Image via WikipediaHere is the latest in the saga that is the Fighting Sioux nickname... Chuck Haga, Grand Forks Herald ---- The newly elected majority leader in the North Dakota Senate said today that the state law requiring UND to retain its Fighting Sioux nickname and logo should be repealed during the November special legislative session.Like I have said in the past; you won't find a bigger fan/supporter of the Fighting Sioux nickname than me, I don't want to change the name and I am sick and tired of political correctness, however, there is no way we can win in this instance. There is no guarantee the NCAA would back down even if the group from Spirit Lake was able to get standing in Federal Court. The NCAA has a lot of money and high priced lawyers to wait out the people from Spirit Lake... If anything an injunction might jeopardize UND's chances of getting into the Big Sky Conference.
“I’ve been involved with sports and coaching out here at Dickinson State, and I think we need to rescind our action on that law because it really puts UND in a bad light,” Sen. Rich Wardner, R-Dickinson, said.
Wardner, who was elected by his Senate Republican caucus Tuesday night to succeed the late Sen. Bob Stenehjem, voted for the nickname bill authored by Rep. Al Carlson, R-Fargo, the House majority leader.
The time to stand and fight for the Fighting Sioux nickname was 3-4 years ago and our elected leaders did nothing. If our elected congressional leaders had actually been proactive they might have been able to get the NCAA to back down, instead our elected leaders sat on their hands and did nothing.
If the University of North Dakota keeps the Fighting Sioux they will jeopardize their application for membership in the Big Sky Conference. I like most people don't want to see the UND football team continue to play teams like University of Sioux Falls in football or New Jersey Tech in Basketball.
