Northern’s athletic mascot wasn’t always the Huskie.
In the beginning, NIU teams were known as the Profs—no doubt a reference to the institution’s mission as a teacher’s college.
During the 1920s, they were referred to as the Cardinals—probably due to the color of the school’s athletic jerseys.
In the 1930s, admiration for the legendary athletics pioneer George “Chick” Evans translated into the nickname “Evansmen.”
Finally, in 1940, a four-man committee consisting of Evans, Harold Taxman, Walter Lorimer, and Harry Telman (all members of the Varsity Club) was appointed to search for “… a term with a trifle more dash.”
After much debate, an agreement was reached and reported in the January 25, 1940, Northern Illinois student newspaper.
“From now on, the word “Huskies” will be used constantly in this paper and in other papers to indicate our athletic squads,” the article read.
Since being elevated to Division I status in the late 1960s, the Huskie mascot has had several incarnations: a series of real dogs, a live Victor E. Huskie in costume, and several line-drawing logo versions.
For Baby Boomers, the most popular version was the fighting Huskie in a boxer’s stance. In the 1980s, athletic wear sported the running dog logo. And today, the bold side-view logo is the dog whose likeness appears on t-shirts, football helmets, and a host of other applications.
The American Kennel Club notes that the Siberian Husky is “loyal, outgoing, mischievous, friendly, fastidious and dignified … Quick and light on its feet and free and graceful in action.”
And about that unique spelling: Prior to the 1960s, written game reports used “Husky” and “Huskie” interchangeably. In 1967, Sports Information Director Bud Nangle made it his mission to ensure that the NIU dog was, now and forevermore, a Huskie. And so it has been ever since. H-U-S-K-I-E-S – Go, Huskies!
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