 We have now arrived at Part 3 of the weekly-updated ACC Mascot Rankings. To read previous posts, click on the category “Mascot Rankings” on the right. I encourage you to post your responses to my rankings. The criteria behind the rankings are simple: originality and history. Finishing at No. 10 out of the 12 ACC teams, ahead of Boston College and Clemson, are the Hokies of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, aka Virginia Tech.
In ranking a team known as the Hokies, you can think about the name two
ways. One way is to give Va. Tech credit for coming up with a name that
no other NCAA team uses, call it original, and leave it at that. But,
the other way - and the way I see it - is to ask, what is a Hokie?
There is much debate on this issue, but the commonly held belief is
that a Hokie is a “turkey-like creature.”
However, according to
Virginia Tech’s website, “The origin of the word “Hokie” has nothing to
do with a turkey. It was coined by O. M. Stull (class of 1896), who
used it in a spirit yell he wrote for a competition.” The reason for
the competition is as follows. In 1872, the school was founded and
named Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College. In 1896, the name
changed to Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic
Institute. Because the name was so long, people started calling it VPI,
and thus a new “spirit yell” was needed to go along with the new name.
Stull made up the word to go along with his yell, and thus was born
“Hokie.”
Originally, Va. Tech’s teams were called the Gobblers,
and their colors were black and grey. However, the colors were changed
to “burnt orange and Chicago maroon” in 1896, thus making Tech the only
team with that color combination. The mascot was changed from a Gobbler
to HokieBird in 1982. Since Virginia Tech is the only team called the
Hokies, were the first to have those colors, and have a unique mascot
that has won numerous awards, they get points for originality. The
interesting factor behind the nickname gets a 3 on a 0-5 scale.
Virginia
Tech cannot boast anything about its physical mascot, however. The
athletics department website and university traditions website do not
have any mention of unique feats performed by the mascot, contrary to
schools such as Boston College (who finished lower than Tech in these
rankings). The only game day tradition of interest is a cannon being
fired as the team runs on the field, but many schools do that as well.
The school used to have actual turkeys at the games, but now it only
has the costumed student. The one redeeming quality of the HokieBird is
that it appears on Animal Planet’s turkey special on Thanksgiving Day.
On the 0-5 scale, Tech’s mascot gets a “coolness” rating of 1
On the 0-5 scale, Tech’s mascot gets a “coolness” rating of 1 
.
All
in all, the Hokies are one of the well-known names in college sports,
and for good reason. Their “Old Hokie” Cheer, known by Tech fans and
goes alike, goes like this: “Hokie, Hokie, Hokie, Hi! Tech, Tech, VPI!”
Unfortunately for them, the mascot does not do anything extraordinary
to warrant a high ranking. Because of a boring (and confusing, albeit
unique) explanation for the mascot name, and lack of creativity on
behalf of HokieBird, Virginia Tech finishes 10th in the ACC mascot
rankings.
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