A big part of the collegiate experience is rooting for your school’s team. It’s something that can unite the whole student body and excite everyone involved. Everyone can wear their college team’s colors—regardless of whether you’re actually attending the school, or you’re just a member of the alumni, a fan of the team, or a family member of someone attending the school. And to show your pride in the school team of your choice, you can celebrate National College Colors Day on the Friday before Labor Day.

The History of National College Colors Day

National College Colors Day was officially launched back in 2004 by the Collegiate Licensing Company. This company was founded by Bill Battle in Selma, Alabama, in 1981 and is one of the oldest collegiate licensing companies in the U.S.

Fun Facts About Collegiate Sports

As we did our research for this holiday, we’ve discovered several fun facts about not only National College Colors Day specifically but also about collegiate sports in general. So we thought that it would be a good idea to share some of these facts with our readers, and we did so by listing them below.

The Second Most Popular College Sport

Although most people probably know that basketball is one of the most popular college sports currently being played, fewer people will know what sport is the second most popular. And that sport is cross country. Yes, cross country is the second most popular sport played, with over 2,000 teams spread all over the U.S. It’s so popular because it can be held at just about any college. The teams are small, it doesn’t require arenas, and it can be done with the bare minimum of equipment.

In the Future, College Athletes Might Start Being Paid

Another thing that some people don’t realize is that most college athletes aren’t paid at all. In fact, it’s usually against the rules for these athletes to be compensated in any way. However, that might begin to change in the future.

In 2016, one college alone earned over $200 million dollars from its collegiate program, so the demand to pay college athletes is likely going to increase as athletes in the future look to capture a portion of that revenue and get paid what they’re really worth.

There Really Aren’t Full-Ride Athletic Scholarships

Although Hollywood might have made the trope of full-ride athletic scholarships something that’s firmly planted in the minds of most people, the truth is that full-ride athletic scholarships don’t really exist. At least, in most cases. Usually, this form of scholarship has to be renewed every year, at the coach’s discretion, and most of them don’t cover all of the expenses at the school. Therefore, they really aren’t full-ride scholarships.

Observing National College Colors Day

Observing National College Colors Day is as easy as wearing your school colors and rooting for your team to victory. It’s also a good day to use the hashtag #NationalCollegeColorsDay on your social media accounts. Let everyone know what team you root for and why you think they are the best.