How the 10 Schools in BCS Bowls Got Their Nicknames

If the BCS rankings factored a school's nickname into its formula—and Texas quarterback Colt McCoy's final pass of Saturday's Big 12 Championship Game had fluttered in the air for one second longer—Alabama would probably be playing the TCU Horned Frogs in the national championship game. As it is, the Crimson Tide will square off against the Longhorns, which isn't so bad. Here are the stories behind the nicknames of the 10 schools in this year's BCS bowls.

1. Alabama Crimson Tide

Hugh Roberts, sports editor for the Birmingham Age-Herald, is widely credited as being the first to use "Crimson Tide" to refer to Alabama's football team. Roberts used the term to describe crimson-and-white-clad Alabama's surprising performance during a rain-soaked 6-6 tie with heavily favored Auburn in 1907. Henry "Zipp" Newman, who became the sports editor of the Birmingham News at the age of 25, helped popularize the nickname. Sportswriters are also to thank for the elephant that serves as Alabama's mascot. The elephant reference dates back to the school's 10-0 season in 1930, when sportswriters began referring to Alabama head coach Wallace Wade's hulking linemen as the Red Elephants.

2. Texas Longhorns

3. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

The Ramblin' Wreck nickname dates to the late 19th century when Georgia Tech engineering students working in the jungles of South America constructed makeshift motorized vehicles out of spare tractor and automotive parts. The students' fellow workers referred to the vehicles as the Ramblin' Wrecks of Georgia Tech, and the nickname was eventually popularized in the school fight song. Several cars were used to represent the Ramblin' Wreck on campus until 1961, when a Delta Air Lines pilot sold a restored 1930 Model A Ford Sport Coupe to the school that has been used to lead the football team on the field before every home game ever since.

4. Iowa Hawkeyes

5. TCU Horned Frogs

6. Boise State Broncos

7. Ohio State Buckeyes

8. Oregon Ducks