GWU Sports Teams May Be Called “The Fog” – Would Make University a “Laughing Stock in the NCAA”
GWU’s NCAA Sports Teams May Be Called The Fog
WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 7, 2023) – Students at George Washington University [GWU] may soon be cheering on their NCAA sports teams by yelling “Go Fog” – or “Fogriders,” or Foghoppers,” or even “Blue Fog” – according to an unauthorized disclosure of what is being called an “undemocratic new GW moniker process” to pick a new name for our sports teams, notes public interest law professor John Banzhaf.
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Those were the leading names GWU students in six different focus groups - each featuring a few selected students viewed behind a one-way mirror - are being asked to choose to replace the nearly century-old sports team name "Colonials."
The other options presented to the students include Cavalry, Ambassadors, Fireworks, Firecrackers, Sentinels, Monumentals, Independents, and The Buzz, according to the insider.
Reportedly, no students in that group objected to The Fog, which was the most popular nickname among the options that were presented to the focus group.
The few finalist names were determined by Sullivan & Company, a marketing firm, and the GW Board of Trustees, which had previously voted to abandon the name Colonials.
The Origins
The origins of the apparent front runner, The Frog - as well as Fogriders, Foghoppers, or Blue Fog - was a lighthearted discussion at a local bar between several students and their families.
Supposedly it is based upon GWU's location - in Foggy Bottom - which most of the country watching or reading about the games probably will not be aware of.
It also refers to an obscure battle that George Washington won because it was so foggy; an even more obscure link even fewer sports fans, including GWU students, will be aware of.
Seemingly, no one has bothered to explain how The Fog or its several variations somehow captured the three qualities the GWU Trustees deemed were most important: "tenacious," "electric," and "open."
GWU has also put out a set of “guiding principles” for the selection of its new “moniker.” Any new name, it ruled, must be related to at least one of the following: “Shaping the Future,” “Free to be Bold” or “At the Center of Power.”
But why The fog helps to shape the future, epitomizes being free to be bold, or suggests that GWU is at the center of power, likewise remains a mystery, argues Banzhaf.
One focus group participant said that cheering on a team named The Fog would make the University a "laughing stock in the NCAA."
The decision to abandon the name Colonials was caused by confusing the colonization which the British imposed on the original thirteen colonies with the colonials who fought successfully against it.
As Professor Jonathan Turley of GWU explained, "this country was founded by colonials who forged a new vision for democratic process and individual freedoms."
This kind of misunderstanding, and exaggerated political correctness, is not surprising since GWU students have also signed a petition asking their university to ban the stick figure used on lighted crosswalk signs on campus because they feel "oppressed" because the figure appears to be that of a white man, suggests Banzhaf.
