Annual Army ROTC Egg Bowl Run scheduled for Sunday

STARKVILLE, Miss.—The 11th annual Egg Bowl Run, a tradition between Mississippi State University and University of Mississippi Army ROTC cadets, will take place on Sunday [Nov. 19].

Departing from Ole Miss before sunrise, Army ROTC cadets will carry a football from Oxford to Starkville, arriving in Starkville on Sunday evening. For the second leg of the nearly 100-mile run to Starkville, MSU cadets will receive the ball from Ole Miss cadets in Calhoun City. The handover will occur at around 1:45 p.m. in the Calhoun City square. In addition, MSU Air Force ROTC cadets will also participate in the run.

At the conclusion of the run on Sunday evening, the commemorative game ball will be brought to Davis Wade Stadium. Both the MSU and UM coaches will sign the ball.

Lt. Col. Jason Posey, Director of the MSU Army ROTC, explained that the Egg Bowl run is one of the highlights of the MSU Army ROTC events.

“It offers cadets an opportunity to challenge themselves, as some of them run more than 15 miles of the approximately 60-mile distance. It also gives them a chance to develop and coordinate the event, fostering growth within the program. Moreover, it allows for collaboration with Ole Miss ROTC programs, creating a friendly rivalry and supporting a local food drive,” said Posey, who is also a military science professor at MSU. “The community and the Calhoun City Chamber of Commerce play a vital role in organizing a remarkable ceremony and providing meals for our cadets. I am amazed at the number of people who cheer us on and bring out their cowbells as we pass by. Finally, the MSU Athletic Department and coaching staff have always been supportive, even during their busy preparations to defeat Ole Miss.”

A food drive will be conducted along with the run, where the ROTC units will contribute canned goods to Calhoun City. The Calhoun County food pantry will distribute the donated food to those in need. Donations for the food drive can be dropped off at the MSU Army ROTC headquarters in Middleton Hall.

In addition to the traditional run between Oxford and Starkville, an Egg Bowl Run was recently held overseas in Kuwait. The football was carried by 92 members of the Mississippi Army National Guard’s 168th Theater Engineer Brigade, 185th Expeditionary Combat Aviation Brigade, and 1-155th Combined Arms Battalion. This was the second time that MSU and Ole Miss supporters ran 84 miles with the football on foreign soil, following the inaugural event in 2018.

Maj. Scott Edwards, a chaplain of the 168th Theater Engineer Brigade and the organizer of the overseas run, expressed the group’s enthusiasm for the event.

“This is such a great event because it connects our soldiers with our universities back home, promotes physical fitness, boosts soldier morale, and ultimately enhances soldier resiliency,” said Edwards, who also serves as an Extension instructor with MSU’s National Training Academy in partnership with the USDA Wildlife Services.

The Egg Bowl between the Bulldogs and the Rebels will take place on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 23, at 6:30 p.m. in Davis Wade Stadium. The game will be broadcasted on ESPN.