"Victory for MSU", formerly "MSU Fight Song", is the officialfight song ofMichigan State University. It was created in early 1915 (and copyrighted in 1919), when MSU was known as Michigan Agricultural College (M.A.C.). An MSUcheerleader, Francis Irving Lankey, along with lyricist Arthur Sayles, created the song.[1] With several changes noted below, the school has used the same song ever since. The MSU Fight Song is played at all universitysporting events and is frequently sung bystudents andalumni.
It has been ranked as the #6 best college fight song by the BleacherReport[2][3] and called one of the NCAA's best fight songs by ESPN.[4]
Prior to having a fight song, MSU fans would sing the opponent's fight song, beginning with its first victory over the University of Michigan in 1913. The next week, MSU defeated Wisconsin, and crowned the win with “On Wisconsin.”[1] In 1915, "MSU Fight Song" was written by Arthur Sayles and composed by Francis Irving Lanke.[5]
Upon the song's 100th anniversary, it was officially renamed from the "MSU Fight Song" to "Victory for MSU", which are the last three words of the song.[5]
Lankey's original lyrics reflected the school's role as an agricultural college, as well as its rivalry with theUniversity of Michigan. The lyrics have since been changed several times. The lyrics had to be modified when the school changed its nickname from the "Aggies" to theSpartans. In addition, whereas the original lyrics were written for anAmerican football game against Michigan, the modern lyrics can be used for any opponent in any sport (although many hockey fans like to change the word "ball" to "hockey").
Yelling "weak" is popularly substituted in place of the last word in the line "See their team is weakening."[6] During football games, fans switch the lyrics from the current "Go right through for MSU" back to the former line, “Smash right through that line of blue"–a jab at Michigan.[1]
Two arrangements of the fight song are played.
