Roll Tide! War Eagle!

I have spoken before about how football is almost a religion in Alabama.  People are born into Alabama or Auburn families and sons of players at one school almost invariably play at the same school.  Most approach this in a rational fashion and take good natured pokes at one another.  As with anything, a few become obsessive to absurd levels.

Today is the first game day of the 2012 season.  Auburn is playing the Clemson Tigers in Atlanta, Georgia and the currently second-ranked Alabama is visiting the Michigan Wolverines in Dallas, Texas. 

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Roll tide

War Eagle flight

The origin of Crimson Tide and Roll Tide:

The Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California is where the Alabama team won their first four national titles (a total of fourteen.)  The national sports writers spoke of the team looking like a tide of red, a Crimson Tide, pouring onto the field.

The association with an elephant (the mascot: Big Al) began because the sports writers noticed a picture of a red elephant on the personal storage trunks the players brought with them.  The trunks were supplied to the team by a local Birmingham luggage company, Rosenberger's Birmingham Trunk, whose business logo is a red elephant.  The elephant logo refers to the strength of the trunks which they sell.

The origin of War Eagle:

The Auburn Tigers mascot is Aubie the Tiger.  The eagle, also, became associated with the team very early in Auburn history. In 1892, an eagle circled over the football field during a football game and the fans pointed into the air and yelled “War Eagle!”