Syracuse Changes Its Nickname

In addition to the Harvard Crimson and the Stanford Cardinal, there is now the Syracuse Orange.

“We are the only school in the country that has orange as its primary color,” Syracuse Athletic Director Jake Crouthamel said Tuesday at a news conference to announce a change in the school’s nickname. “We want to accentuate that.”

Crouthamel acknowledged that Syracuse wasn’t the only Division I university using orange in its uniforms. Tennessee and Texas also wear orange, although in different shades than Syracuse will wear, starting next football season.

Besides shedding its nicknames of Orangemen and Orangewomen in favor of the more politically correct Orange, Syracuse unveiled a new logo, an interlocking SU.

The changes were announced after two years of talks with Nike, the athletic shoe and apparel giant that supplies uniforms and equipment to Syracuse’s basketball, football and lacrosse teams. Nike also has created new looks in recent years for Kentucky, Miami, Washington and Oregon.