Oklahoma has felt the effects of multiple hurricanes with rain and flash flooding, including most recently from Hurricane Harvey, but the land-locked state has never been directly hit by a hurricane.
So why is the University of Tulsa’s nickname the Golden Hurricane? It’s all Georgia Tech’s fault
In 1922 — 15 years after Kendall College moved to Tulsa and two years after it was renamed the University of Tulsa — the Tulsa football team sought an official nickname. They had previously been known as the Kendallites, Presbyterians, Tigers, Tulsans, Orange and Black and the Yellow Jackets.
Then-head coach Howard Acher (1922-24) considered calling his team the Golden Tornadoes after someone remarked in practice that Tulsa was “roaring through opponents” on their way to an 8-1 record in 1922. However, Georgia Tech picked the Golden Tornadoes five years earlier, therefore Acher “evolved meteorologically” to a hurricane.
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In early October, a few days prior to their 13-10 win at Texas A&M, Acher solicited a vote from his team on the name Golden Hurricane. It was approved and has remained in place since.
Ironically, Georgia Tech would later drop Golden Tornadoes and become the Yellow Jackets. Tulsa could’ve been the Golden Tornadoes after all, which make far more meteorological sense.
