UT will work witchcraft Monday night with its annual Hex Rally, but this year it is not against A&M.

The Hex Rally is an annual event held by Texas Exes, previously to place a hex, or a curse, on the Aggie football team before the UT-A&M game. When A&M moved to the Southeastern Conference last year, the 118-year-old rivalry between the two universities ended with no future games scheduled. Allyson Copeland,

Texas Exes Spirit and Traditions Council spokesperson, said the Hex Rally tradition is continuing this year with Texas Christian University, a private university affiliated with the Christian Church, on the receiving end of the curse.

Erica Flores, chair of the Texas Exes Spirit and Traditions Council, said Texas Exes briefly considered not having the Hex Rally this year but quickly decided against it.

“We threw out a bunch of options, we talked to a lot of people and we did a lot of research,” Flores said. “We decided that it was best to keep the UT tradition alive where it is, and remind students that these are traditions that we created for our school and it shouldn’t be about another school or for another school.”

According to UT folklore, the rally started in 1941 after the Longhorns had lost to A&M for 18 consecutive years. A group of UT students approached local fortune teller Madam Agusta Hipple for help. She told them to burn red candles before the game in order to “hex” the opposing football team. The Longhorns defeated A&M 23-0, and the Hex Rally has been a tradition ever since.

Flores said the Hex Rally has been used against different schools. According to The Alcalde, the Texas Exes magazine, UT hexed Texas Christian University in a 1955 rally, the first time the hex failed; the Longhorns lost that game 20-47.

“We will gear the hex against TCU in some ways, but at the end of the day we will remember this is a UT tradition,” Flores said. “It will basically be about UT and about where this all started.”

With more than 400 Hex Rally Texas Exes shirts sold out in a few hours Thursday, Flores said students are excited for the rally. She said more shirts will be for sale Monday at 10 a.m. in the West Mall.

In previous years, the Hex Rally was hosted by the Texas Exes Student Chapter, but Carly Ward, president of the Texas Exes Student Chapter, said this year the responsibility of the rally was given to the Texas Exes Spirit and Traditions Council.

“Their primary focus is supporting the traditions of the University, and while the Texas Exes Student Chapter enjoyed putting on the rallies, we just decided that they were a better fit for Spirits and Traditions Council,” Ward said.

Earlier this semester, the Spirits and Traditions Council put on the torchlight parade before the Red River Rivalry game between UT and Oklahoma University.

Printed on Monday, November 19, 2012 as: UT to hex TCU for luck