UNLV Rebels History

Nickname "Rebels"

The nickname "Rebels" was given to UNLV athletic teams because the school, emerging from the shadow of the University of Nevada, Reno, in effect "rebelled" against its bigger and older brother to the north.

The name "Runnin' Rebels" (always spelled without a "g") was coined in 1974 by then-sports information director Dominic Clark but refers only to the UNLV men's basketball team.

Hey Reb

Back this fall to Sam Boyd Stadium is the re-designed, beefed-up Hey Reb costume. Paid for by a gift from the UNLV Alumni Association, the new mascot made his debut at a Runnin' Rebel basketball game in 1997.

Mascots, Old and New

Today it's Hey Reb but some at UNLV still remember the first official Rebel mascot -- Beauregard.

Dressed in a gray military field jacket and Confederate cap, Beau is a fanged, winking, black and white cartoon wolf. He came to be because the new school in Southern Nevada wanted to make a little jab at the Wolf Pack mascot of Nevada, Reno.

"UNLV was rebelling against the status quo and the two schools' mascots seemed to mimic the Civil War," said former UNLV president Don Baepler, who is currently director of the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Natural History on campus. "Reno had a northern looking wolf so we wanted a Confederate wolf."

The logo lasted until the early 1970s when a group of black athletes came to Baepler, who was academic vice president at the time, and voiced its displeasure with having a mascot that had a connection with the wrong side of the Civil War.

"They said it didn't feel right playing for a school with such a mascot . . . and I agreed," said Baepler. "Southern Nevada has no real ties to the Confederacy so the change wasn't a big concern."

The student senate voted on a new mascot and the human Rebel logo was born. Initially, a Colonial-like Rebel soldier was the official logo and there was talk at one time of changing UNLV's nickname to Minutemen.

However, the current long-moustached cartoon Rebel known as Hey Reb took hold in the early 1980s and helped the school vault to the top in college apparel licensing within 10 years.

Beauregard may not be prevalent in today's UNLV athletic events but he's certainly not gone and forgotten. The original sketch of the wolf was converted into a mid-court painting for basketball games played in the old University gymnasium. Today, visitors can visit the black, white, scarlet and gray logo circle in its original position at what is now the Barrick Museum, which still uses the existing oak hardwood basketball floor to hold its exhibits.

School Songs

UNLV Fight Song: "Win with the Rebels"

Win with the Rebels a victory today!
Win with the Rebels, the Scarlet and Gray.
From mountains that surround you to far across the sea
We'll win with the Rebels of UNLV.
U-N-L-V UNLV Go, Fight Win.
We'll win with the Rebels of UNLV.

Alma Mater

Alma Mater, we praise you
For spirit, the eternal flame,
Strength which never falters,
A tribute to your name
Alma Mater, we thank you,
Exalted Scarlet and Gray.
Truth and wisdom from your standard
In our minds and hearts will stay
Alma Mater, we cherish you.
And in our days that are yet to be,
Our voices let us ever raise
In honor, U-N-L-V

Rebel Colors

The school colors of Scarlet and Gray can be traced to the late-1950s when UNLV adopted as mascot a wolf wearing a Confederate uniform. Scarlet and Gray were traditional colors of the Confederacy with its gray uniforms and red-based flag.

Rebel History

Opened as a satellite campus in 1957, the southern regional division of the University of Nevada became Nevada Southern University in 1965 and finally evolved into UNLV four years later when the Board of Regents granted it autonomy under the state's higher education system.

Men's basketball was the first sport organized at UNLV, opening play in 1958 under head coach and athletic director Michael "Chub" Drakulich. Baseball, also coached by Drakulich, started in 1960 and football came to campus nearly a decade later when head coach Bill Ireland's squad went 8-1 in 1968. Women's club sports such as tennis emerged in 1960 under administrator Alice Mason but basketball became the first women's varsity sport in 1974. UNLV currently sponsors seven men's and eight women's athletic programs.

Pictured on the right: The first Rebel football team (1968) was the only squad that played as Nevada Southern University.