Eagles, Texans and Bills, Oh My!
Nicknames shared by NFL teams and U.S. high schools run the gamut from the popular to the obscure to the non-existent
Lake Jackson, Texas- More than 7,000 U.S. high schools have the same nickname as an NFL team (most have the same moniker with at least one school). The most popular high school nickname is the Eagles (1700+ schools), making it No. 1 on the shared list The Bills and the Browns are not currently being used as a nickname by any U.S. high schools. This according to team nickname expert and author of Where Are the Fighting Giraffes? A Guide to the Ordinary, Odd and Outrageous Nicknames of U.S. High Schools, David Winder.
“There are over 1,650 monikers being utilized at the more than 24,500 U.S. secondary schools, so it’s a little surprising that not all the NFL team nicknames are being used,” said David Winder, author of the new book Where Are the Fighting Giraffes? A Guide to the Ordinary, Odd and Outrageous Nicknames of U.S. High Schools. “You would think since we have schools that are the Earwigs, Snails, and Zizzers all the professional teams’ nicknames would be used too, but they are not.”
Name of the Game
Other popular high school nicknames that are also shared with NFL teams:
Panthers – more than 980 schools (No. 2 most popular high school nickname)
Lions – more than 850 schools (No. 5)
Falcons – more than 460 schools (No. 11)
Vikings – more than 370 schools (No. 12)
Patriots – more than 360 schools (No. 14); California, Florida and North Carolina all have more than 25 of the schools
Other nicknames that are used by more than 100 schools include the Rams, Cardinals, Raiders, Bears, Jaguars, Titans, Chargers, and Saints.
Top 15 high school nicknames include the Bulldogs, Warriors, Wildcats, Knights, Cougars, Mustangs, Trojans, and Spartans. “Not many of the NFL team names coincide with the most popular high school nicknames, which I would not have predicted,” Winder said.
What’s Your Name?
Texans – Texas has six schools that go by the Texans. The nickname holds the record for having the most schools in one state but does not make an appearance in any other.
Steelers – Three schools go by the Steelers. There are also the Steelmen and Blue Steel.
49ers – The High School of Graphic Communication Arts (Manhattan, NY) is the only school with that nickname. It is located on West 49th Street.
Bills – The closest is the Johnstown Sir Bills (NY), which are named after the city’s founder Sir William Johnston.
Browns – The closest are the two schools named the Brown Bears.
“There may or may not be reasons for those nicknames that were widely chosen and those that were not,” Winder concluded.
Naming the Names
Where Are the Fighting Giraffes?: A Guide to the Ordinary, Odd and Outrageous Nicknames of U.S. High Schools, is currently available at Amazon in both print and ebook formats. Fighting Giraffes ebooks focusing on Texas, California, and Florida high schools are also available at Amazon.
About David Winder
David Winder is a former sportswriter who believes the world needs more fun nicknames for schools, teams, and individuals. His high school is the Wildcats. Where Are the Fighting Giraffes?: A Guide to the Ordinary, Odd and Outrageous Nicknames of U.S. High Schools, is published by Feigenwinter Publishing.