OSU students find giant pile jump to bounce back from finals

STILLWATER, Okla. (KFOR) – It was an indescribable sight at Oklahoma State University. Students took a break from books the week before final exams to channel their inner child.

It’s a typical fall in Stillwater. The leaves of the trees change color amid the hustle and bustle of students preparing for final exams.

There is a huge pile of leaves in front of Edmon Low Library with students screaming, laughing and jumping for joy.

It all started on social media. OSU students applied to study again. The message eventually reached the groundskeeper.

“I knew we could do this,” said John Lee, OSU’s director of landscaping services. “The landscape gardeners did it in three days.”

“They did a lot of work to fit it all in here,” said one student, standing on the pile with sheets of paper reaching his knees.

The groundskeepers took all the leaves from the central campus. The pile was originally about 15 feet tall, but given the Oklahoma winds, it didn’t last long.

After spreading it out on the lawn, Lee said the result was a 16,000-cubic-foot pile of fun just waiting for students to freak out when they saw it.

“This is easily the biggest event of the century,” one student said just before frontflipping into the pile.

“We didn’t know what to expect,” another student said.

“I thought it was going to be down to my ankles and knees, and it was just completely…It was everywhere,” said Zoey Lewis, a senior at OSU.

This fall outing is a first for Cowboy Nation. It could potentially be the start of something to look forward to every fall.

“I hope this becomes a tradition,” Lee said.

“Maybe I’ll take a trip back just to see the huge pile of leaves again,” Lewis said. “It was a good way to just relieve stress when we all feel like we’re dying.”

The landscaping director said they were wondering if it was a world record. If not, they’ll probably make it bigger next year.

“This is so much better than writing my essay for a class. Happy dead week. Go and poke! a student said before jumping in.