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South Carolina Gamecocks
History
 Nickname
The University of South Carolina is the only NCAA Division I university
in America with the gamecock as a mascot.
Folklore and legend surrounding the gamecock are found throughout the
world. The Ancient Syrians worshiped the fighting cock as one of their
deities. In China, the gamecock is considered the herald of mortal
existence and a symbol of honor, merit, and the west. In ancient Greece,
the gamecock was the announcer of the sun and was considered sacred
because of its magnanimity, courage, skill, and constancy. In Germany
and Hungary, the gamecock is still considered a weather prophet.
The proving ground for the gamecock's heroic attributes was "gamecocking."
Now illegal throughout the U.S., this sport originated with the Greeks,
who called the cock the "Persian bird." The Greeks spread the sport to
Asia Minor and Sicily, and eventually the Romans adopted gamecocking
too. From Rome, before Caesar's time, gamecocking reached England. From
there, it presumably came to America with the English immigrants.
One reason cultures have admired the gamecock was the nature of warfare.
Their military struggles hinged upon soldiers engaged in hand-to-hand
combat. Personal courage and indifference to pain were highly
esteemed.In the brutal sport of "gamecocking," the gamecock repeatedly
demonstrated the necessary ferocity and tenacity by fighting to its last
gasp.
Some familiar phrases derive from the gamecock. A common way of saying
people are fit for battle is to say that they are "cut out" for it.T his
phrase refers to preparing a gamecock for battle by clipping its wings,
making it "cut out" to fight. Similarly, because English royalty,
beginning with Henry VIII and including James I, William III, George I,
and, notably, Queen Anne, enjoyed gamecocking, it became known as the
"royal diversion." The final combat between the last two fighting birds
was therefore called the "battle royal."
Over the centuries, such noble attributes have been associated with the
gamecock as alertness, diligence, energy, exultation, wakefulness,
defiance, and vigilance.
School Colors
Garnet and Black were adopted near the turn of the century as the
official colors of the University of South Carolina athletic teams since
they are dominant ones on the gamecock, the University's official mascot
for its athletic teams.
Cocky
The University of South Carolina's official mascot is "Cocky.' The
garnet and black plumed gamecock captured national championship titles
as the number one mascot in 1986 and 1994.
Introduced in 1980 as his father's (Big Spur) replacement, Cocky can be
seen at most South Carolina athletic events and is a fan favorite among
old and young. |
