College athletics identity changes

[Discrim]

A pity nobody suggested either Dollars or Quartermasters, given that's where most folks see GW normally

At least if they're going for unique/goofyish, those make much more sense than Truth.  Blue Fog sort of makes sense if you consider the famed Washington Crossing the Delaware painting. 

[CaliforniaGlowin]

Blue fog with old Seahawks cobalt blue!!!

[8BW14]

It’s gotta be Generals or Continentals right? Why aren’t those even on the list?That list of names looks like the options for a minor league baseball team in New Hampshire. 
 

Here’s my little stump speech: Colleges and universities really don’t need nicknames for their athletics teams, IMO. We are much more tied to the colors and university than the nickname. People will say “I’m a cowboys fan or a Yankees fan”, but more often than not when we are talking about college it’s “I’m an Illinois fan or “Go USC!” There are exceptions, of course,  but I don’t think it would be that weird if college athletics didn’t have official nicknames. 

[WSU151]

38 minutes ago, 8BW14 said:

It’s gotta be Generals or Continentals right? Why aren’t those even on the list?That list of names looks like the options for a minor league baseball team in New Hampshire. 
 

Here’s my little stump speech: Colleges and universities really don’t need nicknames for their athletics teams, IMO. We are much more tied to the colors and university than the nickname. People will say “I’m a cowboys fan or a Yankees fan”, but more often than not when we are talking about college it’s “I’m an Illinois fan or “Go USC!” There are exceptions, of course,  but I don’t think it would be that weird if college athletics didn’t have official nicknames. 

 

So many colleges have great team names though and are strongly associated with the school

 

Longhorns

Beavers

Sun Devils

Lobos

Volunteers

Nittany Lions

Wolverines

Badgers

Buckeyes

Tar Heels

Blue Devils

Demon Deacons

Seminoles

Yellow Jackets

Jayhawks

Hoosiers

Hawkeyes

Cornhuskers

Golden Gophers

Terrapins

Scarlet Knights (and kudos to the Big 10 for arguably the most unique set of team names) 

 

And a number of these schools have hand gestures connected to the mascot. Easier to throw up a "Hook 'em Horns" gesture than a "Here are my two hands awkwardly trying to make a UT" 

[stumpygremlin]

8 minutes ago, WSU151 said:

 

So many colleges have great team names though and are strongly associated with the school

 

Longhorns

Beavers

Sun Devils

Lobos

Volunteers

Nittany Lions

Wolverines

Badgers

Buckeyes

Tar Heels

Blue Devils

Demon Deacons

Seminoles

Yellow Jackets

Jayhawks

Hoosiers

Hawkeyes

Cornhuskers

Golden Gophers

Terrapins

Scarlet Knights (and kudos to the Big 10 for arguably the most unique set of team names) 

And there are others, extant and no longer in use:

Tufts Jumbos (from the stuffed hide of Jumbo the elephant that P.T. Barnum brought to campus)

Williams Ephs (short for Ephraim Williams, the founder of the college)

Webster (MO) Gorloks (from the school's location on the corner of Gore and Lockwood Avenues)

UCF used to be the Citronauts (referencing space exploration and orange farming)

FIU used to be the Sunblazers (based on its location in sunny Miami)

 

I'm sure there's more, but those are just off the top of my head.

[CaliforniaGlowin]

oh to have the Citronauts and Sunblazers back! my pipe dream.

[leopard88]

51 minutes ago, WSU151 said:

 

So many colleges have great team names though and are strongly associated with the school

 

Terrapins

 

(and kudos to the Big 10 for arguably the most unique set of team names) 

 

. . . and you didn't even include Fighting Illini and Boilermakers.

 

I'll also throw in Gamecocks so both of my kids are covered (the other being a Terrapin).

[8BW14]

57 minutes ago, WSU151 said:

 

So many colleges have great team names though and are strongly associated with the school

 

Longhorns

Beavers

Sun Devils

Lobos

Volunteers

Nittany Lions

Wolverines

Badgers

Buckeyes

Tar Heels

Blue Devils

Demon Deacons

Seminoles

Yellow Jackets

Jayhawks

Hoosiers

Hawkeyes

Cornhuskers

Golden Gophers

Terrapins

Scarlet Knights (and kudos to the Big 10 for arguably the most unique set of team names) 

 

And a number of these schools have hand gestures connected to the mascot. Easier to throw up a "Hook 'em Horns" gesture than a "Here are my two hands awkwardly trying to make a UT" 

Sure, there are great nicknames out there. I wouldn’t want to get rid of any of these names necessarily because that’s a great list. The point I was trying to make is that in college, the colors generally come first, then the nickname, usually a long time ago when the schools first started hosting sports, they came about organically from the student body itself or a radio announcer or a sportswriter of the time and they stuck because there’s a cool story.  Illinois is the Fighting Illini because Memorial Stadium was built to honor “the Fighting Illini” alumni and students who died in WWI. I guess the point I was trying to make was that, now, when a school tries to come up with a new nickname it’s corporate-y and contrived and maybe they’d be better off,  in GWU’s case, just being George Washington University whose colors are blue and gold. 

[tBBP]

On 2/23/2023 at 11:53 AM, leopard88 said:

 

. . . and you didn't even include Fighting Illini and Boilermakers.

 

...Or Seminoles...or Razorbacks (of which I'll be an official alumnus in the near-future ).

[WestCoastBias]

On 2/23/2023 at 8:38 AM, 8BW14 said:

It’s gotta be Generals or Continentals right? Why aren’t those even on the list?That list of names looks like the options for a minor league baseball team in New Hampshire. 
 

Here’s my little stump speech: Colleges and universities really don’t need nicknames for their athletics teams, IMO. We are much more tied to the colors and university than the nickname. People will say “I’m a cowboys fan or a Yankees fan”, but more often than not when we are talking about college it’s “I’m an Illinois fan or “Go USC!” There are exceptions, of course,  but I don’t think it would be that weird if college athletics didn’t have official nicknames. 

 

While most people do say "I'm a {college name} fan", I can only think of two schools (Roll Tide and War Eagle) that don't say "Go {team nickname}!" as their main cheer/slogan/whateveritscalled

[tBBP]

14 hours ago, WestCoastBias said:

 

While most people do say "I'm a {college name} fan", I can only think of two schools (Roll Tide and War Eagle) that don't say "Go {team nickname}!" as their main cheer/slogan/whateveritscalled

 

Well there's also "SKI-U-MAH"... but one would have to know/care about [the U of] Minnesota to even know that. (I only know because I live four hours from it.) Then there's the also-less-known "WOO PIG SOOIE" of Razorback Nation.

 

(There's also "HOOK 'EM HORNS"—but we ain't gon' talk about that. )

[WestCoastBias]

9 minutes ago, tBBP said:

 

Well there's also "SKI-U-MAH"... but one would have to know/care about [the U of] Minnesota to even know that. (I only know because I live four hours from it.) Then there's the also-less-known "WOO PUG SOOIE" of Razorback Nation.

 

(There's also "HOOK 'EM HORNS"—but we ain't gon' talk about that. )

 

If you're passing someone on the street wearing Minnesota stuff do you tell them "SKI-U-MAH!" or "Go Gophers!"? I guess Texas would be "Hook 'Em!", missed that one. I'm gonna count 'Woo Pig!" basically as "Go {team nickname}!" though. 

 

 

[chcarlson23]

10 hours ago, WestCoastBias said:

 

If you're passing someone on the street wearing Minnesota stuff do you tell them "SKI-U-MAH!" or "Go Gophers!"? I guess Texas would be "Hook 'Em!", missed that one. I'm gonna count 'Woo Pig!" basically as "Go {team nickname}!" though. 

 

 

As a Gophers fan and someone who’s lived my whole life in Minnesota up until a couple of months ago, yes, I do say Ski-U-Mah to anyone wearing Gophers stuff haha. I mean it’s part of the school fight song, “Rah Rah Rah for Ski-U-Mah” and the U uses it in a lot of branding. So most Gopher fans should know it, and even people who go to the U of M, who don’t care for sports are probably familiar with Ski-U-Mah. 

[Brian in Boston]

On 2/20/2023 at 8:41 AM, GriffinM6 said:

 I think the best nickname is one they left off the list, "Continentals". 

 

On 2/23/2023 at 8:38 AM, 8BW14 said:

It’s gotta be... Continentals right?

If you're going to dub a team the Continentals, forget about including a depiction of George Washington in the logo.  After all, the visual elements of your branding have to revolve around this guy, no?



Wowee, wow, wow, wow!!! What a mascot! 

[leopard88]

On 2/24/2023 at 6:35 PM, WestCoastBias said:

 

While most people do say "I'm a {college name} fan", I can only think of two schools (Roll Tide and War Eagle) that don't say "Go {team nickname}!" as their main cheer/slogan/whateveritscalled

 

"Fear the Turtle" might qualify too.

[-Akronite-]

On 2/24/2023 at 7:42 PM, tBBP said:

 

Well there's also "SKI-U-MAH"... but one would have to know/care about [the U of] Minnesota to even know that. (I only know because I live four hours from it.) Then there's the also-less-known "WOO PIG SOOIE" of Razorback Nation.

 

(There's also "HOOK 'EM HORNS"—but we ain't gon' talk about that. )

 

"Go Bucks!" is common but OH-IO would be considered the main cheer/slogan/whatever.

 

I guess I'd take no nickname over another bulldogs or eagles, but I do love the diversity and uniqueness of college nicknames generally.

[McCall]

For Missouri, "M-I-Z! Z-O-U!" is more common than anything. If they are yelling anything to do with the Tigers nickname, it's generally, "Fight, Tigers, Fight!", from the fight song.

[tBBP]

1 hour ago, McCall said:

For Missouri, "M-I-Z! Z-O-U!" is more common than anything. If they are yelling anything to do with the Tigers nickname, it's generally, "Fight, Tigers, Fight!", from the fight song.

 

Given how many times I've passed that series of billboards going back and forth across the 70 through there, I can vouch for that. 

[McCall]

15 minutes ago, tBBP said:

 

Given how many times I've passed that series of billboards going back and forth across the 70 through there, I can vouch for that. 

Here in these parts, it's akin to shouting "Regulators!" and responding "Mount Up!".

[tBBP]

Just something I randomly ran across:

 

 

Anyone have any clue who this guy is?  (And check the page he "plugs" halfway through the short...you might recognize it, haha.)