By Paul Volponi

Fans of Thoroughbred racing know how to root for their favorite equine athletes, but sports fans in general, whether they realize it or not, often root for their favorite human athletes whose uniforms bear the moniker of team names inspired by equines.

And it's easy to understand why sports teams, both pro and collegiate, want to be associated with the amazing qualities – heart, speed, and stamina – of horses.

The NFL's Indianapolis Colts were founded in Baltimore, Md. in 1953. The Colts originally received their nickname because of the state's strong affiliation with the racing and breeding of Thoroughbreds.

Obviously, the Preakness Stakes – the second jewel of the Triple Crown – is contested at Baltimore's Pimlico Race Course on the third Saturday every May. Among the great Maryland-bred colts are Cigar, Kauai King and Gallorette.

Yet even after the Colts made the move to Indianapolis in 1984, the football franchise, which sports a horseshoe on its helmet, decided to keep its nickname, which now reflects Indiana's own heritage with horses.

To that end, we also have the NBA's Indiana Pacers. The team's nickname beautifully represents a source of dual horsepower in the state. Indiana is known for its harness racing pacers (Standardbred horses), which usually race at a distance of one mile pulling a driver and sulky. The most famous Indiana-bred pacer is Dan Patch, who in the early 1900s broke 14 world records. His popularity went far beyond the racetrack and the Standardbred became an American hero with plenty of products bearing his name. President Harry Truman once recalled being a young boy and writing a fan letter to Dan Patch, who was foaled in Oxford, Ind.

The Pacers' nickname also refers to the pace car in Indiana's most famous sporting event – the Indianapolis 500, a 500-mile event held annually on the Sunday of every Memorial Day weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The pace car leads the competing cars onto the track, limiting the speed of the racers who must follow behind it. It also comes onto the track during periods of caution, such as when a wreck or other obstruction creates a dangerous situation.

While the Pacers nickname references horses, the NBA's Dallas Mavericks' logo references equine, although the nickname doesn't refer to horses. Samuel Maverick (1803-1870) was a Texas land baron and cattle owner. Maverick didn't brand his cattle (rather unusual for the times). So if you ever saw unbranded cattle, people would call it a "Maverick," as in belonging to Samuel Maverick. Over the years, the word Maverick worked its way into the language, standing for being "independently minded."

Denver Broncos mascot Thunder. (Wikimedia Commons)

The Colts aren't the only NFL team to carry an equine nickname. The Denver Broncos received their nickname in 1960 through a fan name-the-team contest. It was a fitting choice since ball carriers would prefer to buck defenders off their backs, much like their highly-spirited equine counterparts often do to their would-be riders.

And college teams also are in on the act. The athletic teams at Murray State University used to be called the Thoroughbreds – a fitting nickname for the school in Murray, Ky. But somewhere along the way, Murray State instead became known as the Racers. How did that change happen?

Newspaper headline writers didn't appreciate how much space the word "Thoroughbreds" took up on their pages. So the nickname started to become shortened in print. The press knocked it down to T-Breds, 'Breds, or Horse Racers, and then finally, Racers, which stuck with the school back in the 1950s. This year's second overall pick in the NBA draft was point guard Ja Morant, selected by the Memphis Grizzlies, who led the Murray State Racers into the second round of the NCAA men's Basketball Tournament. (Division II athletic program Kentucky State University in Frankfort, located near the fabled Bluegrass horse breeding region, uses the Thoroughbred nickname – although it’s spelled “Thorobred.”)

Looking at college teams with Division I football programs, Boise State's teams are called the Broncos. The university and its fans smartly refer to the team as the state of Idaho's "mane attraction." 

Western Michigan University originally went by the nickname Hilltoppers, because of the school's location on top of Prospect Hill in Grand Rapids. But Western Kentucky University, perhaps a more notable athletic program, already was using the Hilltoppers. To avoid confusion, WMU became the Broncos in 1939.

Did the Southern Methodist University Mustangs help auto maker Ford actually name a car the Mustang, similar to Gatorade taking its name from its initial testing with the Florida Gators football squad? There's been reporting that back in 1963, then Ford executive Lee Iacocca was so impressed when heavy underdog SMU gave a strong account of itself in a road game against mighty Michigan in Ann Arbor, that he stopped by the visiting locker room and told the team he'd made the decision to call a car a Mustang, a name he'd already been considering. The sporty car made its debut in April 1964.   

Turf writer Paul Volponi is a long-time contributor to the BloodHorse. He is also the author of 13 books for young adults. His newest book That's My Team: The History, Science and Fun Behind Sports Teams' Names has just been published by Rowman and Littlefield. The extensive research for that book helped to form the basis of this article.