"Skipper" is the name of the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets' cannon that is sounded at home football games and other events. The game cannon was created by a group of cadets in 1963 for Virginia Tech football games and special events.
Background
Corps of Cadets
Virginia Polytechnic Institute And State University (Virginia Tech) was founded in 1872 as a military school, originally named, Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College (VAMC). Since the end of World War II, Virginia Tech's students have been primarily civilians, although the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets has maintained a strong presence on campus, carrying on the rich military traditions of the school. Virginia Tech is one of six universities, outside of the four service academies with an active cadet corps on campus, and is designated as a senior military college.
Thanksgiving Day rivalry game
Virginia Tech (VPI) and Virginia Military Institute (VMI) first played each other in 1894, and annually from 1913-1971, on Thanksgiving Day at Victory Stadium in Roanoke, Virginia. The official name of Virginia Tech until 1969 was "Virginia Polytechnic Institute", commonly referred to as "VPI". The football game, known as the “Military Classic of the South” was part of a full day of festivities, including a parade from downtown Roanoke to Victory Stadium for the game. The cadets from VPI and VMI both marched in the parade. After the teams completed formation in the stadium, VMI fired its game cannon, named "Little John" and chanted, "Where's your cannon!?!" directed at the VPI side of the stadium. VPI had no response.
In 1962, two juniors in the Alpha Company of the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets, Alton "Butch" Harper and Homer "Sonny" Hickam, made a solemn pact to have a reply for VMI in 1963 and build the largest game cannon in the world.'
Making Skipper
Planning and funding
The cadets formulated a strategic plan for making the cannon in time for the big game. The biggest task was fundraising since the school administration declined to be directly involved. The 1700 cadets would somehow have to come up with the money themselves. To make things slightly easier, Harper was named to the Regimental Staff, allowing him direct access to alumni to ask for donations. Meanwhile, Hickam became an officer in A Squadron. Also, George Fox, another friend from A Squadron volunteered to help.
Hickam resourcefully procured authentic blueprints for a Civil War style cannon barrel. The cadets planned to make a wooden mock-up of a mold for the barrel with assistance from the college of mechanical engineering. The industrial engineering department took the mock-up on as a class project. The full-scale mold became an essential marketing tool for earning the support of the cadets.
Hickam, Harper, and Fox held sixteen 'show & tell' type meetings where the mold was exhibited and explained to every cadet in every company and squadron on campus. At the end of the meetings, every cadet was ask to donate one dollar or whatever he could give. Enthusiasm and support within the Corps grew with each meeting. The success of the mission would depend upon the cadets' passion as much as their pennies. In recognition, the face of the barrel is marked "VTCC 1964-65-66-67" to honor of all of the class years at the time.
Through their passion, planning, perseverance and tireless effort, three cadets with a dream, managed to earn the support of the entire Corps of Cadets, its alumni, and faculty.
Building and Naming
The Barrel
Due to its superior characteristics, brass was chosen for the barrel. The cadets were requested to donate whatever brass they could scavenge including: brass breastplates, belt buckles, and hat grommets. Large brass gears were obtained from a coal mine in Coalwood, West Virginia where Hickam's father was the superintendent. The cadets also retrieved spent brass bullet shell casings from the school's firing range.
Arrangements were made to have the barrel made at the Virginia Foundry Company in Roanoke, Virginia. The foundry's president, Paul Huffman was sworn to secrecy and when the cadets asked about the forging price, he replied "You don't have enough, but I'm a member of the Corps Class of '37 and VPI has needed a cannon for a long time. We'll be making that barrel for you for nothing. Just blow the heck out of them for us, will ya!?"