Comparison: LSU vs. USL, circa 1920

I've got a 1916 SLII yearbook and a 1922 LSU yearbook. For anyone who doesn't know, UL was originally Southwestern Louisiana Industrial Institute (SLII), and later became USL, and now UL. (It will always be USL to me dammit, screw that oo-la-la crap.) I was checking them out, and it's funny that in a lot of ways, things haven't changed all that much. Granted, the SLII sophomore class consisted of a whole 18 people, so UL has gotten a bit larger, but the overall vibe about the two schools is still pretty much the same. LSU was very frat-oriented, seems a lot more serious, and was a bunch of football fanatics, although it looks like it had a lot larger military influence ("the olde war skule"). SLII looks like it was pretty laid back, and everybody was more interested in goofing off and having a good time than in their studies (their motto: "To avoid doing today, what can be put off until tomorrow"). For example, LSU had large programs in law and military studies. At SLII, you could major in farm mechanics, stenography, or home economics. Here are some other important comparison categories:



IN ATHLETICS:

LSU:
LSU's basketball team pretty much kicked everyone's ass except for Tulane once.


SLII:

SLII had these guys. Not only do they look ferocious, their record proves it. As you can see, as long as they played high schools, they totally kicked ass.


IN THE BABE DEPT:

LSU:
LSU had Miss Powers, the prettiest girl in school. Fair enough.


SLII:
SLII had the Saucy Smiling Senior Six. They are both saucy, and smiling. Times six. Take that LSU! Booya!


IN THE SOCIAL LIFE DEPT:

LSU:


LSU had The Daggers, a Masonic club, and of course, the LSU Oriental Club.


SLII:


SLII had The Old Sow (who apparently liked to ride hogs and beat on each other with sticks), The Dirty Eight and Instructor (who liked to threaten horses with knuckle sandwiches), and The Be Sociable Club (who liked to harass cattle at gunpoint). I shit you not, one of the guys in the Be Sociable picture is named "Te Poule Bienvenue, the St. Martin chicken lover." I'm not making that up.


So if you had gone to SLII back then, my verdict is that your degree probably didn't mean jack shit when you got out, but you probably had a way better time at school. Assuming you didn't impregnate some form of livestock.

RAH! RAH! RAH! RAH!
You rah! rah! Southwestern,
You rah! rah! Southwestern,
Hullaballo, Rah, Rah.
Hoorah, Hoorah, SOUTHWESTERN
WAH! WAH!