The UT-OU game ball will arrive at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas this afternoon by way of the University's Naval ROTC unit.
Mack Brown presented the game ball to the midshipmen Wednesday at Darrel K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium, at the start of their annual 210-mile, 26-hour trek to Dallas.
"[The run] starts to get people excited," said Kasey Johnson, Brown's administrative associate. "Mack Brown goes because he appreciates what Naval ROTC [is doing]."
The run to Dallas will benefit the Lance Armstrong Foundation, which serves cancer patients, families and survivors.
The midshipmen will run in relay fashion for one or more miles until another takes over. The runners are accompanied by a total of six vans for their protection, to give them an opportunity to rest and as a way of transporting all the runners so that they will be able to alternate.
They run in groups to offer support and encouragement and also for "a little friendly competition," said midshipman Jacob Betz, who ran 26 miles in last year's event.
Betz, a government and history junior, is said to be the top fund raiser this year because of his colletion of $490. The top two fund-raisers present the game ball on the field.
"I like to think that I am making a difference in people and for people," Betz said.
The midshipmen raise money in their spare time by collecting donations from friends, classmates, family and businesses. Last year, the Naval ROTC members raised $3,000 for the foundation.
"It's great that we have people in Austin supporting us," said Elli Overton, the developmental associate for the foundation. "It's good to raise awareness and funds."
Naval ROTC members believe that by raising money, they are helping the community, the University and their unit.
"[The fund-raiser] is a way of giving back to the community," said Chief Peter Porras, the administrative officer for the University's Naval ROTC. "It helps us with morale purposes, it shows them [the midshipmen] leadership roles, not only with the naval service but with the community as well."
During the run the unit even gathers a crowd of supporters, said Porras.
They have fun at night with a midnight costume contest in which the runners dress in anything from UT fan gear to Hannibal Lector costumes to French maid outfits.
"We have a costume contest to try to take our minds off of the pain; it gets physically demanding, so we try to take our minds off of the sweat and sometimes the smell," said Betz.
The run is also a way of uniting the group, said Betz.
"It's good for the unit also last year by the end of the run, I had made friends that I didn't have before I started," he said.
Run to Dallas is a long-standing tradition since the beginning of the Red River Shootout; however, the charity to be benefited varies from year to year.
"I really enjoy seeing my efforts going to families in need," said Betz.
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