Why are 'tarps off' at College World Series? Explaining shirtless Ole Miss, UNC fans

Fans at Charles Schwab Field in the College World Series have gone shirtless.

It's a trending sweeping through sports called " Tarps Off ."

The fans, typically younger men or boys, congregate in the stands. They take their shirts off and wave the shirts in circles like a rally towel. A group has done it as Ole Miss baseball's CWS opener against North Carolina on June 12.

Tarps Off began during the 2025 college football season at an Oklahoma State game.

According to The Athletic , it started when a fan was bet $10 by his sister that he wouldn't go stand in an empty section of Boone Pickens Stadium during an Oct. 11 game against Houston while twirling his shirt over his head. The fan, Trent Eaton, accepted the challenge and went through with it.

Other fans eventually joined in. The section grew and it turned into a rowdy section.

Other fanbases caught on, and eventually Tarps Off was appearing at games across the country.

Tarps Off largely went away in the winter, but resurfaced during the MLB season. It boomed again with the St. Louis Cardinals , starting with a group from the Stephen F. Austin club baseball team.