Greyhounds continue the tradition
ICU’s first baseball team played in an open field across the street from Good Hall and a small farmhouse. The area is now developed with housing and a church. Photos contributed by Christine Guyonneau
As students, faculty and visitors walk the University of Indianapolis campus, traditions displayed in buildings on campus can be seen throughout the facilities. The colors of cardinal and gray decorate the hallways, and the Greyhound mascot is displayed with affection. None of this is more apparent than in the athletic facilities, where these traditions are both continued and celebrated.
Where did these all come from? What were the first sports to begin these traditions? Today, at football and basketball games, the Greyhound mascot encourages the fans while student-athletes wear uniforms of cardinal and gray. These traditions began long ago near the time UIndy was founded.
According to UIndy archivist Christine Guyonneau, after Indiana Central University was first founded in 1902, it was in debt for many years. Good Hall was the only building on campus, and it housed everything from classrooms to exercise areas to housing for the president.
“In order to start activities for physical education, it took a while, because there was always a need for money for something else,” Guyonneau said.
The first athletic team at ICU was the 1908 baseball team, which played in an area outside of Good Hall. According to Guyonneau, this is where the alumni house now stands.
Yet, there still was not a space for indoor sporting activities. Since the college lacked the funds to construct a building, it settled for a temporary structure called “the barn.”
Tiny locker rooms were held in the basement of “the barn” where the basketball and volleyball teams played.
According to the book “Downright Devotion to the Cause,” by Frederick D. Hill, “the temporary gymnasium was seventy feet by ninety feet. The playing floor was forty-six feet by ninety feet…studs, rafters, and roof trusses remained exposed to view, and no surfaces were finished except the playing floor.”
This barn was completed in 1922 and used until 1961 for all indoor athletic activities, most importantly basketball.
“We’ve always been big in basketball,” Guyonneau said.
According to Guyonneau, from 1922-1934, basketball had eight winning seasons, and the 1940-41 basketball team ranked No. 9 in the nation and No. 5 in the Midwest
Furthermore, ICU also had a women’s intramural basketball team in 1915 that played before the men’s team on game days.
Besides basketball, football and baseball were the other two main sports on campus, although track and tennis teams also existed for those who wanted to play. The first full-time coach and director of physical education was John W. George, who began in 1922.
According to “Downright Devotion to the Cause,” George believed “the spirit of fair play shall prevail [in athletics] and the spirit of fair, clean, Christian competition shall not be made secondary to the winning of games.”
With the athletic facility, coaches and teams, the school saw a need for both a mascot and school colors. Guyonneau said that in 1919, the school colors of cardinal and gray were adopted to honor one of the college’s favorite teachers, because she often wore cardinal and gray.
In 1922, the Athletics Department was created to unify the campus community. Just two years later, the “C” association for athletes was created. To win a “C,” or a letter, athletes had to be nominated by the coach and awarded by the faculty. The first letters were awarded in 1924, and athletes wore them on their sweaters. ICU’s first basketball team in 1915 also was given a letter at this time.
Members of the first men’s basketball team proudly display their uniforms.
Furthermore, “Downright Devotion to the Cause” states that “the committee was responsible for conducting pep sessions prior to intercollegiate games, hosting visiting teams, helping team managers advertise games and arranging ceremonies for the presentation of athletics awards.”
Guyonneau also explained how ICU was one of the first colleges to allow black athletes to compete. Bud Smith was an early black member of the football team in a time when segregation was still common. According to Guyonneau, when the football team ate at restaurants at away games, it would eat only at restaurants that allowed Smith to eat with the team.
Many of the traditions at UIndy seen today began nearly a century ago. Despite the time gap, the early baseball, basketball and football teams still sported cardinal and gray and performed on the same school grounds as present-day teams.. Many of these traditions have stood the test of time.
