Mascot/Nickname Contest results

[HensRock]

I hope you all enjoyed our little contest.

First, I feel I should discuss scoring. If anyone would like to see how I scored their entry, please PM me and I'll be happy to provide it. I used these general principles:

1. Score a maximum of 1.0 points per team name/mascot. Therefore, a perfect score was 120. I did award partial credit in some cases.

2. I did not deduct for spelling errors as long as the entry displayed knowledge of the correct answer or phonetically sounded like it. This ended up being a judgement call in some cases. If it was completely garbled, you got nada. If your answer was singular instead of plural or vice-versa, you still got full credit.

3a. If a team name/mascot consisted of 2 words and you only gave 1, you got half credit. Several people guessed "Danes" for Albany when the answer is "Great Danes". (This is a breed of dog, not someone from Denmark). Score 0.5

3b. If your answer had superfluous words that are not part of the official nick/mascot name, then you got half credit. Example: Gardner-Webb "Runnin' Bulldogs" (on a few entries) when the answer is simply "Bulldogs". (At least that's all it has on their website). Score 0.5

4. In the case of retired mascot names, I deducted points based on how long the new name has been in use, roughly 0.1 for every 2 years since the change. If it's more than 10 years since the change, however, you received no credit. Example: Colgate "Red Raiders" (Red was dropped in 2001) Score 0.8

Note: In the case of Lehigh, I thought long and hard about this because it is a bit of a religious issue for those die-hard "Engineer" fans. The name was changed in 1996 to Mountain Hawks. That's quite a while ago. If you stuck to your principles entered Engineers, I admire your loyalty. But you can't be a martyr without pain - in this case 0.5 points.


I thought of most of these up front before scoring any entries, but not surprisingly, there were a few cases I did not anticipate and I had to make judgement calls. I tried to be fair.

[HensRock]

Here are the answers I used. Please let me know if you see something out of place.

Answer Key

Alabama A&M Bulldogs
Alabama State Hornets
Albany Great Danes
Alcorn State Braves
Appalachian State Mountaineers
Arkansas Pine Bluff Golden Lions
Austin Peay Governors
Bethune-Cookman Wildcats
Brown Bears
Bucknell Bison
Butler Bulldogs
Cal Poly Mustangs
Cal State Sacramento Hornets
Central Connecticut State Blue Devils
Charleston Southern Buccaneers
Chattanooga Mocs - score 0.6 for Moccasins (changed 1997)
Citadel, The Bulldogs
Coastal Carolina Chanticleers
Colgate Raiders - score 0.8 for Red Raiders (changed 2001)
Columbia Lions
Cornell Big Red
Dartmouth Big Green
Davidson Wildcats
Dayton Flyers
Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens - full credit for Blue Hens or Fighting Blue Hens
Delaware State Hornets
Drake Bulldogs
Duquesne Dukes
Eastern Illinois Panthers
Eastern Kentucky Colonels
Eastern Washington Eagles
Elon Phoenix - score 0.7 for Fighting Christians (changed 2000)
Florida A&M Rattlers
Fordham Rams
Furman Paladins
Gardner Webb Bulldogs
Georgetown Hoyas
Georgia Southern Eagles
Grambling Tigers
Hampton Pirates
Harvard Crimson
Hofstra Pride - score 0.8 for Flying Dutchmen (changed ~2002?)
Holy Cross Crusaders
Howard Bison
Idaho State Bengals
Illinois State Redbirds
Indiana State Sycamores
Iona Gaels
Jackson State Tigers
Jacksonville Dolphins
Jacksonville State Gamecocks
James Madison Dukes
Lafayette Leopards
LaSalle Explorers
Lehigh Mountain Hawks - score 0.5 for Engineers (changed 1996)
Liberty Flames
Maine Black Bears
Marist Red Foxes
Massachusetts Minutemen
McNeese State Cowboys
Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils
Monmouth Hawks
Montana Grizzlies - full credit for Griz
Montana State Bobcats
Morehead State Eagles
Morgan State Bears
Murray State Racers
New Hampshire Wildcats
Nicholls State Colonels
Norfolk State Spartans
North Carolina A&T Aggies
North Dakota State Bison
Northeastern Huskies
Northern Arizona Lumberjacks
Northern Colorodo Bears
Northern Iowa Panthers
Northwestern State Demons
Pennsylvania Quakers
Portland State Vikings
Prairie View A&M Panthers
Princeton Tigers
Rhode Island Rams
Richmond Spiders
Robert Morris Colonials
Sacred Heart Pioneers
Sam Houston State Bearkats
Samford Bulldogs
San Diego Toreros
Savannah State Tigers
South Carolina State Bulldogs
South Dakota State Jackrabbits
Southeast Missouri State Redhawks - score 0.9 for Indians (changed 2004)
Southeastern Louisiana Lions
Southern Jaguars
Southern Illinois Salukis
Southern Utah Thunderbirds
(Southwest) Missouri State Bears
St. Francis Red Flash
St. Peter's Peacocks
Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks
Stony Brook Seawolves
Tennessee State Tigers
Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles
Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks
Texas Southern Tigers
Texas State-San Marcos Bobcats
Towson Tigers
UC Davis Aggies
Valparaiso Crusaders
Villanova Wildcats
VMI Keydets
Wagner Seahawks
Weber State Wildcats
Western Carolina Catamounts
Western Illinois Leathernecks
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
William & Mary Tribe
Wofford Terriers
Yale Bulldogs - full credit for Eli(s)
Youngstown State Penguins

[blukeys]

Hensrock, Just out of curiosity what teams were the best known? For instance Did anyone on this board miss the Montana Grizzlies?

[HensRock]

TheValleyRaider submitted an entry worth an incredible 118.4 points out of a possible 120 (98.7%).

Here are the top 10 entries:
118.4 TheValleyRaider
114.4 wkuhillhound
113.4 Mr. C
107.8 Husky Alum
102.9 ISUMatt
101.0 Eagle22
99.8 laparka316
95.9 Bison Kent
91.0 89Hen
89.0 RockyMtnGriz

Some may notice that their scores have gone up by 0.1 since I PM'ed you. This is because of a late adjustment.

Without mentioning names, here are the other scores, so those who played can see where they stood. Remember, your score might be 0.1 greater than what I told you.

87.2
86.5
85.5
85.0
84.4
76.3
75.5
69.6
63.3
60.5
59.0
54.5
45.7
37.5
35.0


There were 25 entries. The average score was 81.6

Thanks everyone for playing!

[TexasTerror]

Texas State-San Marcos Bobcats

Wow, you got the school's name right too! :)

[HensRock]

Hensrock, Just out of curiosity what teams were the best known? For instance Did anyone on this board miss the Montana Grizzlies?


That's an interesting idea and I got the stats from the entries. Here are the results.

Of 25 entrants all 25 knew the following team names:
Delaware Blue Hens
Georgetown Hoyas
Hofstra Pride
James Madison Dukes
Montana Grizzlies
Rhode Island Rams
Richmond Spiders

24 out of 25 knew the following:
Coastal Carolina Chanticleers
Liberty Flames
Maine Black Bears
Massachusetts Minutemen
Northeastern Huskies
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
William & Mary Tribe
Wofford Terriers
Yale Bulldogs
Youngstown State Penguins

23.5 knew these:
Furman Paladins
Georgia Southern Eagles

23 knew these:
Appalachian State Mountaineers
Montana State Bobcats
New Hampshire Wildcats
Pennsylvania Quakers
Southern Illinois Salukis
Towson Tigers
Villanova Wildcats


At the other extreme:
9.5 knew Central Connecticut State Blue Devils
9.5 knew Marist Red Foxes
9 knew Morgan State Bears
9 knew San Diego Toreros
9 knew Stony Brook Seawolves
8 knew Alabama A&M Bulldogs
8 knew Monmouth Hawks
8 knew Prairie View A&M Panthers
8 knew Southeastern Louisiana Lions
8 knew Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks
6.5 knew St. Peter's Peacocks
6 knew Arkansas Pine Bluff Golden Lions
5.6 knew Southeast Missouri State Redhawks (0.9 for Indians)
5 knew Robert Morris Colonials
5 knew St. Francis Red Flash
5 knew Texas Southern Tigers
5 knew Wagner Seahawks

And only 2 knew Sacred Heart Pioneers

[TheValleyRaider]

So I was off by a couple. That's how you knew it was legit right? :D

Missed: San Diego Toreros (put Toreadors)
SEMO Redhawks (put Indians)
and St. Peter's Peacocks (Peahens must be their women's team's names)

I'm somewhat impressed with myself that I managed to pull out UAPB as the Golden Lions and not just the Lions and Skyhawks for UTM. Also almost switched Alabama A&M and State's nicknames.

I guess I can now add "I-AA Geek" to "Band Geek" in my evergrowing repertoire of geekness (or something like that)

[JoltinJoe]

That's an interesting idea and I got the stats from the entries. Here are the results.

Of 25 entrants all 25 knew the following team names:
Delaware Blue Hens
Georgetown Hoyas
Hofstra Pride
James Madison Dukes
Montana Grizzlies
Rhode Island Rams
Richmond Spiders



So everyone who entered knew the Rhode Island Rams?

How many of them know from which school Rhode Island lifted its nickname? ;)

[HensRock]

Missed: San Diego Toreros (put Toreadors)
SEMO Redhawks (put Indians)
and St. Peter's Peacocks (Peahens must be their women's team's names)



Correct. Here's the way I scored it.
0 pts. for San Diego "Toreadors" (close but no cigar)
0.9 pts. for SEMO "Indians" (as promised in the Answer Key)
0.5 pts. for St. Peter's "Peahens" (As you guessed, I gave 0.5 credit because the Women's teams are known as the Peahens)

Extremely impressive.

[Husky Alum]

Less than 22 of 25 of the participants knew the Harvard Crimson? Interesting. More people knew NU's nickname than Harvard's??

Did I get extra credit for posting both nicknames some schools that changed their names? ;)

Only reason I knew Sacred Heart is b/c I grew up about 10 miles from there.

We can do the tangent of the contest and do the "Name the school colors of the 120 1-AA teams" next ;)

[HensRock]

So everyone who entered knew the Rhode Island Rams?

How many of them know from which school Rhode Island lifted its nickname? ;)

Joe,
21 out of 25 knew that Fordham was the Rams.

I was suprised that everyone knew URI was the Rams too.

[HensRock]

Less than 22 of 25 of the participants knew the Harvard Crimson? Interesting. More people knew NU's nickname than Harvard's??
Actually, exactly 22 knew it.


Did I get extra credit for posting both nicknames some schools that changed their names? ;)
No. Max of 1 point per school. Sorry.

You can run the school colors contest. ;)

[SiouxFallsJack]

I'm impressed that after one year at least 10 people knew that South Dakota State is known as the Jackrabbits. :eek:


I'll credit our near upset of Georgia Southern last year for putting us on the map. ;) :D

[blukeys]

That's an interesting idea and I got the stats from the entries. Here are the results.

Of 25 entrants all 25 knew the following team names:
Delaware Blue Hens
Georgetown Hoyas
Hofstra Pride
James Madison Dukes
Montana Grizzlies
Rhode Island Rams
Richmond Spiders

24 out of 25 knew the following:
Coastal Carolina Chanticleers
Liberty Flames
Maine Black Bears
Massachusetts Minutemen
Northeastern Huskies
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
William & Mary Tribe
Wofford Terriers
Yale Bulldogs
Youngstown State Penguins

23.5 knew these:
Furman Paladins
Georgia Southern Eagles




Thanks for the info. I've always had the theory that a unique nickname sticks in people's minds more than the typical nickname (wildcats). As much flack as UD fans take for the mascot, no one forgets who the Blue Hens are. I've walked thru airports and cities all over the U.S. with UD attire and usually someone brings up the Figthin' Blue Hens (usually with a smile). These folks do not necessarily have a connection with UD usually they had a relative working in Delaware but the name of the mascot has always stuck in their minds.

I know a teams success is a major factor but looking at your chart there are some obvious factors that support my contention. Of the first 7 only Rhode Island's is not a unique nickname. I would argue that 8 of the next 10 teams are in the unique category. My final argument is how do more people remember that the Richmond mascot is the Spiders than Georgia Southern is the Eagles? Clearly GSU has had more success in I-AA than Richmond but your numbers prove they remember the Richmond mascot better.

In the Gateway remembering WKU and SIU is not a problem for me. The other teams are a bit of a blur.

[wkuhillhound]

I knew that SEMO changed its nickname recently but I didn't think that you would give credit for Indians, I was going for full credit instead of .9. I totally blanked out on Southeastern Louisiana, Sacred Heart, Wagner, and SEMO (new nickname). At least I didn't miss the commonly known nickname, I would be embarassed especially the one that missed Western Kentucky :o ...just teasing :D I am only the second biggest geek here whew for a moment there I though that I won. :nod: ;) At least I won among Gateway participants. :)

[blukeys]

Less than 22 of 25 of the participants knew the Harvard Crimson? Interesting. More people knew NU's nickname than Harvard's??



Husky Alum, did you notice the A-10 representation on this board vs. the Ivy League? Also in football the Ivy league is not in the National Consciousness of most folks. Harvard did ok compared to Dartmouth, Brown, Columbia, Cornell etc.

[eaglefan452]

Damn, some of you guys did pretty well. I tried, and I didn't even get near half.

[DemiGS]

Someone knew who Richmond was but didn't know who GSU was? I know that probably sounds self important, but at least Richmond has an unusual mascot. I bet if you polled all football teams from Pee-wee up, you would find "Eagles" (bald, golden, war. etc) is fairly common. Not to mention the history associated with the program in Statesboro.

[bobcatfan06]

Wow, you got the school's name right too! :)

Too bad that is the wrong name. Take a look at the exit sign on I-35 when you come to San Marcos, and get back to me then.

[JoltinJoe]

Joe,
21 out of 25 knew that Fordham was the Rams.

I was suprised that everyone knew URI was the Rams too.

To us at Fordham, the original Rams, it is a both a source of frustration and pride that so many high school, college, and professional teams use the Rams nickname. Probably every team using the Rams nickname derived it, either consciously or unconsciously, from Fordham. This resulted from the preeminence and popularity of our sports programs during the early and mid 20th century, especially football. Even the NFL Rams, acknowledging that it was trying to capitalize on Fordham's popularity at its inception in the 1930s, admittedly "borrowed" their name from Fordham.

Today many people have no idea who were the original Rams. To them, our nickname is just another "Rams" nickname. It has become a very common nickname, and few people today know we were the first.

[HensRock]

Too bad that is the wrong name. Take a look at the exit sign on I-35 when you come to San Marcos, and get back to me then.

What is the correct name then, for my edification?

I thought that at least the first year after the name change (from SW TX St.) the school went by the official title, "Texas State-San Marcos". Have they now officially dropped the "-San Marcos" qualifier altogether? I thought the plan was to eventually create several Texas State - XXX schools in the State University system.

[ngineer]

To us at Fordham, the original Rams, it is a both a source of frustration and pride that so many high school, college, and professional teams use the Rams nickname. Probably every team using the Rams nickname derived it, either consciously or unconsciously, from Fordham. This resulted from the preeminence and popularity of our sports programs during the early and mid 20th century, especially football. Even the NFL Rams, acknowledging that it was trying to capitalize on Fordham's popularity at its inception in the 1940s, admittedly "borrowed" their name from Fordham.

Today many people have no idea who were the original Rams. To them, our nickname is just another "Rams" nickname. It has become a very common nickname, and few people today know we were the first.

Shoulda got it copyrighted :D Probably had the same lawyers as Grambling, now in search of a 'G' string...

[BlackSaturday]

"Completed in 1903 the red-roofed, castle-like landmark Old Main is Texas State's first building.Texas State University-San Marcos is a doctoral granting university located in the burgeoning Austin-San Antonio corridor, the largest campus in the Texas State University System, and the 6th largest in the state"

From the Texas State site. Prob similar to Tarheel fans calling themselves UNC, when actually UNC is the system and the campus is UNC-CH.

[Husky Alum]

Bluekeys,

I just figured from pure name recognition Harvard as an academic institution would garner more votes. Maybe its because I was born and raised next door to Yale and live in Boston that I figure more people would know the nicknames of the Ancient Eight than the A-10.

FWIW, I know Northeastern was the Huskies before UConn and the University of Washington. Not sure if we beat NIU or Michigan Tech to the punch.

I'll give everyone a break and then I'll be glad to host a variation of the "nickname" game in a couple of weeks.

[JoltinJoe]

Found this information on the web regarding college nicknames, and thought I'd share.

http://www.jimwegryn.com/Names/Game.htm

"The pros are not alone in this chaotic name game. The thousands of high schools, colleges, universities, and weedy leagues offer a menagerie of marks and mascots. I culled through a list of college team nicknames in the United States and found there were 420 distinct nicknames being shared by 1420 institutions. Disregarding the leading adjectives (like Fighting, Big, Golden, etc.), only about 16% of the institutions have unique nicknames, like Cornhuskers, Spiders, Salukis, Hokies, and Rosemonsters. The following table shows the most popular nicknames and the frequency.

Most popular college and university team nicknames:

All kinds of felines 196 (9)
Eagles 54 (20)
Bulldogs 38 (1)
Pioneers 34
Crusaders 28
Knights 26 (11)
Warriors 25
Hawks 25
Bears 23
Saints 20
Vikings 20
Falcons 20
Rams 16
Cardinals 16
Yellow Jackets 16
Owls 15
Spartans 15
( ) names with adjectives

University and college teams with cat nicknames

Tigers 46 (3)
Lions 30 (5)
Panthers 30 (1)
Wildcats 30
Cougars 25
Bobcats 12
Bearcats 25
Jaguars 4
Catamount 3
Leopards 3
Lynx 2
Mountain Cats 1
Pumas 1
AMCats 1
Tomcats 1
Total, all cats 196 (9)

[UAalum72]

Another site: http://www.smargon.net/nicknames/#Notes
I counted about 25 colleges with other dog breeds, led by 9 Huskies down to 1 Saluki, Great Dane, and the Pace Setters.

[HensRock]

For I-AA, when in doubt, guess Bulldogs or Tigers. Here is the frequency chart for common mascots:

8 Bulldogs
7 Tigers
5 Wildcats
4 Bears (6 if you include Grizzly and Black)
3 Bison
3 Eagles (4 including Golden Eagles)
3 Hornets
3 Panthers
2 Aggies
2 Bobcats
2 Colonels
2 Crusaders
2 Dukes
2 Lions (3 counting Golden)
2 Lumberjacks
2 Rams

[FU97]

My final argument is how do more people remember that the Richmond mascot is the Spiders than Georgia Southern is the Eagles? Clearly GSU has had more success in I-AA than Richmond but your numbers prove they remember the Richmond mascot better.

In the Gateway remembering WKU and SIU is not a problem for me. The other teams are a bit of a blur.

I think the answer to your Richmond-GSU answer lies outside of I-AA football and in NCAA Basketball, specifically the tourney. Richmond had a couple of huge upsets in the late 1980's and early 1990's (Syracuse and GT) as something like a 13 and 15 seed. That got their name out there as a "Cinderella". Same with Georgetown. They are much better known for their basketball success (Patrick Ewing) as opposed to their football success.

[wkuhillhound]

I think the answer to your Richmond-GSU answer lies outside of I-AA football and in NCAA Basketball, specifically the tourney. Richmond had a couple of huge upsets in the late 1980's and early 1990's (Syracuse and GT) as something like a 13 and 15 seed. That got their name out there as a "Cinderella". Same with Georgetown. They are much better known for their basketball success (Patrick Ewing) as opposed to their football success.

Right on brother....WKU upset Michigan in the NCAA Tournament and advanced to the Sweet 16 in 1994. WKU is well known for their basketball and our mascot Big Red is widely recognized around the country also.

[blukeys]

Both of you make good points. I had forgotten the Basketball success. Would both of these teams' mascots been as easily remembered if the nicknames were the wildcats and eagles? :confused:

[Kosty]

Just curious.....who didn't know that UMass was the Minutemen and what was their answer for what the mascot was? I'm just curious as to who follows 1-AA football and doesn't know that UMass is the Minutemen.

[89Hen]

who didn't know that UMass was the Minutemen and what was their answer for what the mascot was?
Good question! Hey Rock, were there any really way out answers. Give us some without disclosing who sent them.

[blukeys]

Just curious.....who didn't know that UMass was the Minutemen and what was their answer for what the mascot was? I'm just curious as to who follows 1-AA football and doesn't know that UMass is the Minutemen.
Ahh but do you know what UMass's mascot was before they were the Minutemen?

[HensRock]

ccujacket sent some really funny ones (intentionally funny!).

My favorite was Columbia Records. I listed a bunch of funny ones on the original contest thread. Here they are again:

Austin Peay Pods
Cal Poly Annas
Citadel VMI Wannabes
Colgate Toothpaste
Colgate Toothbrushes
Colgate Cavities
Colgate Cavity Creeps
Columbia Records
Idaho State Potatoes
Idaho State Spuds
St. Francis Assissi's
St. Peter's Basilica
Villanova Supernova
Wagner Power Tools

FWIW, the person who missed the Minutemen answered:
Massachusetts: Non-violent but vocal liberals

...for which they got half credit :eek: (Just Kidding!)

[Lehigh Football Nation]

My personal favorties:

St. Francis Assissi's
St. Peter's Basilica

I'm not even Catholic, but that's original! Wish I had thought of them.

My question is: is Basilica plural? Would one member of St. Peters' team be a Basilicus?

[blukeys]

My personal favorties:

St. Francis Assissi's
St. Peter's Basilica

I'm not even Catholic, but that's original! Wish I had thought of them.

My question is: is Basilica plural? Would one member of St. Peters' team be a Basilicus?
Basilica is singular. If one goes by the Latin conventions the plural of Basilica would be Basilicae which means that in Latin Basilica is a feminine noun. A more important question is Why did Lehigh change it's mascot from the perfectly fine and unique Engineers to the bland Mountain Hawks?

[Lehigh Football Nation]

Basilica is singular. If one goes by the Latin conventions the plural of Basilica would be Basilicae which means that in Latin Basilica is a feminine noun. A more important question is Why did Lehigh change it's mascot from the perfectly fine and unique Engineers to the bland Mountain Hawks?

Strictly speaking it didn't go directly from the Engineers to the Mountain Hawks. There was a short time when Lehigh was considered (no joking) the Brown & White. That was while I was an undergrad. Mountain Hawks came a few years later, loosely based on a type of hawk that is indigenous to the area.

I think we mostly wanted a cool mascot running around the sidelines, and a guy in an Engineers' cap just wasn't hacking it. Another possible reason is that the moniker Engineers is either something you love or hate - there's no in between. Old timers love it; newer alumni either don't care or prefer Mountain Hawks.

Boy, talk about:

:deadhorse

:cool:

[WYOBISONMAN]

And no one knew the NDSU Bison?!?!?

[HensRock]

And no one knew the NDSU Bison?!?!?

No.
21 out of 25 knew NDSU were the Bison. I only showed the highest and lowest known mascots above. Everyone else is somewhere in-between.

There were no schools where no one knew what the mascot was. The least known was Sacred Heart with only 2 out of 25 knowing they were the Pioneers.

[ccujacket]

My personal favorties:

St. Francis Assissi's
St. Peter's Basilica

I'm not even Catholic, but that's original! Wish I had thought of them.

My question is: is Basilica plural? Would one member of St. Peters' team be a Basilicus?

I'm not Catholic either but that's what popped into my head when I was filling it out. I really struggle with the Northeastern non-A10 schools, unless they were good at basketball.

[89Hen]

Thanks to you and a couple other Chant fans, I wouldn't be surprised if some people guessed Coastal Carolina Jackets or Lappers. :p

[rokamortis]

I'm surprised that 24/25 people got Coastal Carolina Chanticleers correct. What was the guess for the one that got it wrong? How many people butchered the spelling?

[WYOBISONMAN]

Thanks for the info Hen.....if I hadn't been so darn busy at work I would have got one filled out myself. Damn I hate it when work interferes with reading the football boards!! ;)

[rokamortis]

Damn I hate it when work interferes with reading the football boards!! ;)

I know. My boss will be like 'Do you have that report i asked about?' I'm usually like - 'Hold on - Ralph just posted something'

:D