The "Go U Northwestern", originally titled "Go Northwestern Go",[1] is one of the fight songs of Northwestern University.

History and significance

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The song was written in 1912 by Theodore Van Etten, a member of the Northwestern University Wildcat Marching Band at the time. It debuted November 23, 1912, at old Northwestern Field in Northwestern's football season-finale versus the Illinois Fighting Illini.[2]

The song, along with Northwestern's other fight song, "Rise, Northwestern!" (commonly called the "Push On Song" or simply "Push On!"), and the university's alma mater, "University Hymn" (sometimes "Quæcumque Sunt Vera") are Northwestern official school songs.[citation needed] "Go U Northwestern" or "Rise, Northwestern!" is played by the marching band during football games every time Northwestern scores against its opponent and at various other times during the game.[citation needed]

Other uses

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Along with being the Fight Song of Northwestern University, "Go U Northwestern" is the fight song for many high schools, with some using it under the original name.[3] Several other colleges and universities use the song as well, including Northern Oklahoma College Enid[4] and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro from 1998 to 2010.

High Schools Using "Go U Northwestern"
School City
Ferndale High School Ferndale, MI
Bettendorf High School Bettendorf, IA
Hempstead High School Dubuque, IA
Elkhart Central High School Elkhart, IN
Southwestern Central High School Jamestown West, NY
Cedar Ridge High School Round Rock, TX
Perrysburg High School Perrysburg, OH
Buchanan High School Buchanan, MI
Ovid-Elsie High School Elsie, MI
Owosso High School Owosso, MI
Florence High School Florence, WI
Waubonsie Valley High School Aurora, IL
Rochester High School Rochester, IL
Newton Falls High School Newton Falls, OH
Edwardsburg High School Edwardsburg, MI
Clover High School Clover, SC
Central Montcalm High School Stanton, MI
Northwestern High School Hyattsville, MD
Cary-Grove High School Cary, IL
Coronado School El Paso, TX
Canyon High School New Braunfels, TX
South Hardin Community School District Eldora, IA
Bureau Valley High School Manlius, IL
Putnam City West High School Oklahoma City, OK
Portage High School Portage, IN
Carlisle High School Carlisle, PA
Shades Valley High School Irondale, AL
Minnetonka High School Minnetonka, MN
McCluer High School Florissant, MO
Will Rogers High School Tulsa, OK
Manzano High School Albuquerque, NM
Centennial High School Las Cruces, NM
Lutheran High School Westland Westland, MI
Mid Prairie High School Wellman, IA
Marfa High School Marfa, TX
Alan C. Pope High School Marietta, GA
Conestoga High School Berwyn, PA
Turkey Valley High School Jackson Junction, IA
Holland High School Holland, MI
Martinsville High School Martinsville, VA
Abbotsford High School Abbotsford, WI
Black River Falls High School Black River Falls, WI
Reedsburg Area High School Reedsburg, WI
Northwestern High School Maple, WI
Cactus High School Glendale, AZ
Methodist Boys' School Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Green High School Franklin Furnace, OH
Southwestern High School (Piasa, Illinois) Piasa, IL
Benedictine High School Cleveland, OH
Rouse High School Leander, TX
Cypress Woods High School Cypress, Texas
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In an early 1970s Sesame Street sketch, Ernie sings the song's opening bars while wearing a football helmet, eager to open a present Bert has wrapped, that Ernie thinks is a new football for him.[5]

References

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  1. ^ Northwestern Fight Songs (Accessed February 24, 2012).
  2. ^ "Behind Northwestern's Songs". Northwestern University. Retrieved July 2, 2011.
  3. ^ Levin, Andrew (April 2012), "Go U (insert school name here)!: What different schools use our fight song as their own and why?", The Growl: The Newsletter of the Northwestern University Marching Band and Band Alumni Organization, archived from the original on July 29, 2014, retrieved April 17, 2014[unreliable source?]
  4. ^ "Fight song adds to NOC Enid's spirit" Archived June 29, 2013, at archive.today, Enid News & Eagle, December 9, 2005.
  5. ^ "Sesame Street: Surprise Present," YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9h4YQA3_JWQ&t=37s
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