do to those Horned Frogs? Gig’em, Aggies!"  was Pinky's reply, using a frog-hunting term. For greater effect, Pinky gave the first "gig’em sign" (a fist with his thumb extending straight up). This, by the way, was the Southwest Conference’s first hand sign.

• A different story explains that the "thumbs up" hand signal originates from the frequency of burr-headed Aggie cadets attempting to hitch a ride up Highway 6 back to College Station on Sunday afternoons or after vacations.

Either way, it’s no surprise that Aggies were the first to creatively use hand signals as a show of spirit.