Gonzaga Bulldogs

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Gonzaga Bulldogs
Logo
University Gonzaga University
Conference West Coast Conference
NCAA Division I
Athletic director Mike Roth
Location Spokane, WA
Varsity teams 16
Basketball arena McCarthey Athletic Center
Baseball stadium Washington Trust Field and Patterson Baseball Complex
Mascot Spike the Bulldog
Nickname Bulldogs (official) / Zags
Fight song Go, Gonzaga![1]
Colors
     Blue       Red       White
Website www.gozags.com

The Gonzaga Bulldogs (also known unofficially as the Zags) are the intercollegiate athletic teams representing Gonzaga University, located in Spokane, Washington, United States. Gonzaga is a member of the West Coast Conference, which participates in the NCAA Division I.

History

Gonzaga University was founded in 1887 by Fr. Joseph Cataldo, a Sicilian-born priest. At one time, Gonzaga went by the nickname of Fighting Irish in the 1910s to early 1920s. This name was dropped in 1921 favor of the current "Bulldogs" mascot. Although the school's official mascot is a bulldog, fans and media have long used "Zags" as an alternate nickname.[2]

Gonzaga was an NAIA school from 1947 to 1957, when they moved to the NCAA as an independent. They were a charter member of the Big Sky Conference in 1963, the only one of the six without a football program.[3] In 1979, GU moved over to the West Coast Athletic Conference and the Big Sky added Nevada,[4] now in the Mountain West Conference. The WCAC was shortened to today's WCC in 1989.[5][6][7]

Teams

Gonzaga University sponsors teams in eight men's and nine women's NCAA sanctioned sports:[8]

Men's basketball

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Main article: Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball

Men's basketball has been the most successful sport for the Bulldogs. Gonzaga home games have been played at the McCarthey Athletic Center since 2004. The Bulldogs opened the arena with a 38-game win streak, the longest at the time in the NCAA, eventually snapped in February 2007 by the Santa Clara Broncos.

The Bulldogs have established a reputation as one of the stronger teams in college basketball, having played in fifteen consecutive NCAA tournaments and ascending to the #1 ranking in both major polls during the 2012-13 season. They are generally reckoned as one of the closest things to a major basketball power in a mid-major conference.

Notable alumni of Gonzaga basketball include hall of famer John Stockton, Dan Dickau, Adam Morrison, Robert Sacre, Kelly Olynyk, Richie Frahm, J. P. Batista, Paul Rogers, Blake Stepp, Ronny Turiaf, and Austin Daye.

Baseball

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Main article: Gonzaga Bulldogs baseball

Men's soccer

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Main article: Gonzaga Bulldogs men's soccer

Former teams

Football

Gonzaga last fielded a varsity football team 83 years ago in 1941.[9][10] From 1892-1941 (excluding having no teams from 1894-1895 & 1900-1906), Gonzaga went 129-99-20.

Like many colleges, the football program went on hiatus during World War II (in April 1942),[11][12] but after the war the administration decided not to resume it. The program had been in financial difficulty prior to the war.[13][14][15]

GU's most notable football player was running back Tony Canadeo (1919–2003) from Chicago, who played in the NFL for the Green Bay Packers from 1941 to 1952 and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1974.[16] Ray Flaherty joined him as a hall of famer (as a head coach) in 1976.[17][18] Flaherty was a Gonzaga teammate of Hust Stockton, a noted halfback in the 1920s (and the paternal grandfather of basketball star John Stockton). Their head coach at Gonzaga was Gus Dorais, who threw to college teammate Knute Rockne at Notre Dame in 1913.

The Gonzaga football stadium, built in 1922,[19][20] was used for city high school football until it was deemed unsafe by the city after the 1947 season.[21][22] The white-painted wooden venue hosted a professional preseason game in 1946 under the lights, between the New York Yankees and Brooklyn Dodgers of the new All-America Football Conference.[23][24] The southern portion of the football field is currently occupied by the Foley Library.[25] High school football moved to the new Memorial Stadium in 1950, later named for Gonzaga alumnus Joe Albi in 1962.

Head coaches

Source:[40]

Boxing

The university had a strong boxing program and shared the national title with Idaho in 1950.[41] Gonzaga dropped the sport in 1952,[42] Idaho in 1954, and the NCAA in 1960.[43] Football star Canadeo boxed during his senior year in 1941 at 175 lb (79 kg)[44] and was named team captain.[45][46]

References

  1. ↑ http://news.gonzaga.edu/archives/4387
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ West Coast Conference Official Athletics Site – On Campus. Wccsports.cstv.com (July 1, 2011).
  8. ↑ http://www.gozags.com/
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  26. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  27. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  29. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  40. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  41. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  42. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  43. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  44. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  45. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  46. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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