GAMES I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO FOR EACH DIV. I ARKANSAS TEAM

 WOO PIG...

HOWL YES...

ROAR!!!!!

GO U-C-A BEARS!

We are only a little over a week and a half away from the first kickoff for the 2014 NCAA College Football Season (and I can't BEGIN to tell you how desperate I am for it to start!). 

In anticipation for it, I decided to dedicate a blog looking at which home and away match up I find either intriguing and/or extremely important for each of the Natural State's Division I teams. Without further adieu, let's "Kick" things off with the big boys on the hill... (**NOTE: THE SCHEDULE GRAPHICS ARE NO LONGER ACCURATE AND ARE JUST BEING USED FOR VISUAL SAKE**).

                                                                      ARKANSAS:

                                 MY HOME GAME PICK: LSU TIGERS (Sat. November 15)

 Since it was announced late last year that these two would no longer be playing one another the day after Thanksgiving as well as not playing one another as each other's finale', majority of Hogs fans have been pretty furious over the revelations. It was bad enough that the rivalry game was moved from Little Rock to Fayetteville, but now this?? The whole controversy really stems back to the "Fayetteville vs Little Rock" debate, and I'm very curious as to how the Northwest Fans will respond (really show up) in the coming years. When the two played in Fayetteville back in November 2012, it was the third largest November crowd DW had seen in a 12 year span with just over 71,000 (only two Tennessee match ups from 2006 and 2011 had  more with just over 72,000+ in attendance in the month of November). It was already a pretty one sided rivalry affair, with Hogs fans more hyped for this one over LSU fans and though I highly doubt moving the game a little earlier in the season will drastically change that aspect in both fan bases, this has turned into a pretty fun, exhilarating trophy game in last few seasons and I look forward to another spirited contest in the Hill come early November.


              MY ROAD PICK: TEXAS TECH RED RAIDERS (SAT., September 13)

This picture was taken in November, 1967. The underdog Red Raiders shocked the Razorbacks, and kept Arkansas out of bowl contention that season. In fact, the last time both the Hogs and Texas Tech played one another (in '91 and 92), the results were much the same-A 'W' for Red Raiders, and double 'L' for the Hogs. Fast forward over 20 years later, and both these teams as well as the landscape of college football has drastically changed-though if you think about it, both these squads have followed very similar paths; both have had extremely high moments, taken down the big dogs, ranked in the top ten and also have had very low moments, including losing coaches in rather embarrassing, public fashion. Though Arkansas fans feel very confident going to Lubbock come September (and why not? They are 28-7 overall in the series) I wonder if the Hogs 'D' will be able to stop let alone contain this high flying, explosive offensive that the Red Raiders will be utilizing. If the offense can't at least keep up with Texas Tech, it might be a long afternoon in west Texas.

                                                                 ARKANSAS STATE

                     HOME GAME THAT'S MOST IMPORTANT: ULM WARHAWKS

This was a tough pick between the Warhawks or Utah State.

Though in my eyes, the Utah State game is more meaningful in terms of

outside perception (a measuring stick against a quality team from 

another 'G5' conference), the ULM game got my pick because of two

reasons: Repeating as Conference champs and increasing ASU's odds

of getting back to a bowl game. After this matchup, the Red Wolves are on the road for the remainder of October, traveling to Atlanta, Cajunland (AKA Lafayette), and concluding in freakin' Moscow, Idaho! Though the Red Wolves should be the overall better team than Georgia State and Idaho, the Louisiana-Lafayette game is going to be an extremely tough matchup for the Pack, and if ASU should drop an 'L' to the Cajuns, ASU CANNOT afford any additional conference loses. If Arkansas State can get a win against both Utah State and ULM, squeeze out 2 of three in that nasty stretch afterwards, then by the time they return home against South Alabama, they could be sitting at 5-3, 3-1 in conference play. That ULM win early on could be the difference.

                         AWAY GAME THAT'S MOST IMPORTANT: Louisana Lafayette

Who else would this be? The last three seasons, both the Cajuns and the Red Wolves have become the faces and the perennial top guns in the Sunbelt Conference. But because Lafayette has been able to maintain their head man, Mark Hudspeth, and impressive three straight wins in their back-to-back-to-back soldout bowl games in New Orleans, the Cajuns have become the darlings of the league. All the beat writers have ULL as undisputed picks to be the conference champs this year, and if ASU wants a 'four-peat' and truly claim what they feel is their spot as the face of the Sunbelt, it has to take to down the Cajuns in Lafayette on a Tuesday night on national tv.

                                                            ARKANSAS-PINE BLUFF

                                                               ALABAMA A&M:

UAPB has a tough time when it comes to playing the Alabama A&M Bulldogs...I mean TOUGH. UAPB has only beaten the Bulldogs three times out of the last thirteen matchups! (In an interesting note, one of the those victories came in 2006...only to lose to the Bulldogs again in the same season in UAPB's only other trip to the SWAC championship, 22-13). This will be the last game at home and of the season, and if the Golden Lions want to rebound from a disastrous 2013 season and send the seniors off right, they need to beat A&M.

                                                      SOUTHERN JAGUARS

The image above was taken after a thrilling, last second one point victory for the UAPB Golden Lions over the Southern University Jaguars in 2011. No, they're not shaking hands but rather viciously beating the hell out of one another. One thing I love about the SWAC is the fact that practically everybody HATES one another, and UAPB/Southern is no exception. The Jaguars would get even against UAPB by squeaking by against them last season, spoiling the Golden Lions homecoming 29-21. Southern is also the SWAC's current defending champions, and if Monte Coleman and his Lions want to get back in the race let alone have a say in the conference showing, winning in Baton Rouge is a must.

                                                                        UCA BEARS

                            HOME MATCHUP THAT INTRIGUES ME: UT-MARTIN 

Last season, UCA travled to Martin, Tennessee to face the Skyhawks. The Bears at the time were ranked #7 in the FCS polls and many felt this would be a relatively easy victory for the Bears. However, the Skyhawks stunned UCA, by blocking the Bears last second field goal attempt to secure the one point victory, 24-23. Though UCA would recover to win the following week against Missouri State, this lost, along with the shellacking Mcneese State put on UCA weeks later-really seemed to deflate and knock the wind out of the 2013 Bears. I expect some added emotions in this year's rematch.

                           AWAY GAME THAT INTRIGUES ME: @ STEPHEN F. AUSTIN

UCA fans considers Mcneese State their top rival (as the name of their match-up has been dubbed the "Rice and Beans Bowl"). However, this match-up may knock that right out of the water. Anytime you go up against your former coach, especially in conference play, their's ALWAYS going to be high emotion and intensity between the sidelines. When longtime coach Clint Conque suddenly departed for SFA, their was an absolute shock wave throughout the UCA community. Come October 4th, both coaches and players can down play this in the media but make no mistake-this is going to be a statement game for both teams. Should be intense.

BONUS PICK: BATTLE OF THE RAVINE (HENDERSTON STATE REDDIES V. OUACHITA BAPTIST TIGERS

 In the little town of Arkadelphia, Arkansas...with a population of just over 10,000 lies one of the most storied and unique rivalries not just in the Natural State, by all of college football. The series, which began play in 1895, is the longest continuous rivalry in division II college football, and slowly but surely as the years have gone by has begun getting more and more regional and national exposure. Last season, ESPN College Gameday sent camera crews out to cover the unique rivalry. The bitter rivals-LITERALLY located on opposites side of the road-shut down Arkadelphia and the town splits 50/50 between Reddies and Tigers faithful. Here's some highlights of last year's barnburner match-up (and no doubt a taste of what surely will come in 2014).

The Traditions of the Sunbelt Members

As we begin a new era in the Sunbelt Conference (and start the first full week of July) the Ramblin' Arkansan decided to dedicate a blog to look into each members best (perhaps only) tradition at their respective university.

Appalachian State Mountaineers:

"Yosef the Mountaineer"

Perhaps App. State's most cherished tradition is the mascot himself. As it is stated from a media guide for the program, "The origin of the name Yosef comes from mountain talk for "yourself", the idea being that if you are a fan, friend or alumnus and have a heart of black and gold, you are Yosef." Considering that your entire fan base embraces and embodies your program's mascot as the "soul" and "spirit" of each and every fan, that's a pretty solid tradition to have.

Arkansas State Red Wolves:

"Order of the Pack"

Many former long standing school traditions (The Indian Family, playing of 'Cherokee' with the tomahawk chop, banging on the old war drum, students dressed up as over the top Native American attire) were wiped away when the school rid themselves of the 'Indians' moniker. The Order of the Pack (previously known as 'Order of the Tribe') remains to this day. It's basically a glorified pep rally that also teaches new chants and yells to the student body before the first home game of the season. Though certainly not unique or original, it's stAte's strongest and oldest tradition to date. 

UALR Trojans:

"Homecoming Cardboard Boats Regatta Race"

UALR, being traditionally known as a 'Commuter School' along with not having football has quite a challenge when it comes to having tradition let alone student participation. Their "homecoming" occurs at one of their basketball games, and as such the university hosts typical homecoming festivities. One unique event is the annual "Cardboard Boats Regatta Race." Started back in 2010, it has quickly become a very popular competition, particularly with the student groups and greeks. On top of a race, their's also a awards given for creative boats and costumes, Most Spirited and Organized teams and finally best Sinkers. To watch video of the races, you can click here.

Georgia Southern Eagles:

 "Yellow School Buses"

From 'Beautiful Eagle Creek', to Watermelon Cutting Competitions and their majestic Eagles flying over the home crowd, their's absolutely no doubt that Georgia Southern is one of the most tradition rich program in all the conference. But, my favorite of all is their Yellow School Bus tradition, where they ride to and from the stadium in public school buses. Taken directly from their website:

"When the football program was resurrected in 1981 the newly formed team needed to travel to practices and games. The initial shoestring budget did not allow for luxury travel or any method of transportation for that matter. Approached with a deal it couldn't refuse, Georgia Southern University paid the Bulloch County Board of Education one dollar for each of the team's two yellow school buses. A spray of black paint marked out the name "Bulloch County Schools" on the sides of each bus and the Eagles had a way to travel to and from their games.

In the words of legendary Coach Erk Russell, who often joked about the lack of amenities, "if you don't have the best of everything, make the best of everything you have." Long after Georgia Southern could afford better transportation for home games, Russell kept the yellow school buses. They served to remind the players and fans of the humble beginnings of this now legendary program.

Packed with Eagle players and coaches, the buses make the game day trek from the football building to Paulson Stadium. Players sing the top secret “The Valley Song” before arriving to the crowd of fans who greet the buses and form a path for the players into the stadium."

To learn more about their traditions, you can click and follow the link here. 

Georgia State Panthers:

"Tradition Keeper"

Though Georgia State has had athletics for several years now, traditions were thin and scarce. Even with the jump start for football, the GSU program still needs some time to begin creating and implementing some worthwhile traditions. One of the very FEW that they have is what's called the "Tradition Keeper," which is sponsored by their Student Activities Association. Basically, it's a book full of items, locations and other things that the Association deems is significant of the university. You take a picture of yourself at these places or proof you were at an event (example ticket stub), then must get it stamped approved which earns your points. The biggest prize is students receiving either a silver or gold medallion to wear at Graduation. Enjoy the very cheesy video detailing the tradition.

Idaho Vandals:

"Idaho Serpentine"

Like many universities both in the Sunbelt and around college football hold homecoming festivities yearly and truly is the most laden rich tradition for virtually all colleges. This goes true for Idaho. One interesting activity that the Vandal faithful perform is the "marching serpentine". The Band, students, alumni, faculty  form a "serpentine" like march that goes throughout campus until it ends where a bonfire waits to be lit up and marveled at. You can catch a little bit of that in the video posted below.

Louisiana Lafayette Ragin Cajuns:

"The Tailgate!"

Various media outlets and website have hands down, constantly voted Ragin Cajuns tailgating as the best in the Sunbelt. I know-I've been there! It has more of a festival atmosphere and anyone that doesn't like Cajun food will learn to love it by the end of the game day.

ULM Warhawks

"The Grove/Ace Riding into the Stadium on a JetMobile"

ULM affectionately calls their tailgating area "The Grove", however unlike the more popular Ole Miss version their's is certainly less crowded. However, the more interesting tradition in my opinion.....

Is their mascot, Ace, riding into the stadium in this Jet Mobile. Many mascots drive motorcycles onto the field but certainly not a Jet.

New Mexico State Aggies:

"the 'A' on Tortugas Mountain

Every year, the symbolic 'A' is painted onto Tortugas Mountain, which is located on the east side of campus. The 'A' is over 330 feet tall. The tradition started after student's began putting large 'A's' throughout the campus on April Fools Day. One particular year, a group of students wanted to put a large 'A' on their old administration building, but found the building to be too steep. Instead, they got the idea of constructing an 'A' on the side of Tortugas Mountain, and position to where onlookers on the ground would think the 'A' was standing on top of the building. The pranksters completed their construction on April Fool's Day and the tradition continued ever since.

South Alabama Jaguars:

"OozeBall"

South Alabama students, staff, faculty and alumni have been getting down and dirty in a mud pit volleyball tournament that has been happening since 1989. Teams of 6-8 people play in 8 inches of mud which are set up across from their baseball stadium, Stanky Field.

Texas State Bobcats:

"Graduates Jump into a River"

A very fun, unique tradition if I do say so myself-when graduates walk across the stage during their graduation not only do they get their diplomas and toss their hats into the air, the graduates of Texas State also jump into the San Marcos River.

A very close second would be TX. State's "lighting of the victory star" after every home and away victories. You can read about that and the other traditions the school has at this link. 

University of Texas-Arlington Mavericks:

"MAV Swap"

UTA, despite the lack of football still offers a pretty wide variety of traditions to their student body. They have bed races (very similar to UALR's cardboard boat races), an oozeball tournament (Like USA) but perhaps UTA's most unique and intriguing tradition is their MAV Swap day. Held during their homecoming week since 2004, the University offers students to trade in other universities apparel for UTA Mavericks gear. 

Troy Trojans:

"Sound of the South"

In my opinion, Troy has the BEST band of the Sunbelt Conference-hands down. Their the only band that travels to practically every Troy away game and they truly make the Trojans presence be known by all.

Sunbelt fans-did I hit the best/unique traditions on the head? Let me know! Please read some past posts and hopefully I'll post more intriguing posts for the future! Thanks and keep on ramblin...

New Mexico State & Idaho Are Back After A Ten Year Hiatus....

That's RIGHT!!!! The Vandals and Aggies are back in the 'Belt baby!!!!!!


Yes, Yes...I didn't forget about you App State and Georgia Southern. I intend to do a blog about your addition as well at some point this week. But first I gotta take care of some business first...this is personal.



Well, well, well....Idaho and New Mexico State...how's it been? It's been what? ...ten years? TEN YEARS since you last played football in the Sun Belt. 2004. A lot of things have changed and happened since the 2004 season. Some notable things to consider:

-Enormous tsunami devastates Asia; 200,000 killed
-US officials hands power over to the Iraq government
-Gay marriages begin in Massachusetts, the first state in the country to legalize such unions 
-In May 2004, the national average gas prices rose above $2 a gallon for the first time.

-The sporting champions of that year:

Super Bowl

New England d. Carolina (32–29)

World Series

Boston d. St. Louis (4–0)

NBA Championship

Detroit d. Los Angeles (4–1)

Stanley Cup

Tampa Bay d. Calgary (4–3)

NCAA Basketball Championship

Connecticut d. Georgia Tech (82–73)

NCAA Football Champions

Southern California

-Lord of the Rings wins Best Motion Picture at the Academy Awards, and among the notable celebrities dropping dead includes Marlon Brando, Ronald Reagan, Yasir Arafat, Ray Charles, and Christopher Reeve just to name a few.

(If you're interested what else happened in 2004, Read more at:) Top News Stories from 2004 | Infoplease.com http://www.infoplease.com/year/2004.html#ixzz36EAziZhR


After the conclusion of the 2004 season and in the midst of ALL that, you both took off like a bat in the night for the WAC. Now I didn't hold it against ya both at the time (ESPECIALLY YOU IDAHO). Better geographic fit and with Boise State starting to ascend the ladder of strength, it appeared that the WAC was a stronger conference than the Belt, who at the point in time was admitting Troy as full members, as well as bringing in the "F_Us" (to those not familiar with Belt fan lingo, that's a quick way of discussing both Florida Atlantic and Florida International). Both at the time were extremely young, unproven programs and I bet if you were ask many at the time which conference would cease sponsoring football, no doubt the majority of those asked would've responded "SUNBELT."


NOOOOOPPPPEEEE.



Despite Boise State becoming juggernauts, the majority of the WAC struggled in conference play with Hawaii and Nevada towards the heyday becoming one hit wonders. In fact, New Mexico State! Some of your best average attended games and most victories within the last 15 years came during the 'Belt years!

Sunbelt Years: 2001-2004

2001: 5-7

2002: 7-5

2003: 3-9

2004: 5-6

43% winning average

The Aggies first season in the WAC...they went 0-12. The most victories they had in their nearly nine year stint as WAC members was four victories...total. Also consider this little tidbit: They're last season in the SBC (2004) their average attendance was 16,069 (which according to NCAA records was a change of -6,094 from the season before). In 2005, the average dropped to 12,557-you can do the math on that drop. Though the Aggies attendance did ultimately rebound as the seasons rolled on, no doubt when they were more competitive in the Belt, interest was higher.

Ultimately, I think it's good to have the Aggies back in the Belt for football. Yeah they're a little too west for some's liking, but they've got potential to rebound and be competitive. Ultimately in my eyes, the addition of NMSU will only be a solid get if the 'Belt adds them as full members-whether they will be added as full members remains to be seen. I'd be willing to bet they're success (or lack) will be a factor, as well as if they're postseason basketball success continues.

Idaho....Idaho...What good thing can be said about Idaho being in the 'Belt?

....Least they're not UMASS??

......just shaking my head thinking about the idea of IDAHO being a SUN BELT MEMBER 21st century. What's even more crazier to contemplate is the fact that THEY'RE BACK in the Sunbelt AGAIN!! I mean it made more sense back in the early thousands-the 'Belt was still a young, fledgling football conference and quite frankly would've probably took the University of Alaska if they were division I. Though the consensus is that the Sunbelt is still among the least regarded leagues in college football, knowledgeable college football fans know that the conference has grown stronger and competitive as the seasons gone on. With that rise to stability, they became more geographically located, spanning north-central Texas to south Florida. But with the realignment and all these teams moving across the board it's like deja'vu that the conference went back to the old bread and butter and got the first (and only) division I school available to pick up. 

Now Vandals...I like ya. I have a strange fascination with the Kibbie Dome in all it's wonder and extreme compactness. If only you dudes could switch spots with say...Kansas...Colorado. I think everything would be peachy keen. But coming back to reality, your closest conference member is Texas State, with a flight time being right at 5 1/2 hours. (For those hardcore Vandals/Bobcats fans that wanna road trip it up that is a roughly 31 hours, nearly 2,000 miles...one trip). 

I completely sympathize with your plight Idaho nation-you've hit a rut in terms of success on the field, with the WAC gone their's no real viable conference for you guys to join and after all the work to move up to FBS level, the remote thought of having to drop back down to the FCS level seems like a PR nightmare. Unless the miraculous happens and Idaho either can negotiate to switch spots with another state or even more miraculously a new division league is created in the western part of the country...the future of Vandal football in the belt will not be a lengthy one I imagine.

Predictions:

• New Mexico State, barring a conference raiding the Mountain West, will be full members in the Sunbelt eventually.
• The University Presidents representing all the conference members will be waiting to see if James Madison changes their mind (highly doubt), if EKU and/or Missouri State improve their facilities and get the necessary approval and support to move up Division I.
• Which ever of the three scenarios mentioned above occurs, you'll quickly see them filling the Idaho Spot.
• Idaho will have an extremely hard decision to make-return to competing as an Independent or dropping down to the Big Sky Conference (which is where all their other sports are). I would bet they'll give the Independent a try as long as possible.
• Divisions will be as such if Missouri State and EKU Joins: (WEST: Arkansas State, ULM, UL-Lafayette, Texas State, New Mexico State & Missouri State. EAST: Troy, South Alabama, Georgia State, Georgia Southern, Eastern Kentucky and Appalachian State).

Former NCAA Native American Mascot Teams That Have Changed For The Better (...Or Worst)

Surely, majority of you know of the re-emergence of the rally to have the Washington Redskins change from their long standing native american moniker, 'the redskins.'

This long, ongoing process (really debate) isn't new in the sports world. For decades teams have been some variance of native american mascot and as time as gone by, our society and culture changed to the point that many went from not caring and rooting for these teams to demanding they get rid of their nicknames. The NCAA and many of it's members are really where this has been hit.

For this addition of the RamlinArkansan blog, I'm going to address all those SELECT collegiate teams, what they formerly were and changed to, and my overall thoughts.

Stanford Cardinal:

Previously Known As: Indians (1940-1972)

For over four decades, Standford University was represented by that fiesty little fellow up above. But starting in the 70s onward really began seeing the tide turn from apathy about Native American mascots to somewhat resentment. After much protest from many Stanford students, the universty president finally retired 'Indians' after the 72 season. For eight years, it appeared the school would just be another generic "Cardinals" until then university president Donald Kennedy decided the school just be called 'Cardinal', as in the singular form describing the university's primary color.

CHANGE GRADE: A+ (Very solid change for the better of Stanford).

Technically, Stanford has never formally declared the 'Tree' as the university's official mascot-it's more of student/school spirit character. However, their's no denying when you see that crazy, cracked out Christmas tree (really a Sequoia tree but eh...) practically everyone knows he's the "Stanford Tree."

FUN FACT!!:

The student body in fact voted in the early 80s to have the "Red Barons" become the school's new mascot. However, many alumni hated the name finding it "silly" and it was ultimately rejected by the board of trustees. Interestingly, during the university wide vote, their was a movement to bring back the name "Indians" but it was overwhelmingly shot down by the students-also, the name 'Cardinal' was in fact an option to vote on-it came in 4th place.

DARTMOUTH BIG GREEN:

PREVIOUSLY KNOWN AS: 'Indians' (1920s-early 1970s)

Another 'Indians' (of many) on this, Dartmouth's origin story for it's usage of the name Indians goes back to it's humble beginnings: according to its wikipedia page (for the record I know it's not the most USEFUL of sources but sue me): "It is often pointed out that the charter of Dartmouth College, granted to Eleazar Wheelock in 1769, proclaims that the institution was created "for the education and instruction of Youth of the Indian Tribes in this Land in reading, writing and all parts of Learning ... as well as in all liberal Arts and Sciences; and also of English Youth and any others." Of course, if you continued to read hardly ANY native Americans graduated from Dartmouth, but oh well! Much like Stanford, by the 70s the name began catching serious slack and it was ultimately dropped by University officials. 

Dartmouth had always been known as "The Big Green" (Which is named by the enormous commons area in the center of its campus that has a lot of green grass...figures). However, for decades no mascot was ever actually decided on. In 2003, the student government proposed a vote to finally decide on a new mascot-the students were so underwhelmed by their choices that winner of the vote was "No Mascot". 

That's when this fellow comes into the picture...

 Meet Keggy the Keg.

Keggy was the invention of a local humor magazine published at the university that was originally meant to be a partial joke and an attempt to pressure the Student Government Association to create better and more unique mascot choices.

....For some reason that never occurred and despite initial controversy and a couple of kidnappings of the suit, Keggy has become a unofficial yet universal figure head mascot for the Big Green athletics.

Change Grade: ??? Though I'm not sure if Keggy will turn into a lasting change like Stanford to the Cardinal/Stanford Tree, but you gotta admire their sense of humor at Dartmouth.

Marquette Golden Eagles:

Previously Known as: Warriors (...kinda sorta. )

Simply put, Marquette has quite a complicated mascot/nickname history. Because of that (and also I'm not in the mood to paraphrase at the moment) here's the bit from their Wikipedia page:

"Marquette's intercollegiate athletic teams were the "Warriors" from May 1954 to July 1994 when the nickname was changed to the "Golden Eagles", on the grounds that previous logos had been disrespectful to Native Americans. Prior to 1962 Marquette football was known as "Golden Avalanche" and other teams were known as "Warriors," "Blue and Gold," and "Hilltoppers".^[63] The Marquette Warriors (the nickname that preceded Golden Eagles) won the NCAA basketball championship in 1977.^[64] In 2004, Marquette began to consider changing the name back to Warriors, but instead the Board of Trustees changed the nickname to simply "Gold". An intensely negative reaction by students, faculty, alumni, and fans led to yet another series of votes, which eventually pitted "Golden Eagles" against "Hilltoppers". Respondents were told in advance that write-in votes for "Warriors" would not be tabulated, although those results were later released, and "Golden Eagles" was restored in June 2005."

Change Grade: C+. Glad to see they got everything sorted out and they're sticking by their cartoon birdy. Next!

Eastern Michigan Eagles:

(...wth??)

Previously Known As: Hurons (1929-mid 80s)

...wow.... um....ok Eastern.

The name "Hurons" was adopted in 1929 and was the beloved name for the athletic department at EMU for nearly 60 years until the University began worrying about its name and possibly being a racial slur/stereotype. After an internal review, EMU board of regents voted to retire the Hurons name and adopt "Eagles" as recommended by an outside committee selected to suggest a new mascot name. 

Many alumni and fans of the school withdrew financial support and to this day their is actually two separate alumni associations, one in support of the eagles and one that's staunchly wanting the name "Hurons" to be returned. (the picture above is just one of many logos they currently use).

Change Grade: F. You'll find many sites where EMU fans and even some officials claim 'Hurons' is supported by certain tribes-many more also argue that 'Hurons' can be turned around in a way that Illinois kept their name, "Illini" and drop the Native American aspect of the mascot. The one argument that can't be made is the name 'Eagles' is dull, not creative and I can't help but feel that Dr. Suess played a hand in the drawing of their logo.

University of Miami (OH) Redhawks: 

Previously Known as: Redskins (1929-1997)

Prior to the nickname 'Redskins', the athletic squads at Miami were referred to as Miami Boys, Big Reds, Reds, and Red & Whites until the athletic director made it permanently Red Skins for nearly 70 years.

Interestingly, the school for a long time had the support of a particular Miami Tribe located in Oklahoma suddenly withdrew their support in 1997. The university quickly rid themselves of the name Redskins and then name Redhawks was voted as the university's new mascot.

Change Grade: B. Kind of lame considering I'm pretty sure 'redhawks' is not an actual species, but the logo is pretty solid.

St. John's Red Storm

Previously Known As: Redmen (1960s-1994)

Interestingly, St. John's originally called themselves "redman/redmen" for the fact of the team wearing red jerseys and uniforms. However, sometime in the '60s the term was developed into a Native American image and the university soon adopted the interpretation as its mascot until 1994, when mounting pressure led St John's officials to change the team name to its current moniker, the Red Storm.

Change Grade: D. It's pretty lame name, and the logo just screams minor league team all over it.

Louisiana-Monroe Warhwks

Previously Known As: "Indians" 

ULM has had quite a bit of change in the last 20 some-odd years-the university changed it's name from "Northeast Louisiana University" to its current incarnation and in 2006, the University President announced that because of the NCAA restrictions the NCAA set that year, virtually banning all logos with Native American imagery as well bans on hosting post season tournaments and appearances in the post well as well, ULM would be retiring their name. After letting the public submit various suggestions, a panel limited it down to 12 sections and from there was narrowed to three possibilities: "Bayou Gators, Bayou Hawks and Warhawks." The University President had the ultimate decision and he selected Warhawks.

Change Grade: B+. I remember I initially scoffed at the name, however after hearing the other two possibilties figured "...eh...could be worse." Nearly 8 years later, I actually think the name is pretty solid-the warhawk still looks like it just woke up/strung out from a kegger-but its been a good change for the school.

...But why make a film of your Mascot (Ace the Warhawk) robbing a register and then getting arrested?

North Dakota: ???

Previously Known As: Fighting Sioux

One of the last and longest holdout of all NCAA schools, the University of North Dakota were the Dan Snyder of college football, refusing to budge at removing the nickname despite NCAA crackdown, which included ban from the FCS playoffs, basketball tournaments and more postseason play. North Dakota even sued the NCAA-both parties reached an agreement: If UND could find a tribe to endorse their name, the NCAA would allow the university to keep their namesake. If not, the school would retire the name 'Fighting Sioux.' Ultimately, no support was found, yet many legislature, alumni and others continued their legal fight to keep the name but in June 2012, the state board of higher education offically voted to rid the university of the name.

Change Grade: (N/A). Due to an odd ruling, the North Dakota legislature prohibited the University from selected a new nickname and are barred from doing so until at least 2015. (Apparently to allow time for angered fans and individuals to 'cool off'). Currently, UND officials have not stated or released a timetable as to when a name might be selected.

Arkansas State Red Wolves

Previously Known As: Indians

I could literally write an ENTIRE BLOG of the history and name changing process that occured at Arkansas State (I was there for it!). But to try to sum up the basics, the university originally had Jumpin Joe (the guy on the left) as it's helmet decal and the 'stAte' logo as the offical university logo for a long time. In the 80s, they dropped Joe for the stAte logo. However, in 1996 they switched to what fans referred to as the "headress logo" (on the right) and was the primary university decal for nearly 10 years. When the NCAA imposed its native american restrictions, ASU dropped the headdress logo and went back to the stAte logo yet again. They slowly and methodically removed all native american imagery throughout their athletic department, yet kept the "Indian Family" (which were three students chosen to portray Chief Big Track, the Indian Princess and the Indian Warrior). The University tried in vain to find a tribe to endorse the name 'Indians', but the search proved fruitless. Finally, in 2007 the university announced the name Indians would be retired following the conclusion of the 2007-2008 athletic year. 

Similar to ULM, a website was selected for the public to suggest any names in the search-however, unlike ULM the university wouldn't allow a public vote for the name, instead relying solely on selected indivuals that would form a mascot search committee, and the chancellor ultimately making the final decision. Despite the initial outrage by this, the majority of public suggested "Wolves"-which was what the committee recommended to the Chancellor. Many (like myself) strongly supported 'Red Wolves' and the chancellor chose this as well.

Change Grade: A. Call me biased, but their's no denying this change was a huge boost for the program. It gave people an opportunity to get involved in the new identity of the athletic program, which in turn made new fans for ASU. A recent article by Talkbuisness.net revealed that "By percentage increase in sales, Arkansas State is 7th in the country for merchandise sales over the past five years." (You can read the full story here http://talkbusiness.net/2014/03/asu-mascot-offers-branding-lesson-ages/ ).

Their are a few more universities that changed their mascots as well, and here's a brief breakdown of those:

- Siena – Indians to Saints (1988)

- Seattle University – Chieftains to Redhawks (2000)

- Illinois – Removed Chief Illiniwek as official mascot in 2007. Athletics teams are still called Fighting Illini.

- Bradley and Alcorn State – Both schools stopped using Native American mascot but have retained their Braves nickname.

- William and Mary – Adjusted Tribe logo to remove feathers to comply with NCAA. Athletics teams are still called Tribe. (2007)

As of this post, only Florida State, Central Michigan, Mississippi College and Utah all appealed and won to the NCAA due to their friendly relationship and support of local tribes.