Clemson University
It was noted that orange might be an appropriate
color for an upstate NY school because upstate
was settled early by the Dutch, who are often
associated with orange. The motto of Dutch royalty
translates as “orange over all.” Of course, if you
are in Ireland, the color orange is associated with
Protestantism, and the order that would found
Syracuse was the protestant society.
Syracuse adopted rose pink and pea green as
its school colors in 1872. This team's colors were
routinely mocked, and rival teams and fans often
made fun of Syracuse players. The track team
returned to Syracuse determined to change its
school colors after hearing numerous insults
directed at its pink and green, and in 1890 the
student body, faculty, alumni, and trustees agreed
to change the color to Orange. At that time no other
school had exclusively orange as their color
(Princeton is Orange and Black).
Syracuse's first football teams were called the
Orioles, obviously alluding to the orange colored
bird, but more generally the teams were
identified as the Orange or Orangemen. Bill
Orange and Saltine Warriors were two attempts
at Syracuse mascots, with Bill Orange inspiring
a song by that name. A student on stilts wearing
extra-long trousers became a staple at sport
ing events in 1939. Hard to miss, Bill Orange stood
10 feet tall!
It might be guessed that the Saltine Warrior was
inspired by the fact that Syracuse was the Salt City
(salt is mined from Lake Onondaga). Among the lyrics,
of this ballad, the saltine warrior was “a bold, bad
man and his weapon was a pigskin ball.” Later, the
Syracuse mascot became a Native American, and later
again, the mascot was an orange.
Syracuse adopted rose pink and pea green as
its school colors in 1872. This team's colors were
routinely mocked, and rival teams and fans often
made fun of Syracuse players. The track team
returned to Syracuse determined to change its
school colors after hearing numerous insults
directed at its pink and green, and in 1890 the
student body, faculty, alumni, and trustees agreed
to change the color to Orange. At that time no other
school had exclusively orange as their color
(Princeton is Orange and Black).
It was noted that orange might be an appropriate
color for an upstate NY school because upstate
was settled early by the Dutch, who are often
associated with orange. The motto of Dutch royalty
translates as “orange over all.” Of course, if you
are in Ireland, the color orange is associated with
Protestantism, and the order that would found
Syracuse was the protestant society.
Syracuse's first football teams were called the
Orioles, obviously alluding to the orange colored
bird, but more generally the teams were
identified as the Orange or Orangemen. Bill
Orange and Saltine Warriors were two attempts
at Syracuse mascots, with Bill Orange inspiring
a song by that name. A student on stilts wearing
extra-long trousers became a staple at sport
ing events in 1939. Hard to miss, Bill Orange stood
10 feet tall!
It might be guessed that the Saltine Warrior was
inspired by the fact that Syracuse was the Salt City
(salt is mined from Lake Onondaga). Among the lyrics,
of this ballad, the saltine warrior was “a bold, bad
man and his weapon was a pigskin ball.” Later, the
Syracuse mascot became a Native American, and later
again, the mascot was an orange.