nickname explanation Auburn nickname explanation -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Auburn's nickname is the TIGERS. Auburn's battle cry is "WAR EAGLE!" Through the years, these two auburn terms have often been used interchangeably and incorrectly.There are hats and t-shirts with Auburn War Eagles on them. Even the news media has been known to refer to an Auburn team as the War Eagles or to a Auburn player as an War Eagle. In fact, when the tigers play a game on the road, there is often an article written in the local newspaper wondering why Auburn has three nicknames-the Auburn Tigers, the Auburn War Eagles, and the Auburn Plainsmen. To set the record straight, Auburn has only ONE nickname- THE AUBURN TIGERS! "War Eagle" is a battle cry, used by Auburn fans in the same manner Alabama fans yell "ROLL TIDE!" and Arkansas fans yell "SOOIE PIG!" You never hear Alabama referred to as the Alabama Roll Tides or Arkansas as the Arkansas Sooie Pigs, and to call Auburn teams the Auburn War Eagles would be just as incorrect. The battle cry "WAR EAGLE" should never have an "s" on the end of it. The nickname "TIGERS" comes from a line in Oliver Goldsmith's poem, "The Deserted Village", published in may 1770, "where crouching tigers wait their hapless prey..." The term "Plainsmen" comes from a line in that same Goldsmith poem, "Sweet Auburn, loveliest (sic) village of the plain..." Since Auburn athletes were, in the early days, men from the plains, it was only natural for newspaper headline writers to shorten that to "Plainsmen". It may be confusing to an outsider, but to Auburn people, it is very simple. That's why War Eagle VI, Auburn's golden eagle symbol, is named Tiger!
I think "War Eagle" has to be the second dumbest chant I've ever heard. (Second only to 'Hotty Toddy')
Guess you and your grandma don't know the facts. Auburn was founded in 1856 and played their first game as the Auburn Tigers in 1891. LSU was founded in 1860 and played their first game in 1893, two years after Auburn played their first game. I am aware of LSU taking its mascot, the Fighting Tigers, from Civil War heritage and that's great. Auburn's use of Tigers comes from the same old English poem that gives the school it's name. The first line of the poem is "Sweet Auburn, loviliest village of the plains." There is the place where Plainsmen comes from but the poen also refers to where Tigers prowl. In any event, there is no point in arguing because neither Auburn or LSU were the original Tigers. So don't knock others, just be proud of your Tigers and I will be proud of mine. Just be sure to pass this along to grandma
I don't. As long as they are undefeated, I wish them nothing but success. The more major conference undefeateds, the better, IMO.
