The basic lyrical structure of "Hooray for Auburn" comes from a cheer that was common in the mid-twentieth century. One of the earliest published versions of the cheer is in Lucile Hasley's 1953 book The Mouse Hunter. In 1961, Auburn High School Band director Tommy Goff wrote music for these lyrics after hearing the cheer used by the Auburn High cheerleaders at a junior varsity football game. The song began being used as the Auburn High School fight song later that year. Around 1963, LaFayette High School in LaFayette, Alabama began using the music as their fight song and soon after several other schools in eastern Alabama adopted "Hooray!".Lucile Hasley, The Mouse Hunter (New York: Sheed and Ward, 1953), 183; Alan Newton, "25 Years of Genius", Tiger Tales, October 10, 1980.
