What’s A Jayhawk?

In preparation for a faceoff against Kansas this Saturday, head coach David Cutcliffe had an observation to share about his opponents' mascot: A Jayhawk is not a real animal.

"I do now know what a Jayhawk is, it's a cross between a blue jay and a sparrow hawk," Cutcliffe said. "It's a mythical bird, and so with that tidbit we can tell you about something that isn't mythical: They are a really, really good football team."

According to Kansas' official athletic site,

The origin of the Jayhawk is rooted in the historic struggles of Kansas settlers. The term "Jayhawk" was probably coined around 1848. Accounts of its use appeared from Illinois to Texas and in that year, a party of pioneers crossing what is now Nebraska, called themselves "The Jayhawkers of ‘49?. The name combines two birds-the blue jay, a noisy, quarrelsome thing known to rob other nests, and the sparrow hawk, a quiet, stealthy hunter. The message here: Don't turn your back on this bird.

During the 1850's, the Kansas Territory was filled with such Jayhawks. The area was a battleground between those wanting a state in which slavery would be legal and abolitionists committed to a free state. The opposing factions looted, sacked, rustled cattle, stole horses, and otherwise attacked each other's settlements. For a time, ruffians on both sides were called Jayhawkers. But the name stuck to the ‘free staters' when Kansas was admitted as a free state in 1861. Lawrence, where KU would be founded, was a free state stronghold.

During the Civil War, the Jayhawk's ruffian image gave way to patriotic symbol. Kansas Governor Charles Robinson raised a regiment called the Independent Mounted Kansas Jayhawks. By war's end, Jayhawks were synonymous with the impassioned people who made Kansas a Free State. In 1886, the Jayhawk appeared in a cheer-the famous Rock Chalk Chant. And when KU football players first took the field in 1890, it seemed only natural to call them Jayhawkers.

"I think they are one of the top fifteen teams in the country," Cutcliffe added.