johndahl

A link to the Herald's comment section on why people are voting for Roughriders as a nickname (and a shameless plug by me for a vote for Roughriders): http://www.grandforksherald.com/news/local/3861718-und-nickname-vote-roughriders

http://nhl.nbcsports.com/2015/10/01/wild-claim-parises-buddy-chris-porter-off-waivers-from-philly/?ocid=Yahoo&partner=ya5nbcs&ref=yfp John

That's fortunately been my experience as well. Unfortunately, the letter to the Herald suggests the writer is hearing from both types.

This quote in a letter to the Herald was particularly telling of how others see our predicament: "What if this year at the Fargodome, the filled-to-capacity crowd had to cheer their returning national champions with something like “We are the Sundogs, the Mighty Mighty Sundogs”?" The full letter (which isn't half bad) is posted at the Herald here: http://www.grandforksherald.com/letters/3811321-letter-what-if-thats-question-und-fans John

Badgers would be interesting, and seems like a good fit. I suspect he was pushed out at Tampa Bay, as most news reports indicate he doesn't have anything else lined up yet.

I'm a Red River HS alum, and most of the other alums I've talked with have some pride in the name and like the idea of UND adopting it. It will be way easier for students and fans to identify with than an abstract/weather-related phenomenon like sundogs, or just another bird (or moth). I still fear that they'll pick a weak name that nobody identifies with, and botch it up for generations to come.

I'm more than a little surprised they ditched "Nokota" while keeping Blaze, Force, Pride, and Spirit. I thought I recalled a statement at the beginning of the process stating they wouldn't consider some abstract idea or weather phenomenon, because people simply don't relate to them or take any pride in them. Hopefully these people speak up again, and concepts such as these are removed from consideration, or this committee could do some real damage. John

I saw no attempt at discussion in the locked thread, or anything that could reasonably be considered commentary. You could always start another forum for yourself and any others who may disagree... John

Roughriders is unique among college and pro ranks in the US, which is a pretty high hurdle to meet. I wouldn't worry about minor league teams like those above.

True this. I remember people being nervous that Blais was being plucked from a high school job, and might not be up to running a college program. That one seems to have worked out OK...

I strongly suspect time will prove each sentence of this to be incorrect.

Sure looked like it to me. It really felt like UND came to compete in the 2nd - a noticeable change in energy from the 1st.

We're behind the BU goal, and we're noticing the same thing. Open lane to the net, but the Sioux player just goes to the corner over and over.

I still think "Roughriders" is the best choice I've heard, and like "Cavalry" as a second choice.

It would be fun to see UND finally beat BC to win a title, but I'd rather see a repeat of the Columbus final four, which was essentially a re-hash of the WCHA conference tournament.

It's not so much that the players are a little up and down that concerns me, but rather that it's been a decade or more since we had a player who didn't feel like they had to play in-system 100% of the time and could make a play when they saw an opening. I enjoyed the Redhawks game last night more than the UND game not just because UND lost, but because it was genuinely fun to watch players like Czarnik who have some individual skill show us what they can do. Check it out if you haven't seen it:

Now posted online: https://www.flickr.com/photos/32819299@N06/sets/72157651457336672/ John

That killer Northern is the meanest Northern I've ever seen. It has a vicious streak a mile wide, and nasty, big, pointy teeth...

Can't help but note that one of North Dakota's official nicknames is the "Roughrider State" - see: http://www.nd.gov/content.htm?parentCatID=74&id=Nicknames

I had this happen once. Started a stopwatch for the time on the meter, and was careful to make it back just in time only to find a ticket on my car and no ticket cop in sight. I appealed, and they basically said the ticket stands. The "people" enforcing parking barely qualified as people at all, as they had no reason or heart. John

I remember my first day of college at UND. My roommate was a graduate student who had been out of high school for 7 years, had served in the navy, and always had a littel bit of beer in the mini-fridge. The RA came around the first day to introduce himself, and my roommate offered the RA a beer. The RA indicated we weren't supposed to have beer, and roommate said it should be fine as long as RA drank it in our suite. RA politely declined, and mentioned we had probably best keep the beer in our suite too, though. I thought it was fairly clever how he set expectations and reached a reasonable accomodation on day one, although it might not have worked as well if it wasn't an upper-class coed dorm. John

Wow, not a lot of love for the Hrkac circus here. He wasn't the NHL star that some Sioux greats have become, but he was dominant in college and put up some pretty impressive numbers (116 points in a season is still an NCAA record).

Interesting that the logo also features Roughriders in text and Nakota horses at the edges of the sky.

Nope, this is a common misconception. Even if they lose the federal registered trademark, the Redsinks can still sue people for common law trademark infringement, or can sue under state law, and almost certainly will. It's more convenient to have your trademark federally registered, but it's certainly not necessary for trademark enforcement. It's also far from clear that the "Redskins" name was derogatory or offensive when first registered in the 1960s, and I think there's a decent chance that the team is able to keep some of the earliest-registered marks (including the name itself) on appeal. They can then seek trademark protection for current logos detached from the name, and have a robust federally registered trademark portfolio once again. It's interesting news, and consistent with what the USPTO has found in other trademark examinations (e.g. denying "Slants" for an asian band or "Dykes on Bikes", although the dykes were later granted protection after showing that applicants were representative of the community and did not find the term disparaging). But, I think it will matter little to the Redskins organization in the long run. John

The Redskins can (and almost certainly will) still aggressively protect their trademark through state and common law trademark protection if their federally registered mark is permanently cancelled. Some people may think it's open season, but they will likely quickly find out that this is not the case. Also, the federally registered trademarks remain enforceable during the Redsins' appeal, which it appears will come as a surprise to some. John