UT students, thank you so much for the support you have given us the last 12 years. The collapse of bonfire on Nov. 18, 1999, was a day that no Aggie will forget, and the University of Texas has been there walking beside us ever since. Both of our schools have felt the sting of tragedy, and we have walked as friends during those days.

After the bonfire collapse in 1999, the then-UT student body vice president, Eric Opiela, said it best: “I learned something tonight. For all us Longhorns who discount A&M in our never-ending rivalry, we need to realize one thing: Aggieland is a special place with special people. It is infinitely better equipped than us at dealing with a tragedy such as this for one simple reason. It is a family. It is a family that cares for its own, a family that reaches out, a family that is unified in the face of adversity, a family that moved this Longhorn to tears. My heart, my prayers and the heart of the UT student body go out tonight to Aggies and their family and friends as they recover from this great loss.”

So, to the Longhorns who placed the note in A&M’s academic plaza in remembrance of the bonfire collapse, we thank you. To the UT student body, we thank you for your continued support. Our school may fight to the bone on the gridiron as athletes, but we will always be side by side improving the state of Texas as students.

Todd Loggins
Political science junior, Texas A&M