Dear readers, I come before you this day to humbly tell of you a great travesty that has been done, however inadvertently, by the citizens of this fair metropolis.

This past Saturday, I watched the warriors of the Blue and Gray end their year bloodied, bruised, but unbeaten and unbowed, having outscored their foes by nearly six to one over the course of the season. They truly lived up to Coach Lester Barnard’s motto of “Every Man a Tiger”.

And why shouldn’t they? On campus, at games and in student publications they are already known as the Tigers. It is a secret cant for students and alumni, used to glorify their gridiron champions. But, one doesn’t extend beyond the walls of academia. The newspapers of the city refuse to call them anything but the Blue and Gray, and thusly the citizens don’t know any better.

I think it is time for that to change.

I say, if they act like tigers, if they fight like tigers, who are we to tell them that they are not, in fact, Tigers?

Memphis, we should let them be what they already are.

Farewell to the Blue and Gray Warriors. Long live the Tigers.

Memphis Note
The University of Memphis (going to call it that for clarity’s sake) sports team was originally called the Blue and Gray Warriors. Somewhere along the line the students started saying that they fought like tigers, so they became commonly know as “the Tigers” by those that attended the school. But, the local media in town refused to refer to the team as anything but the Blue and Gray, even during Coach Barnard’s time. The team name wasn’t officially changed until 1939.

The truck next to his was something out of a nightmare. It was raised, taller than they were, with its back-end exploding into a mix of multiple axles, a widened bed, a horrible array of speakers and custom barbecue equipment from hell.

The speakers were booming, grills searing, and worst of all, they were flying ribbons of entirely the wrong team color.

“That is not how you tailgate.” He grumbled to his friends. “That’s how you offended people on a Sunday morning. Like takin’ a piss on the Bible.”

His two friends sat on the back of his very normal pickup truck. One belched.

The other asked, “So? What can you do about it?”

“Once the game starts, I’ll sneak out and let the air out of all of their tires.”

His two friends looked over at the tires and coughed, politely.

“Dude, there’s like eighteen freakin’ tires on that thing.”

“Yeah,” said the other one. “You’ll be out here for the rest of the game.”

He shrugged back at them. “Tigers are playin’ UT. Not like they stand a chance of winning.”

Fortunately, and unfortunately, he was wrong.

And what was worst, he only got through tire sixteen.

Memphis Note
It was 1996. The UT Vols lead by Payton Manning were set to head straight to a national championship. Then something impossible happen. The Volunteers were taken down by the Tigers. One of the absolute worst teams beat one of the absolute best. It became a moment Memphis sports fans will never forget, and UT fans will never live down.