Rivalries at the Tommie-Johnnie game Saturday will not just exist on the field. In the stands, the T-shirt battle resumes.

Facebook groups for this year’s Tommie-Johnnie T-shirts were formed as early as late August.

Junior Grace Vo said she cannot wait to wear the T-shirt she bought for the game.

“I got a shirt, the one that says ‘game day’ on the front,” Vo said. “I’m so excited to finally wear it.”

But Tori Svoboda, associate dean of students, is not excited for the T-shirts. Svoboda said in past years, she has seen a variety of Tommie-Johnnie T-shirts, ranging from witty to inappropriate. She said students can support the team without being disrespectful.

“I think I’m most proud of students who wear shirts that are supporting Tommie pride,” Svoboda said. “And that can be clever, and I think we can express pride in our team without being dismissive or disrespectful to others. So when I see what I would consider to be an inappropriate shirt, I’m disappointed. I think we’re capable of more than that.”

Jane Canney,vice president of student affairs, discouraged students from wearing disrespectful T-shirts because of the negative response the university receives.

“What happens afterwards is we get calls; we get letters from people who are mortified that they see St. Thomas students wearing shirts that are so undignified,” Canney said.

Canney added even though the dean of students office organized a T-shirt exchange for inappropriate T-shirts last year, this year there will be a different approach.

“We just figure people need to take responsibility of themselves,” Canney said. “I just think that hopefully people would assume that responsibility. They’re not 10 years old.”

Svoboda agreed.

“I think providing the shirts implies that we expect the worst from our students, and I’d like to think we can expect the best from our students,” Svoboda said.

Svoboda also said students might have to face consequences if they wear inappropriate T-shirts.

“They could be turned away, or they could be asked to turn their shirt out,” Svoboda said.

Sophomore Carly Jorgensen said this could be a good idea.

“I think it’d be smart for them to turn them away. I mean, if they’re like really bad or what they say can be taken offensively or something,” Jorgensen said.

Vo said students have a right to wear what they want to the game.

“I could understand why officials would want to have other people turn their shirts inside out because of good sportsmanship, and you want to show that of course and make St. Thomas look good,” Vo said. “But at the same time, I like to wear whatever I want.”

Senior Stephen Black said he did not even bother to buy a Tommie-Johnnie shirt.

“I already have plenty of purple shirts to wear, and I’m saving money,” Black said.

Junior Pete Carbonneau said he does not think the “game day” T-shirt he purchased is inappropriate compared to some from past years.

“There’s obviously things that are over the line, but I don’t think these shirts are really over the line compared to some of the one’s we’ve seen in the past,” Carbonneau said.

Svoboda said the Sexual Violence Prevention Program Committee started a poster campaign with shocking images of past games that will be featured for students to see.

“They’re actually quite shocking because they show you images of inappropriate T-shirts from years in the past, kind of saying ‘How would you feel if this was stated about your sister, or your brother or a loved one?’” Svoboda said. “I like the shock value because I think it says, ‘Is this really how you want to represent yourself?’”

John Paul II Hall Director Toni Grant that the fifth floor of the residence hall organized a program to make its own shirts.

“They really wanted to do a shirt that was full of Tommie pride and that would be a better alternative to other shirts that are put out there that may be less appropriate,” Grant said. “It is a way to build community on the floor and campus wide about being Tommies.”

Svoboda said the university is not trying to hinder students from having fun at the game.

“I think some students might think we’re trying to limit what fun they can have, and that’s absolutely not the case,” she said. “We want folks to be really loud and proud. We just want them to do it in a manner that doesn’t disrespect others.”

Cynthia Johnson can be reached at john3175@stthomas.edu