80R17408 JGH-D
 
  By: Craddick H.R. No. 1792
 
 
 
R E S O L U T I O N
         WHEREAS, Proud members of the Class of 1957 of Texas Tech
  University are meeting in Lubbock to celebrate their 50th reunion
  from May 9 to 11, 2007; and
         WHEREAS, When these students began their higher education in
  1953 at what was then known as Texas Technological College, the
  Class of 1957 was the 24th freshman class to enroll at the school,
  and they were fortunate to attend the college during a lively period
  of rapid growth; and
         WHEREAS, That first year, the school's enrollment was less
  than 5,000, and it quickly grew to more than 8,000 students by the
  group's senior year; the ratio of men to women was four to one, and
  1,400 of the students were veterans attending college on the G.I.
  Bill; and
         WHEREAS, Covering over 2,000 acres, the campus of Texas Tech
  was considered to be one of the largest in the nation; the school's
  eight dormitories housed some 2,700 students, who were required to
  live on campus unless they were married or commuting; and
         WHEREAS, The incoming class of 1953 was the first to be
  required to pay a dollar to park on campus, with 1,500 cars
  registered for its 700 paved parking spaces; by senior year, the fee
  had been raised to $3.50, with nearly 7,000 applications for 4,000
  parking spaces; and
         WHEREAS, The Class of '57 witnessed the rise of Texas Tech
  football to national prominence; in January 1954, Texas Tech beat
  Auburn University 35 to 14 at the Gator Bowl, the school's first
  major bowl game; that game was also noteworthy for the first
  appearance of the Red Raider mascot, which initiated a new
  tradition; and
         WHEREAS, Red Raider fans will likewise never forget their
  football team's landmark defeat of The University of Texas
  Longhorns in Austin in 1955, during the first game ever played under
  lights in Memorial Stadium; with 10,000 Red Raider fans in
  attendance among the crowd of 40,000, Tech scored an unforgettable
  victory over UT, marking the first time the Longhorns had lost a
  home game since 1893; and
         WHEREAS, Due in part to that 1955 victory in Austin, Texas
  Tech became part of the Southwest Athletic Conference the following
  year, fulfilling a long-held dream for the school and its students;
  that same year the Red Raiders basketball team played its first
  games in the new Lubbock Municipal Coliseum; and
         WHEREAS, In gathering to celebrate the special bond they will
  always share, members of the Class of '57 will renew old friendships
  and relive fond memories at their reunion, and the event promises to
  indeed be a memorable one for all concerned; now, therefore, be it
         RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 80th Texas
  Legislature hereby congratulate the Texas Tech University Class of
  1957 on the 50th anniversary of its graduation and extend to its
  members best wishes for a most enjoyable reunion.