Courtesy of Beussery at English Wikipedia
People in the Peach State are proud of their college affiliations. All you have to do is observe people on a daily basis to see what they are wearing. You’ll see colleges from all over the country represented on hoodies, t-shirts, polo shirts, purses and even belt buckles. Of course, you’ll see many people wearing Georgia Bulldog, Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket, and Georgia Southern Eagle clothing. Have you ever wondered how the nicknames for these schools came to be? Here’s a little trivia to impress your friends.
Some people believe that the University of Georgia took its nickname from the Yale University Bulldogs. Georgia’s first president, Abraham Baldwin, graduated from Yale, but no definitive evidence can be found that Georgia adopted the Bulldog moniker from Yale. Before 1920, University of Georgia (UGA) sports teams had nicknames such as the “Crackers,” the “Wildcats,” and the “Bulldogs.” Morgan Blake is credited with the call for the “Bulldogs” as the permanent nickname for the school. In a November 3, 1920 article in the Atlanta Journal, Blake wrote, “The Georgia Bulldogs would sound good because there is a certain dignity about a bulldog, as well as ferocity.” Several days later in the Atlanta Constitution, Cliff Wheatley used the name “Bulldogs” five
Courtesy of UserB
times in his piece about the Georgia-Virginia game that ended in a 0-0 tie in Charlottesville. The name stuck and the market exploded for Bulldog clothing and other paraphernalia.
Georgia Tech athletic teams have been known by many nicknames over the years, including the “Engineers,” the “Techs,” the “Blacksmiths,” the” Golden Tornado,” and the “Ramblin’ Wreck.” In 1905, an article in the Atlanta Constitution used the term “Yellowjackets” to describe the Tech students and other fans of the athletic teams. Supporters of the teams commonly came dressed in yellow coats and jackets. The term became commonplace after the article and eventually came to be spelled “Yellow Jackets.” The origin of the name had nothing to do with the six-legged insect with the sharp stinger.
Over the years Georgia Southern University (GSU) athletic teams have been called the “Culture,” the “Aggies,” the “Normal Nine” for baseball, the “Blue Tide,” the “Professors,” and the “Teachers.” In 1959, after a campus-wide contest and vote, the official nickname became the “Eagles.” The school changed its name from South Georgia Teachers College to Georgia Southern College that year and the administration thought a new nickname was in order.
Every school has its own unique history and the nickname is just a part of it. Be true to your school and wear your 
t-shirts proudly.
