While the men of Gamma Sigma Phi had many different functions, there was one function that gained more attention than the rest. On Sept. 14, 2013, Gamma Sigma Phi held its fifth annual Paintbowl function at the Intramural Fields.
The event was simple—four games of two-hand-touch football between six teams. To make it interesting, each player dipped his hands in paint before the games began. Afterward, the winners of each team threw paint on the others, which turned into a paint war.
Junior Randy Smith and freshman Ben Lanier were the activities directors in charge of planning the Paintbowl. In preparation for the big event, Smith and Lanier reserved the rugby field, arranged players into different teams and bought footballs, white hats and paint.
“One of the neat parts about the function was the paint-covered hats and footballs,” Lanier said. “Whenever we tailgated, we were always throwing around the footballs. It was something cool to hang on to.”
Another aspect of the Paintbowl that had become a tradition was how to cleverly invite a date to the function. Smith said he asked his date through a formal email invitation.
Senior Mackenzie Cole, Gamma Sigma Phi queen, was also asked to the Paintbowl function in a unique way. Cole said that senior Bailey Gammill asked her to the function by placing a bowl of ice on her doorstep with a hammer. Attached was a note that said, “Break it.” Once Cole broke the ice, Gammill jumped out from behind a car and shouted, “Now that we have broken the ice, will you go to Paintbowl with me?”
Of all the functions Smith had attended, he said the Paintbowl had always been his favorite. According to Smith, the very best part of the function was throwing paint on one another and watching solid-colored shirts become one huge blob of color.
“It seemed that everyone really enjoyed the function because the extreme, the competitive, the funny and the good came out in everyone,” Smith said.
