KSU Gears Up For College Colors Day

is celebrating College Colors Day on Friday, and officials are asking local residents to wear black and gold in support of the Owls.

College Colors Day, which has been celebrated throughout the country for the last seven years, is a chance for colleges and universities and their supporters to brag about their schools by donning their colors.

"We're very proud of them, and we hope everyone not just in metro Atlanta but across Georgia are proud of KSU," President Daniel Papp said. "The Black and Goold is an athletic program that is absolutely unmoved."

Papp, along with Mayor Mark Mathews and Mayor Tommy Allegood, on Wednesday signed a proclamation naming Friday College Colors Day.

"This university is the fabric of the community," Allegood said.

Mathews said he is proud to be a part of the evolution of the new KSU.

"It's very, very exciting," he said.

Officials said it's shaping up to be a good school year in terms of sports. Next spring, Kennesaw State will begin its NCAA women's lacrosse program, and Papp said he hopes to announce other new sports in the near future.

And, the men's and women's basketball coaches are gearing up for the upcoming season.

"We expect to be contenders for the Atlantic Sun Championship," Papp said.

Papp said prospects for the university's soccer program, which he said is a good recruitment tool for the university, are good this year . In 2011, Kennesaw State hosted the NCAA Women's National Championship at its new soccer stadium.

On Friday, the Lady Owls host Tennessee at the KSU Soccer Stadium at 7 p.m. The first 150 fans will receive free Owls T-shirts.