The U.P. Fighting Maroons: Or would a Rose by any other name smell just as sweet?

From Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, 1600:

JULIET:
      'Tis but thy name that is my enemy;
      Thou art thyself, though not a Montague.
      What's Montague? it is nor hand, nor foot,
      Nor arm, nor face, nor any other part
      Belonging to a man. O, be some other name!
      What's in a name? that which we call a rose
      By any other name would smell as sweet;
      So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd,
      Retain that dear perfection which he owes
      Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name,
      And for that name which is no part of thee
      Take all myself.

  (Photo courtesy of http://maroonsbasketball.com)

Announcement from the Facebook Page of  U.P. Diliman Name your Team

NAME YOUR TEAM CONTEST

Naming Rights for the New UP Mascot

BACKGROUND OF THE CONTEST:

➢ The “UP Fighting Maroons” is the name carried by all UP Varsity Teams.

➢ Based on the symbols however, the UP Seal bears an eagle probably because it was the first university established by the Americans in the country.

➢ The eagle, as we all know is a common American symbol.

➢ Another symbol familiar to UP Alumni is the Parrot which was often used on car stickers and the cover of notebooks. The parrot however doesn’t seem an appropriate symbol for UP as al it does is imitate its’ human master. Some sectors claim it was used to represent UP students because they “talk too much”.

➢ The last and most famous symbol of the university is the “Oblation”, the nude statue located at Quezon Hall which is suppose to symbolize freedom and service to the nation.

➢ In the course of participation in various sports competitions, it was necessary to have a team mascot. In absence of such, the color “maroon” was instead selected.

➢ The color maroon has no personal qualities. In some instances, a pun on the word especially if the team loses, ends up as the “UP Morons”.

SIGNIFICANCE OF A NAME:

➢ A name is very important because it identifies a person/group of people.

➢ A mascot – is a term for any person, animal, or object thought to bring luck – colloquially (informally) includes anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school.

➢ It also becomes a brand name that may be used collectively for many purposes

➢ The choice of a mascot is suppose to reflect a desired quality, a common example of this is the “fighting spirit”, in which a competitive nature is personified by warriors (archer and Igorot warrior of DLSU and UE) or predatory animals.

➢ Since UP joined the NCAA and later the UAAP, it could not use the eagle as the Ateneo de Manila which was established ahead of UP by 50 years had already used it for its’ own team.

➢ UP had no choice but to choose something else. Probably due to the lack of time, it thus resorted to using the university’s colors – maroon to call its varsity athletes.

➢ The goal of this contest is to choose a moniker that is probably original or, at the very least historical and appropriate for the team and the university it represents.Eligibility: Open to all students, faculty, staff and alumni of the University of the Philippines. The contest will be system wide, however the winning entry shall be the property and exclusive use of the U.P. Diliman Varsity only.

CONTEST DETAILS:

Limit: As many entries may be submitted.

Entry procedures:

1. All entries will be submitted online.

FACEBOOK ACCOUNT: U.P. DILIMAN NAME YOUR TEAM (GROUP)

2. The Logo of your team should be submitted in .jpeg file and the write up describing the name and logo of the team should be typed in 2003 Microsoft Word Document.

3. The entry should have the contestant’s name and student/staff/faculty number to confirm the contestant’s identification in the UP Diliman campus.

4. Send your entries online to nameyourt@yahoo.com. DEADLINE IS ON SEPTEMBER 3, 2010

JUDGING CRITERIA:

➢ Appropriateness of the mascot for a sport setting

➢ Reflects the desired qualities of a varsity team in particular and UP in general.

➢ Name Recall

➢ Originality

➢ May be used as a brand name

➢ Five of the best entries will be presented to the public for online/text voting

PRIZES:

The winner of the contest will receive:

➢ Cash award of PhP 20,000 for the winning entry

➢ Plaque of recognition for submitting the winning entry

➢ 2 season passes to all UP Men’s Basketball games for UAAP Season 73

➢ 1 Varsity Jacket

DATES TO REMEMBER:

SEPTEMBER 3 (FRI) - DEADLINE OF SUBMISSION OF ENTRIES

SEPTEMBER 6-9 - ONLINE AND TEXT VOTING

SEPTEMBER 10 - JUDGEMENT DAY

SEPTEMBER 12 - ANNOUNCEMENT OF WINNING ENTRY AT THE UAAP CHEERDANCE COMPETITION

CHEERDANCE COMPETITION.

EMAIL YOUR ENTRIES AT:
nameyourt@yahoo.com

TEXT YOUR VOTES AT:
0916-492.1314