McMurry is holding a news conference at this hour to announce its decision regarding its Indians nickname. The NCAA has told the university it must change its name or face sanctions regarding hosting postseason play.
Previous coverage of this issue below. When we know more, we’ll pass it along.
More related links:
Mississippi College can keep Choctaws: D3football.com, Feb. 17, 2006
Carthage changes nickname, logo: D3hoops.com, Nov. 1, 2005
McMurry has elected to go without a nickname. Its teams will take the field without a nickname or mascot. More details to come in a news story. Check back later.
That certainly appears to be the most honorable thing to do. They are complying with the NCAA’s wishes without damaging their long tradition of honoring their Native American heritage.
Congratulations to McMurry; I can’t imagine this situation being handled more honorably.
As I said to Pat earlier today, this issue only make me think the NCAA had the right “idea” with this banning of nicknames and mascots… but didn’t think it all the way through.
The problem is… outside a random few… was there really problems with the names?
I just have always felt a mountain was being made out of a molehill… by people not even remotely involved or affected.
Well, I’ve got to call them [i]something[/i] … so from now on I shall refer to McMurry as “the Ex-Indians”. It’s an accurate representation of the school’s identity, plus it’s my own little politically incorrect thumb in the eye of the NCAA.
Thanks, Greg!
I was trying to figure that one out, too.
The “ttfkati’s”…”the team formerly known as the Indians”.
I feel sorry for the McMurry radio announcer, Kit Kimbrell, the son of the previous Head Basketball Coach, Hershel Kimbrell, who won 448 games over 31 seasons. He has never known anything but “McMurry Indians”!
I will forgive an accidental slip-up for the next several seasons!
This is the most ridiculous crap ever! It’s a team’s mascot that has a history, a heritage, and a tradition. It’s not meant to be offensive, racist, or anything else disriminatory. It’s a function of where they are from and what happened in their area.
Get a life and let these people use whatever mascot/name they want!
It’s the NCAA, their life revolves sucking the life out of their member institutions.
Yea this is getting absolutely rediculous – I play basketball at carthage and recently we had to change our names from the Redmen to the Red Men (2 words) Also, our symbol of the letter C with headdress feathers hanging from it has been removed and replaced with this stupid super hero C thing. Its just plain annoying. Is all this stuff really that offensive?
Redmen probably is; I’m not as sure about the feathers.
Page one at the McMurry web site has some really good pictures of the Tipi Raising and the Tipi Tours. Putting up a tipi is another way “to walk in another man’s mocassins.”
http://www.mcm.edu/newsite/web/alumni/homecoming_photos.htm
The smiles on the faces of the elementary school children as they go on the Tipi tour tell a wonderful story!
My bad! “moccasins” ouch!