In remembrance of the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, Kyle Field will be blanketed in red, white and blue to recreate the 2001 memorial game.
As a way to honor an iconic moment in Aggie history, The Standing for America campaign — a partnership between Texas A&M, Maroon Out and C.C. Creations — will once again fill Kyle Field with a patriotic salute to those lost in the tragedies. Vice President of Marketing for C.C. Creations Ashleigh Krause said it is an honor to be able to lead the charge in continuing the legacy of the original game.
“We’re really excited to be able to help in recreating that iconic photo,” Krause said. “We are really excited to be able to do this again for the community for all those new generations of Aggies, and we hope that everybody will be able to really understand the significance as we remember those that were killed in the 9/11 tragedy.”
In 2001, five students came to C.C. Creations to meet with CEO Kenny Lawson with a goal to fill the entire stadium with patriotic colors to honor those lives lost. Lawson was honored to participate in creating this vision, and his team took on the challenge of printing enough shirts for the entire stadium.
“One of the proudest moments as an owner is that our employees without a hitch stood up and made that happen working 24 hours for nine straight days up until the 11:00 game that Saturday,” Lawson said to KBTX.
In 2001, 80,000 shirts were printed by C.C. Creations to wear at the game. Lawson said being able to recreate this moment is gratifying as they honor those lost.
“We are honoring 9/11. We’re honoring the 20-year anniversary, but we’re also saying that we’re Aggies and we stand for our football,” Lawson said in a press release. “This time we have a couple of months to prepare. We’re excited as this is going to be a great thing for Texas A&M on a national level.”
Each deck of Kyle Field will have a different color with the third deck being red, the second being white and the first being blue.
Maroon Out Director of Outreach Celina Hernandez said the organization’s goal is to truly remember the lives lost.
“After 9/11 as America, we did come together just to be there for one another and to repair those bonds that were lost that day,” Hernandez told KBTX.
Since sales began in July, Krause said between all the partners, they have printed over 140,000 shirts for the upcoming game.
“I know everybody, whether you’ve attended the game, seen pictures or heard of it, there’s that iconic photo right of the corner of Kyle Field that shows the red, white and blue deck,” Krause said. “It’s been really exciting for us to have played our big part in filling that space 20 years ago, and then now especially with the expansion of Kyle Field, there is a very large extended capacity compared to the original stadium.”
The shirts are being sold at C.C. Creations, Aggieland Outfitters, the Barnes and Noble Bookstore on campus, Brookshire Brothers, Academy Sports + Outdoors and Fanatics. Additionally, shirts are being sold at locations around campus throughout the week and will be sold at the game for those who miss their opportunity to stop by a shop before Saturday.
Proceeds from the shirt sales will be donated to the President George W. Bush Point of Light Foundation and Texas A&M Task Force 1.