Utah Utes History

The University of Utah and the Utes

University of Utah athletics teams are known as the "Utes" in honor of the American Indian tribe for which the state of Utah is named. The Utes have inhabited this area of the country for at least 1,000 years. There were originally 12 "Nuche", or "The People", bands throughout Utah and Colorado. The Utes were among the first American Indians to acquire the horse as a means of transportation, and in rock writing the Utes are depicted as horses.

After several armed conflicts with Mormon settlers in 1861, the Utes were relocated to the Uintah Basin in northeastern Utah. Today, tribal headquarters are in Fort Duchesne, Utah, and the Ute Tribe, with a membership of 3,300 and its own tribal government, remains a vibrant part of the state. The University of Utah, in cooperation with the Ute Tribal Business Committee, is proud to share in the tradition of the Ute tribe through the "Utes" nickname.

The University's mascot, "Swoop," represents the red-tailed hawk, a bird indigenous to the state of Utah.

Block U

Students began painting their class numerals on "The Hill" in the early 1900s. Since the numbers changed annually, the students decided they wanted something more permanent that would promote loyalty and pride. The block U was originally built in 1907 on Mount Van Cott. In 1969, the design was modified and 124 lights were installed. Seated 5,300 feet above sea level and standing 100 feet tall, the block U can be seen for miles. Lighted primarily for athletic events, the block U notifies everyone in the Salt Lake valley and beyond that the Utes are playing at home, flashing after a victory.

Homecoming

Utah's all-time record in Homecoming games is 50-28-4. The first Homecoming game was held at the U. on November 12, 1921 against Colorado and ended in a scoreless tie.

Beehive Boot

The Beehive Boot, which signifies instate football supremacy, was conceived in 1971. The authentic pioneer boot is awarded annually to the Utah school with the best record against its instate NCAA Division I foes. The schools who compete for the boot are Utah, Brigham Young and Utah State. In its 32-year history, the Beehive Boot has been awarded to Utah seven times (1978, 1988, 1993, '94, '95, '99 and 2002).

Oquirrh Bucket

The Old Oquirrh Bucket (named after the Oquirrh Mountains to the west of Salt Lake City) is the symbol of in-state basketball supremacy in Utah. The trophy is awarded every year to the in-state college team (Utah, BYU, Southern Utah, Utah State and Weber State) which has the best won-loss record against in-state competition. Utah has won it 12 times (including 2002-03) since the trophy was born for the 1974-75 season.

Utah Man

VERSE
I am a Utah man, sir, and I live across the green.
Our gang, it is the jolliest that you have ever seen.
Our coeds are the fairest and each one's a shining star.
Our yell, you hear it ringing through the mountains near and far.

CHORUS
Who am I, sir? A Utah man am I A Utah man, sir, and will be till I die; Ki!Yi!
We're up to snuff; we never bluff,
We're game for any fuss,
No other gang of college men
dare meet us in the muss.
So fill your lungs and sing it out and
shout it to the sky,
We'll fight for dear old Crimson,
for a Utah man am I.

VERSE
And when we prom the avenue, all lined up in a row,
And arm in arm and step in time as down the street we go.
No matter if a freshman green, or in a senior's gown,
The people all admit we are the warmest gang in town.

CHORUS

VERSE
We may not live forever on this jolly good old sphere,
But while we do we'll live a life of merriment and cheer,
And when our college days are o'er and night is drawing nigh,
With parting breath we'll sing that song:
"A Utah Man Am I".

CHORUS

Utah Athletics History

Intercollegiate athletics at the University of Utah dates back to the 1800s, but its teams have certainly kept pace with the times. National success came early for Utah, with basketball winning its first of three national championships in 1916 (the AAU Championship). Men's hoops would win the1944 NCAA Tournament and 1947 National Invitational Tournament as well. Football also had some early success, winning the 1938 Sun Bowl.

Utah's tentative steps up the national athletics ladder escalated to leaps and bounds when the '60s rolled around. In 1961 and '66, the men's basketball team advanced to the NCAA Final Four. In 1964, the football team went 9-2 and crushed West Virginia 32-6 in the Liberty Bowl. Men's swimming also thrived, laying the groundwork for a program that would win 22 conference championships.

In the mid-1970s, women's athletics entered the Ute fold and quickly made up for time lost on the sidelines. Hall of Fame basketball coach Fern Gardner pioneered a program that has averaged 20 wins per year since its inception. The Ute women skiers struck gold at the 1977 AIAW Championships and sandwiched that title with a trio of silvers from 1976-79. And what would soon become the premier women's gymnastics team in the nation began competing in 1975-76. Coach Greg Marsden led that first team to a 10th-place national finish, a feat he has been surpassed every year since then. In the spring of 1979, the Ute softball team went to the College World Series.

The 1980s saw athletics at Utah continue hurtling into the big time. The women's gymnastics team won an unprecedented six straight national titles from 1981-86. The women's cross country team won the Division II AIAW Championship in 1981 (it joined the other Ute teams in Division I the following year). The softball team qualified for the 1982 and '85 NCAA College World Series. Also in 1983, skiing became a coed sport and Utah won the NCAA title-the first of five in the '80s.

That across-the-board success helped establish the national reputation Utah has enjoyed since the early 1990s, when most Ute programs reached previously uncharted levels. The football team has played in a six bowl games since 1991. In 1994, the Utes finished with a 10-2 record, a bowl win over Arizona and a Top-10 national ranking. They shared the conference title in 1995 and 1999. Another fall sport flexing some muscle lately is the Ute volleyball team, which advanced to the NCAA second round from 1998-2000, and made the Sweet Sixteen in 2001. The women's soccer team advanced to the NCAA second round in 2002.

Utah's winter sports have countered with their own success stories. Under Head Coach Rick Majerus, the men's basketball team was the NCAA runner-up in 1998, beating two No. 1 seeds (Arizona in the West Regional final and North Carolina in the NCAA semi-finals) before falling to Kentucky 78-69 in the championship game. In 1996-97, the Runnin' Utes made the Elite Eight and finished the year ranked No. 6. Majerus' Runnin' Utes have won 10 of the last 13 conference titles and made the NCAA second round last year. The women's basketball team has also made its mark, winning six conference championships since 1995-96 and competing in the NCAA Tournament from 1996-98, 2000-01 and '03. The women made the NCAA Sweet Sixteen in 2001, losing to eventual NCAA champion Notre Dame, and advanced to the second round last year.

But it is women's gymnastics that has the edge in Huntsman Center banners, with a record 10 national championship flags to its credit. Four of those banners came in the 1990s (1990, '92, 94 and '95). The Utes placed second to UCLA in 2000, were fifth in 2001 and fourth in 2002.

Outdoors, the defending NCAA champion Ute skiers won the 1993, '96 and '97 and 2003 NCAA Championships-raising their total to 11. The skiers finished second in '94, '95 and '98.

Utah's achievements don't stop with the snowfall. The softball team qualified for the 1991 and 1994 College World Series and took fifth in the nation in 1994. The 1997 Ute baseball team won the WAC Northern Division title.

The momentum from the 1990s has carried into the new century. It's clear to see that the Utes aren't getting older-they're getting better.