Of all the people involved with NCAA basketball this season, McMurry University play-by-play announcer Kit Kimbrall may have the most challenging job of all.

Kimbrall has been calling games for McMurry, a small Division III school in Abilene, Texas, for 10 seasons, and has always been able to refer to the team as the Indians. He will have to break that old habit this year because the Indians are no more.

Trying to purge the association of offensive nicknames, the NCAA called out McMurry and almost 20 other schools for possible sanctions. After more than a year of protesting and two separate appeals to the NCAA, the McMurry University Board of Trustees decided to drop the school’s mascot for all its athletic teams.

Unlike other schools, however, McMurry refused to pick up a new nickname, and will play this season with no mascot at all. The team will be referred to as McMurray University Men’s Basketball. While the entire situation may sound trivial, this is a shocking development for the McMurry community.

‘I am greatly disappointed with the agenda the NCAA has chosen,’ Kimbrall said. ‘I think under the circumstances the school was put under, having no mascot was the best decision because changing the nickname would go against everything our school stands for.’

This decision does keep McMurry in good standing with the NCAA, but is probably not what the NCAA had in mind. McMurry is the only school on the NCAA’s watch list to drop a nickname altogether.

The announcement to continue with no mascot came around the same time Carthage (Wis.) College elected to change its nickname from Redmen to the apparently politically correct Red Men. While McMurry, without a mascot, is technically in compliance with the NCAA regulations, the decision shows the school is not going down without a fight.

‘Everybody cares about this situation tremendously,’ said head men’s basketball coach Ron Holmes. ‘We are talking about 83 years of tradition.’

McMurry’s long-standing Indian heritage began with its founding president James Winford Hunt, who was born and raised on a Kaw reservation in Oklahoma in 1875. Hunt chose the nickname to honor his time living and working with Native Americans.

He chose the nickname ‘Indians,’ instead of a single tribe like the Seminoles of Florida State, because there are so many different tribes dotting the landscape of Texas and Oklahoma. The nickname Indians was to honor the Kaws as part of all Indian cultures.

The NCAA first took action against Florida State in 2005 in response to its mascot and the famous tomahawk chant. The Seminole Tribe of Florida insisted Florida State maintained tribal traditions, and the NCAA allowed the nickname’s usage. The same happened when the Ute tribe allowed Utah to use the nickname ‘Utes.’ People at McMurry think their school is being unfairly picked on.

‘The irony of everything the NCAA is doing can be found in the letters they have sent to us saying our mascot is hostile and abusive,’ Holmes said. ‘Look at some of the bigger schools with the same mascots and the NCAA has OK’d it. It’s OK for Florida State to do the tomahawk chop even though it is hostile, abusive and demeaning. We can’t help we’re a small school.’

Even though McMurry agreed to remove the Indians logo and mascot from its athletic program, the school is continuing to use the nickname everywhere else. Every year, the week before Homecoming, different student groups build tepees and wigwams representing different tribes after they are required to study the history of the specific tribe.

On Homecoming day, Native Americans from the different tribes visit the ‘tepee village’ and judge them based on their authenticity. Hundreds of people visit the festival every year to see and take pictures of the structures.

‘We will continue the tradition of the tepee village because we will continue to honor the culture of Native Americans and Indians,’ McMurry Athletic Director Bill Libby said. ‘We will continue to have Indians on our campus, and we will continue to teach courses about the history and heritage of Indians in the southwest.’

While the school has asked Kimbrall to phase the nickname Indians out of the radio broadcasts, no one wants to phase out the nickname entirely. In a press release shortly after the decision, school president Dr. John Russell said no one will try to stop the fans from cheering for the Indians, nor will Kimbrall be punished for an occasional ‘slip-up.’

‘The things we do here honor the Indian nation, so we aren’t going to turn our back on 83 years of tradition,’ said Holmes. ‘All we did was comply. My players, the students and the former students will always be Indians. There isn’t a thing the NCAA can do about that.’

Robert Morris vs. No. 2 Pittsburgh

Wednesday, November 29, 7:30 p.m.

Another matchup of undefeated squads, with Robert Morris at 4-0 and Pittsburgh at 6-0. The Colonials are led by A.J. Jackson, who scores 24 and grabs almost 11 boards a night. But as much as every SU fan would love to see an upset, the Panthers are just too tough.

Pitt 80, Robert Morris 59

No. 18 Georgetown vs. No. 11 Duke (-3.5)

Saturday, December 2, 7 p.m. ESPN2

Both teams are coming off disappointing losses: Georgetown to Old Dominion, Duke to Marquette. The teams are evenly matched, but Coach K’s experience should help his young team bounce back from its first defeat.

Duke 72, Georgetown 67

No. 22 Gonzaga vs. Texas

Saturday, December 2, 2 p.m. ESPN

The Longhorns fell out of the top 25 this week and can use a win over a ranked team to get back into the polls. Gonzaga has no one who can match-up with 6-foot-9 freshman Kevin Durant. The Texas phenom is averaging 22.4 points and 10 rebounds per game.

Texas 66, Gonzaga 63

No. 3 Ohio State vs. No. 7 North Carolina

Wednesday, November 29, 9 p.m. ESPN

UNC bounced back nicely after losing to Gonzaga last week by beating Tennessee. Tyler Hansbrough is showing no signs of a sophomore slump with 22.8 points and 8.8 boards a night. With Greg Oden still out of the lineup for the Buckeyes, look for the Tar Heels to pull it out.

North Carolina 79, Ohio State 77

No. 17 Wichita State vs. No. 15 Syracuse

Saturday, December 2, 7 p.m. ESPNU

This one should be a battle of undefeated teams. Wichita State, fresh off a victory over No. 6 LSU, is one of the most disciplined teams in the country. Look for SU to pull it out, but don’t be surprised if Wichita State shocks.

Syracuse 72, Wichita State 71

Published on November 27, 2006 at 12:00 pm