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No judgment here (well, maybe a little) New
Mexico's sports teams had the boring names of
"Varsities" or "Universities" in their early years.
Enter Roy Johnson.
Roy Johnson headed west from his Michigan
home to oversee the athletic program at the
University of New Mexico shortly after World
War I. Did he know what he was getting into?
Perhaps not. In addition to his duties as athletic
director, he was coach for all sports,
groundskeeper, athletic business manager,
equipment custodian, and they even made him
teach.
With so many roles, as least Johnson had
some power, which allowed Johnson to select
a more compelling name for the school’s athletic
teams. In the fall of 1920, after examining
ancient anthropological material from New
Mexico, Johnson found a culturally relevant
mascot in the form of a native american god.
Kujo, a war god of great importance, was one
of the principal gods worshipped by the ancient
inhabitants. Power, Courage, and a shrewdness
made Kujo revered. Johnson thought this
ferocious and wild timber wolf to be the perfect
symbol for New Mexico's athletic teams. Since
then, obo has been associated with the school
as the Spanish word for this feared and hated
animal.