Ones that, at first glance, make you wonder, "How the heck did they come up with that?". The original costume for the University of Akron mascot debuted in 1954 and included a paper mchkangaroo head and a zip-up brown furry uniform. A shock is a bundle of grain stacked in a field for drying. Another possibility is that people in the Ivy League really don't care all that much about athletics. There are a few big universities out there that have bass fishing teams, some even give scholarships to the athletes. East Los Angeles. College Basketball - Today's Free Picks In 1917, the fans were complaining about the backboards blocking the view, so Indiana became the first school and facility to use glass backboards. Nebraska coach and former Iowa State sharpshooter Fred Hoiberg, a 40% college 3-point shooter who thrived from distance during a 10-year NBA career, says a basketball brand can affect a game, which is why he'd like to see a permanent change. But if you've ever watched a minute of college football, you know the team is the Alabama Crimson Tide, not the Alabama Elephants. Their men's hockey team makes it to the postseason every four years, with appearances in 2000, 2004 and 2008 (maybe 2012 is their year again?). Located in Clinton, South Carolina, Presbyterian is one of several schools on this list that competes in theBig South Conference. big name scamdicappers. The North Carolina Tar Heels have one of the most successful programs in all of college basketball, and the state of North Carolina itself is nicknamed the "Tar Heel State.". The choice of the kangaroo makes a lot of sense because of, um, all the kangaroos running around Eastern Ohio? Our artist took a rather literal interpretation of Blue Hose when making this drawing. Northern Arizona's team name isn't too bizarre, but it is quite uncommon. Duke derived its nickname from a celebrated group of World War I French troops who were dubbed "Les Diables Bleu.". When you think of Texas and football, I don't think "horned frogs" are the first team name that comes to mind. Interestingly, they're a part of three conferences in Division I: the Southern Conference(for wrestling), the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (lacrosse, water polo), and the Big South (everything else). Beilein first used the ball as a Division II coach at LeMoyne early in his career. . (8-2, 0-0) 43. Basketball Betting Lines, College "It was a rock.". Two-pointers were more affected than 3-pointers. Bulldogs. They have made appearances in the NCAA Tournament in 2005, 2008 and 2010 (including a victory over No. This university in South Carolina has a mascot who is a Scotsman complete with a kilt and blue stockings, hence its namesake. North Carolina's nickname and mascot don't match at all, but there's special meaning behind them. After all, global warming hadn't taken effect yet. Theyaverage more than 20,000 people at their home games. Nevertheless, Tulsa did a good job with the mascot, and the lightning bolt is a nice touch. Chanticleers are roosters, but as you can see from the logo, a Coastal Carolina Chanticleer is much more than that. You see, the university is part of the Diocese of Hartford, and the word "hart" according to Webster's Dictionary, means "a male of the European red deer, stag.". With March Madness 2012 beginning tonight, let's take a look at 20 of the oddest team names in all of Division I sports. "As a result of his actions, his feet were covered in tar and he could not get it off of him. Not even Division I debate. Smart's mission: Buy every brand of basketball the Flyers might be forced to use on the road that season. In fact, in men's basketball, during their 2007-2008 season, they played in 25 away games, including game against Ohio State, Clemson and Wake Forest. The school is located in Buies Creek, North Carolina, an area that must be overrun with wild camels. Husky Basketball Celebrates Sophomore Night. It's just more difficult to play on the road, which is why the NCAA recently created the NET metric for tournament selection; the metric increased the value of road wins compared with their value in the RPI. "The Nun's Priest's Tale." Value. Recaps are never great at the best of times, but they at least give you a sense of how the team plays, how they matched up against their opponents, which players carried the load, and so on. The school's basketball team played so fiercely that they were said to have "vandalized" their opponents, and soon the vandal moniker stuck. His deal with Anaconda Sports persisted after Michigan signed its megadeal with Nike three years ago. There are, after all, 76 U.S. college teams known as the Eagles. Maddux Sports feels that in this industry During his time at Wisconsin, Bo Ryan amassed a 223-27 record at home and a 91-76 record on the road. A [ edit] AB-AD [ edit] Why have a normal-looking rooster, when you can have a teal-colored growling rooster that looks like it could fend off eagles and hawks? What's the reason for it? Look at how they have performed against teams you do know Trying to draw meaning from looking back at a basketball game between two obscure teams is mostly useless because you lack context to make what you learn relevant. Sharps are targeting this random game in the Colonial Athletic Conference between teams that have been struggling all year. What's important is that the change was made. They beat Duquesne in the first round, but lost to National Champion runner-up Kentucky in the Sweet Sixteen. The original Gorlock, who was covered head-to-toe in blue fur, was designed by a team that included Teri McConnell, also responsible for designing the St. Louis Cardinals' legendary Fredbird. Let me give credit where credit is due. Seemingly an oxymoron, the Wake Forest Demon Deacons name comes from a combination of the school's Baptist tradition and the newspaper editor noting the team's devilish play. Last year, the NCAA extended its deal with Wilson through 2020-21 to provide basketballs for the Division I, II and III men's and women's postseason tournaments. Whatever the case, Cornell University has been around for nearly 150 years and still does not have an official mascot or team name. the best sports handicappers can charge less for their picks than the But no one can question how daunting the team's logo is. While you might be picturing a group of ne'er-do-wells slashing tires and smashing windows when you hear this team name, the University of Idaho Vandals derive their name from a somewhat different usage of the word. It was at this time that the Big Green nickname came into use. Located in Conway, South Carolina, this university is a member of the NCAABig South Conference. Like many universities, Arizona State has no idea who came up with the name of its athletic teams, which is clear evidence that more people need to major in history. "It wasn't as soft hitting the rim as the Nike ball, but I liked the way the seams felt. However, that's not the only sport Georgetown has done well in. I remember from years ago when I went to a college recruitment fair at my high school. The team earned the shockers label because many of the early players harvested wheat to earn money. Indiana uses Adidas, too. Let's find out, as we take a look at the 25 wackiest names and mascots in college basketball. These are but a few common team names in the world of collegiate sports. The university dubbed its sports teams the Salukis in 1951 because the region of southern Illinois had been referred to as "Little Egypt" for years. Okay, the history isn't so glorious, but kangaroo does rhyme with KCU, and in that historic year when the university chose its mascot, the Kansas City Zoo had just purchased two baby kangaroos. Although most fans don't notice the differences, players accustomed to repetition certainly do. In baseball, they're the most winning baseball team over the last 31 years. Sometimes it takes a couple of practices to make that adjustment. They won the National Championship in 1989, and have earned runner-up honors in 1982, 1991, and 1993. Dartmouth, one of the oldest colleges in the country, has never been able to settle on a mascot and consequently has none. Preparing this ball "strategy" is a common assignment for basketball staffers around the country, and among the NCAA's highest-revenue sports, it's a scenario unique to men's basketball. Virginia Tech's old nickname used to be the "Fighting Gobblers," which is why the turkey-ish maroon bird, HokieBird, is the mascot. Cornell's teams got the name Big Red because they were big and red, so it stands to reason that Dartmouth's teams are called the Big Green because they are big and green. When Michigan signed a new deal with Nike in 2016, the apparel giant asked the Wolverines to discontinue use of The Rock and placed language in Michigan's contract that compels the school to use a Nike ball at home. For some reason, folks wanted to shorten that 23-syllable name to V.P.I. "It can get weird sometimes, just making the adjustment," Michigan State All-America guard Cassius Winston said before the season. ", "There's definitely a different feel," he said. But coaches make every effort to ensure that their players prepare with the right balls to minimize any advantage for the opposing team, real or imagined. Well, it's not the most creative name, but at least they can say it's original. "But it seemingly was dismissed because of all the contracts and sponsorships in place. . By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. social issues in business and finance. Although the bulk of college basketball's Power 5 schools use Nike basketballs, the manufacturing giant has different versions of its standard ball. When Roy Williams goes to Cameron Indoor Stadium, his North Carolina team must use whatever basketballs Mike Krzyzewski has selected for that edition of the UNC-Duke rivalry. If it varies wildly from game to game then they are subservient to their opponent. The school's mascot is called Super Frog, and he's one of the spookiest-looking amphibians I've ever seen. During the 2012-13 season, Michigan's opponents made 40.1% of their field goal attempts and only 30.8% of their 3-point attempts with an obscure ball brand called "The Rock" in Ann Arbor's Crisler Arena. It's why you shouldn't suck the liquid out of thermometers or build your house on top of the smokestack of a coal power plant. "The Rock," Baylor's Scott Drew said. The Zips compete in the NCAAMid-American Conference. Ah, the Stony Brook Seawolves. Did opposing teams go cold because of the defense they encountered -- or the basketball? Now, if you raise the goal above 10 feet, now we've got a problem.". MaxPreps hasn't released rankings for basketball (2022-23) yet. Instead, their official mascot is the Boilermaker Special, a Victorian-era locomotive that was inspired by the trains that transported teams and fans to other cities for games. Originally, this team was called the "Fighting Teachers," as Indiana State was once just called Indiana State Teachers College.