Im really pissed i didn’t catch that!!

Utah means “people of the mountains” or something like that in the Ute language. The Ute tribe is in and around Utah, Colorado and New Mexico. They’re a fairly small tribe compared to many others, but are/were one of the largest in the state. The largest reservation in the state is the Uintah-Ouray Reservation, where many of the Utes live.

The Utah Utes have been known as such since the 1970s, however, prior to that were known as the Utah Redskins. When political correctness began to sweep across the nation, and Stanford had decided to change its name from the Indian to Cardinal, the Utes followed, adopting a more inclusive name. With the permission of the local Ute tribe, the Redskins (Runnin’ Redskins in basketball) became the Utes.

This agreement between the school and the tribe has continued for a fairly long time with little issue. The leader of the tribe even has season tickets and attends most home games. However, in 2005, when the NCAA decided to crack down on American Indian-themed mascots, Utah nearly lost its name. But with the support of the tribe, as Stuck in the Plains said, they were allowed to keep the name.

The interesting thing, though, is the fact the University of Utah is set to drop the name if the Ute tribe decides they do not want to be associated with the school. In its place will be something with a hawk, as the logo already makes its rounds on Utah merchandise.

But I think most of us hope it doesn’t come to that. As the Utah Red-Tailed Hawks doesn’t have nearly the same ring to it.