Marquette offered $2 million to change name back to Warriors

Milwaukee university changed its mascot name in 1994

By: Nahal Toosi

Posted: 5/19/04

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (KRT)

MILWAUKEE -- Warriors or Golden Eagles?

For a decade, the matter of the Marquette University athletic nickname has enflamed fans' passions and perplexed university administrators. The issue was suddenly thrust into Marquette's graduation ceremony Sunday at the Bradley Center, wearing a $2 million promise.

Toward the end of his address, commencement speaker Wayne Sanders, vice chairman of the university's Board of Trustees, said he and an unnamed fellow trustee would each donate $1 million to the school if it switches its athletic nickname back to "Warriors."

The announcement surprised Marquette administrators on stage with Sanders. The university later issued a statement taking no side.

To avoid offending Native Americans, Marquette dumped its Indian mascot and the "Warriors" nickname in 1994 in favor of "Golden Eagles." The change has irked many alumni over the last decade.

Sanders, former chairman and chief executive of Kimberly-Clark Corp., received plenty of applause after what one graduate called "an Austin Powers moment."

He also apologized to Father Robert Wild, Marquette's president, for pouncing on the issue without warning.

The immediate response from officials on Sunday was somewhat tepid but by no means dismissive.

"If the trustees decide that the university should revisit the name change, those conversations would involve members of the larger community and no change would be made that would compromise the dignity of any segment of our community," Marquette spokesman Ben Tracy said in a written statement issued after the ceremony.

"This issue never has been and never will be about money. It is about tradition, pride, and respect for human dignity."

Marquette athletic director Bill Cords, who attended the ceremony, basically deferred to the official statement by Tracy and preferred not to get into the debate that has burned his ears for years now.

"It's a university thing right now because they're members of the Board of Trustees," Cords said by phone later Sunday. "The spokesman for the university is Ben Tracy right now."

Students asked about the possibility of another name change after the ceremony didn't seem to think it would fly, and one said the older alumni cared more about it than the new ones.

Although $2 million is a lot of money, Marquette already has been highly successful in fund-raising recently. In the last six years, the school has raised $270 million through a major campaign.
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Lori Nickel, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, contributed to this report.
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.