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Reveille's Origins

While on their way back to campus from nearby Navasota, Texas, a group of cadets hit a small black and white dog with their vehicle. They picked her up and brought her back to their dorm to care for her. Since pets weren’t allowed on campus, the dog was carefully hidden. But the injured pup quickly blew her cover. The next morning, when a bugler played “Reveille” to wake the cadets, the dog started wildly barking. This earned her the name we know her by today.

During the following football season, Reveille I was officially named the mascot of Texas A&M when she led the band onto the field. Reveille I died on Jan. 18, 1944, after 13 years as the mascot. She was given a formal military funeral at Kyle Field, including a 21-gun salute. All of the deceased Reveilles, including Reveille I, are buried outside the north end of Kyle Field. There, they have a special scoreboard so they can always watch the Aggies outscore their opponents.

Before naming Reveille II, there were several other unofficial mascots, such as Tripod, Spot and Ranger. Reveille II, a Shetland Sheepdog donated by a Texas A&M graduate, first appeared on campus eight years after Reveille I passed away. Reveille III was the first full-blooded Rough Collie, and every Reveille since then has been that breed. The current mascot is Reveille X, who assumed her mascot duties in May 2021.

Reveille Today

Originally, Reveille was given free rein on the campus. However, since 1960, she has been cared for by a mascot corporal, a sophomore in the Corps of Cadets' Company E-2. The mascot corporal is chosen from within this unit each spring, and Reveille lives with the cadet for that year. She goes to class with her handler, out on dates and even home for the holidays. Her handler, in turn, escorts her to all of her functions and Aggie engagements.

"Miss Rev," as she is affectionately known on campus, is the highest-ranking member in the Corps of Cadets and wears five silver diamonds (the Corps commander only has four). So, if Miss Rev falls asleep on a cadet’s bed, the cadet must find somewhere else to sleep since she outranks him. Also, though no official record exists on how this tradition originated, Aggie legend holds that if Reveille barks while in class with her handler, the professor may choose to dismiss the class, but it is not required.