The 10 Best Nicknames in College Basketball

So often, the same nicknames appear: Wildcats, Lions, Bulldogs, etc. With all of the same nicknames appearing, it is only right to praise the schools that have the guts to use uncommon and original nicknames.

Since I need at least 300 characters, I will tell you who I think the worst mascot is: The Stanford Tree. Stanford's nickname is "The Cardinal."

While doing some research, I found out that their nickname refers to the color, rather than the bird. They did not know how to make a mascot that represents the color, so they figured that they might as well make their mascot a tree.

No. 10 - Stony Brook Seawolves

This nickname interests me, because I have never heard of a wolf that lives in the sea. As far as I can tell, there is nothing about this seawolf that makes it look any different from a land wolf.

No. 9 - South Dakota State Jackrabbits

Good job South Dakota State. They could have easily been done with nicknames after thinking of rabbits, but they took it farther by going with making their nickname "The Jackrabbits."

No. 8 - Youngstown State Penguins

First off, I am pretty sure that there are no penguins in Youngstown, OH.

Second, how cold of a place would it have to be for a penguin to wear a hat and a scarf?

No. 7 - Saint Louis Billikens

Nobody quite knows what a billiken is, but it remains one of the more popular mascots in college. To me it looks like some sort of alien. The point is, nobody else has the same nickname or a mascot anywhere similar to Saint Louis'.

No. 6 Delaware Blue Hens

I just love that fact that so few people know that a blue hen is a real bird. Most teams who use birds as their mascot choose eagles, or hawks, or some other bird of prey. Delaware chose to be modest and choose a blue hen.

No. 5 - UC Irvine Anteaters

There is not much to say about anteaters. They are one of the funnier looking things on this planet. They are not intimidating or especially smart in any way, so I am not quite sure why UC Irvine chose them to represent their school.

No. 4 - Cal State Bakersfield Roadrunners

Interestingly enough, this school was founded after Roadrunner's creation in 1948 by Warner Brothers.

No. 3 - Presbyterian Blue Hose

At first, I was not quite sure if I would include this in this slideshow, but then I looked up what a "Blue Hose" is. Blue Hose is a term for a scottish warrior. After hearing this, I could not help but include it.

No. 2 - Coastal Carolina Chanticleers

I already raved a little about Coastal Carolina's mascot in my latest Mid-Major Top 25, and now is my chance to talk even more about them. Chanticleer is defined as "a name given to a rooster, especially in a fairy tale."

What is better than a blue fairytale rooster?

No. 1 - Centenary Gentleman

This was by far the funniest for me. It just seemed so odd that a team would make their nickname "The Gentlemen." It must be because they know that when they win a national championship, they will be gentlemen about it and stay modest.

Honorable Mention

Lipscomb Bisons

Somebody's brain must have taken a nap when Lipscomb was brainstorming for nicknames. For those who didn't realize their flaw, bison is the same for both the singular and plural forms. Lipscomb, however, decided to defy the laws of language and add a "s" to "bison."

Sam Houston State Bearkats

The only reason Sam Houston State is here is because I hope that they spelled "Bearkats" with a "k" to be original and different.

Miami Hurricanes (This is more for the mascot than the nickname.)

I did some research on a question that so many college sports fans think about; If Miami's nickname is the Hurricanes, why is their mascot a duck? The answer is that it is not actually a duck, but a pelican. It is their mascot because during a hurricane, a pelican got carried, beak first, into the school's flag.

The bird died while hanging from the flag by its beak. Rather than give the bird a normal burial, they decided to honor it by turning the dead bird into their mascot. I hope that this answered a question that many other NCAA fans have had over the past years.

One more fun fact: On the subject of mascots, William & Mary once thought about making their mascot asparagus.