Celebrate College Colors Day in Style!
Fashionable ways to cheer on Kentucky's college football teams!
Happy College Colors Day, y'all! I am just so excited that it's starting to look like fall, and that college football is back! I am so excited to be wearing my Kentucky Blue for College Colors Day, and I picked out a few great ideas for my friends who cheer on all the Kentucky D1 College Teams!
Draper James Tailgate Essentials
Have you seen the newest batch of tailgate-inspired items from Reece Witherspoon's Draper James line? So, so cute, y'all. I feel like the scarf is going to be necessary as the weather gets cooler.
Go Big Blue!
Now, if you've been reading HerKentucky for any time at all, it's no surprise that I ride or die with the Kentucky Wildcats, even if football isn't exactly our premiere athletic program. UK will always feel like the home team for me, in any sport. I lived in Lexington for over a decade, my beau and I hold three graduate degrees from UK, and I grew up on stories of my grandfather and his siblings attending the University in the '30s. The 'Cats and I, we go way back.
I personally believe that there's no such thing as taking your
Go Cards!
Y'all, I don't care what team you rep or what part of the Commonwealth you hail from. That Louisville win was ridic last night. Lamar Jackson was on fire, and my Cardinals fan friends were jubilant. That win deserves several days' worth of team-inspired outfits!!
Cheer on your Kentucky team!
Most of us can find a reason to cheer for just about every Kentucky college, if we look hard enough for a link. My parents each hold degrees from Morehead AND EKU. I have plenty of friends with ties to WKU and Murray State. And the list goes on. There are so many cute ways to rep your team. A Tervis Tumbler and a cap are, of course, standard equipment.
Let me know in the comments below what team you're repping today, and don't forget to visit the College Colors Day website to enter to win a trip to the 2017 National Championship Game! (please note that this post contains affiliate links.)
College Colors Day: Alexia Wears Murray State's Navy and Gold!
For Alexia, cheering for Murray State is a family affair!
This College Colors Day guest post comes from my sorority sister Alexia Schempp Couch, a Murray native and Transylvania alumna. Alexia, a middle school science teacher, lives in Maryland with her husband and two children. -- HCW
Confession time: I haven’t lived in Murray, KY in over 20 years. However, I still get excited any time I see something blue and gold, hear my Racers mentioned in a sports article or see my friends' Facebook pictures of their family dressed for a Murray State Racer football or basketball game!
My obsession with the Racers has always been there. My dad was a theatre professor at Murray State for over 30 years, it is my mom’s alma mater, and my grandfather was on their basketball team in the 1930’s when they still played in Lovett Auditorium. I have been going to games as long as I can remember. At the football games I loved the atmosphere almost as much as the game.: the 101st Airborne division paratrooping the game ball to the 50 yard line, the Racer band would perform the amazing halftime shows and saying hi to the announcer (“Hi, Pete”) , the announcer saying hi back to them over the loudspeaker (“Hi Racer Band!”), and my favorite tradition of a horse running a victory lap around the track surrounding the football field when the team scored a touchdown.
In the winter basketball season was in full swing. We would go to at least one game a week. When I lived in Murray the games were still played at Racer Arena. It was small, it got hot, it got extremely LOUD, and it was GREAT! It only held 5500 people, but for big games closer to 6000 fans packed in. Because it was so intimate you could see the players, get into the game and sing along with the Pep Band. The sea of blue and gold was crazy and usually intimidated the visiting team. I remember one game, close to the end of a season, where us winning meant we clenched the regular season championship. As the clock ticked down the entire arena was chanting and making the hand motions for “O-V-C” (Ohio Valley Conference). I remember cheering for Martin and Mann in the 80’s and Popeye Jones in the 90’s.
Since moving out of the state I do not get to see my Racers play live. However, that has not stopped me from being a huge fan. I have been known to stream the game on my phone connected to an HDMI cable to the television to watch it. I have even Facetimed my parents (who have also moved from Murray) to show them the game when I could get it through my cable company and they could not. I’ll find the game being broadcasted on the local Murray radio station online and listen to it. I get excited to hear the basketball announcer, Neil Bradley, say “One minute, one minute left in the game.”) My Maryland-born children cheer for the Racers, loved Isaiah Cannan and Ed (the hair) Daniels, and watched them win the CollegeInsider.com Tournament with me this year. They have not been to a MSU basketball game since 2009, but constantly ask when we can go back to see them play.
Repping the Wildcats and the Racers on the classroom door.
Where I live now people tend to cheer for professional teams. However, I’m an NCAA girl through and through! During THE tournament I put my Murray State sign up on my door (along with another sign, because I am from Kentucky!) Murray State is my favorite team to cheer for and I can’t wait for this season to begin! I’ll be watching with my Blue & Gold pompom and my Racer shirt waiting to see if Cameron Payne can lead the Racers back to the NCAA tournament and hopefully past that second round to the Sweet 16. GO RACERS!
Follow Your Dreams Friday: 5 Questions with Chrishell Stause of Days of Our Lives
Today's Follow Your Dreams Friday spotlights Chrishell Stause, the gorgeous Kentucky-born actress who plays Jordan on Days of Our Lives.
Chrishell is a native of Draffenville, Kentucky and an alumna of Murray State who previously portrayed Amanda on All My Children. She was so sweet and friendly to interview -- she answered my request with a prompt "Sure! I have lots of state pride!"
Thanks so much to Chrishell for taking the time to talk charity, soap operas, and the pursuit of dreams! -- HCW
HK: Tell us a little about yourself.
CS: I am a proud Kentuckian that graduated from Marshall County High School and then went on to get my degree at Murray State University. I always wanted to be an actress since I was little and after graduating college I moved to Los Angles to do just that. After a year of waiting tables, my dream came true and I was moved to New York City for my first job on All My Children.
HK: What’s it like “living out” the crazy story lines of daytime TV?
CS: Having worked in daytime for over eight years now I have gotten to play so many amazing and, yes, sometimes downright crazy story lines! I have a blast with it. It's a lot of work, but you never get bored because it is always changing and it definitely keeps you on your toes.
HK: Tell us about your charity work with
Upward Bound House. It seems like a great organization.
CS: Working with this organization has meant so much to me along with the families I've been able to help along the way. Homeless families are not only given a place to stay for a year, but during that time they are equipping them with the proper tools and education to enter the workforce and help them land and stay on their feet.
HK: You’ve lived in NYC and LA. What do you miss most about Kentucky?
I miss the people the most! I always feel so welcomed when I come home even if they are complete strangers. You really can't beat good old southern hospitality!
HK: What is your advice for small town Kentucky girls who dream of acting?
CS: Well, unfortunately my advice would be to move. I would give anything if I could do what I love and stay in my home state, but I will have to settle for hometown visits when I can. If they are still in school I would say to get into plays and take classes. But if you truly want to be an actor or actress, you have to make that scary leap and follow your dream to be discovered. And you also can't be discovered if you don't put yourself out there. So get out there and go do it!