MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — The Blue Raiders and Hilltoppers’ rivalry returns as Middle Tennessee State University and Western Kentucky University compete during the annual fall blood drive, a friendly competition to see which campus community can rally the most lifesaving donations.

The 100 Miles of Hope American Red Cross Blood Drive will be hosted in the Campus Recreation Center gymnasium from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Wednesday, Sept. 9-11, at 1848 Blue Raider Drive. This event is open to the public.

“One time sitting in a chair for about 45 minutes or so can make the difference between life and death,” said Ray Wiley, Campus Recreation associate director of facilities and longtime Red Cross volunteer. “We really want to encourage people to give.”

MTSU’s aims to reach 465 total donations, which requires at least 155 units a day, said Gene Baker, American Red Cross senior account manager for donor resources. In 2023, MTSU collected 451 units, but was nipped by three units as WKU collected 454 units — the universities’ closest blood drive in history.

When the MTSU community comes together to donate blood, it helps solve a nationwide need. Blood has a 42-day shelf life, and the United States needs “29,000 units of blood every day, day after day after day,” said Baker, who has donated 351 units himself.

History of the drive

Chris Massaro, MTSU director of athletics and longtime blood donor, launched the annual blood drive competition in 2010.

The university that collects the most blood donations wins a challenge trophy that is presented at the MTSU-WKU football game. This year’s game takes place the weekend after the drive on Sept. 14 at 6 p.m. at MTSU’s Floyd Stadium.

MTSU has won the contest and trophy eight times, and WKU has won three times. There was no competition in 2013 when MTSU joined Conference USA nor in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic.

6,551 units of blood have been collected at MTSU blood drives since 2010, which could potentially save 19,653 neighbors’ lives across Middle Tennessee. MTSU and WKU together have collected 12,107 units of blood since 2010, potentially saving 36,000 lives.

“Every donation can help save up to three people’s lives,” Wiley said. 

The “100 Miles of Hope” name derived from the distance between MTSU and WKU, since there is approximately 100 miles between the universities.

Sign-ups are encouraged

While walk-ins are welcome, donors are encouraged to sign-up for the event online. After clicking the link, select the zip code 37132 and the dates Sept. 9-11, to choose your desired time slot. 

Another way to sign up is by downloading the Blood Donor App and using the sponsor code MTSU. The app also allows users to view their donation history, see their health vitals and even track their donation journey as it travels to a hospital to save lives.

Donors can select either a regular blood donation or a Power Red donation, which allows donors to give two units of red blood cells during one appointment. Power Red is for O, A negative or B negative blood types. There are also specific height and weight requirements that vary between male and female donors, which can be viewed here.

Incentives for donating include a commemorative T-shirt, free pizza and MTSU home football game tickets.

If you are unable to give blood for any reason, such as low iron levels or taking certain medications, volunteers are needed to work the blood drive. Sign up here. To determine if you’re eligible to give blood, click here. 

MTSU Campus Recreation will have reserved parking spots in front of the building each day of the drive for on-campus and off-campus donors. To access the campus parking map, click here. Off-campus donors can also access any unrestricted or unreserved parking spaces by obtaining a one-day permit here.

Fighting sickle cell remains top priority

This year’s drive once again aims to fight sickle cell disease. While there is no cure, frequent blood transfusions can reduce symptoms, according to the American Red Cross.

“Sickle cell disease is the most common genetic disease in the U.S., affecting about 100,000 people — primarily Black or African Americans,” according to the American Red Cross. “The disease causes red blood cells to be stiff and sickle shaped, sometimes blocking small blood vessels as they carry oxygen throughout the body and producing symptoms including extreme pain, acute anemia, tissue and organ damage, and even strokes.”

Every patient that receives donated blood has specific antigens that must be matched appropriately, especially in regard to sickle cell disease, Baker said.

“Our number one priority is for our blood drives to look more like our communities and to have more African American donors, more Hispanic donors, more Middle Eastern donors — every nationality,” Baker said.

— Maddy Williams (Maddy.Williams@mtsu.edu)