While many question why the Akron Zips mascot is a kangaroo, the nickname’s origin is almost as big of a question. The Zips name has long been a source of entertainment for rival fans, especially with a lack of on-field results for the program.
Buchtel College and eventually the University of Akron played without a nickname until the 1926 season. In 1925, a contest was held amongst students to decide the program’s nickname. Amongst the suggestions were Rubbernecks, Golden Blue Devils, and bizarrely, given the eventual Akron Zips mascot, the Kangaroos.
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However, the team would eventually take its name due to Akron being the home of B.F. Goodrich at the time. Margaret Hamlin suggested they name the team after a Goodrich brand of boot featuring a metal zipper. The program became the Akron Zippers and stayed that way until 1950.
While the boots had formed the name, by 1950, zippers were more prominent fastenings in trousers. Suddenly, the program was the butt of a joke, and athletic director Ken Cochran decided they would be known as the Akron Zips from that day forth.
