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The Gonzaga Bulldogs (also known unofficially as the Zags) are the intercollegiate athletic teams of Gonzaga University, located in Spokane, Washington, United States.
Overview [edit]
Gonzaga University is a member of the West Coast Conference, which participates in the NCAA Division I. The athletic program comprises 8 women's sports: volleyball, basketball, soccer, tennis, cross country, track, crew and golf; and 8 men's sports: basketball, baseball, soccer, golf, tennis, cross country, track and crew. The school also offers various intramural sports.
History [edit]
Gonzaga University was founded in 1887 by Sicilian-born Fr. Joseph Cataido.At one time, Gonzaga went by the nickname of Fighting Irish in the 1910s to early 1920s. This name was dropped in 1921 favor of the current "Bulldogs" mascot. Although the school's official mascot is the Bulldog, marketing materials, fans and television announcers often use the term "Zags" as a mascot, which puts the school in the unique position of having a mascot sharing a name with the school, hence the "Gonzaga Zags."
Gonzaga fielded a varsity football team through the 1941 season.[1][2] Like many colleges, the football program went on hiatus during World War II, but after the war the administration decided not to resume it. Gonzaga's most notable football player was running back Tony Canadeo (1919–2003) from Chicago, who went on to play with the Green Bay Packers and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1974.[3] The football stadium, built in 1923, was used for city high school football until it was deemed unsafe by the city after the 1947 season.[4][5] The southern portion of the football field is currently occupied by the Foley Library.[6]
Gonzaga was an NAIA school from 1947 to 1957, when they moved to the NCAA as an independent. They were a charter member of the Big Sky Conference in 1963, the only one of the six without a football program.[7] In 1979, GU moved over to the West Coast Athletic Conference (today's WCC), and the Big Sky added Nevada,[8] now in the Mountain West Conference.
Men's basketball [edit]
Men's basketball has been the most successful sport for the Bulldogs. Gonzaga home games have been played at the McCarthey Athletic Center since 2004. The Bulldogs opened the arena with a 38-game win streak, the longest at the time in the NCAA, eventually snapped in February 2007 by the Santa Clara Broncos.
Despite playing in a mid-major conference, the Bulldogs have established a reputation as one of the stronger teams in college basketball, having played in fifteen consecutive NCAA tournaments and garnering a #1 ranking in the 2012-13 season.
Notable alumni of Gonzaga basketball include J. P. Batista, Dan Dickau, Richie Frahm, Adam Morrison, Paul Rogers, Blake Stepp, John Stockton, Ronny Turiaf, and Austin Daye.
Men's soccer [edit]
References [edit]
External links [edit]
