The "Meat"
This is where all the information and stuff is. There may be a lot, but hell, that's what history is. Now it may look like a lot, yet I'll try and not bore you death, but I can't promise that it won't be boring. (Sorry not sorry)
"Why" & "How" a tiger?
If you don't something, you ask the next best question ever to have existed: Why? Its a simple question to want to know something; in this case, it's a reason. I ask thee: Have ever asked yourself the question: Why is the mascot for University of the Pacific a tiger?
I'm going to assume probably not, as most tend to just accept it as that and nothing else or this doesn't cross one's thought. Well dear viewer(s), I did the opposite and have decided to tell this knowledge to you anyway.
Sad to say, the whole "why" as well as it "how" is unknown and not exactly concrete. But there are possible reasons and ties:
Colors
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Orange
This color was there from the start when it was originally built and located in Santa Clara Valley California back in 1851 and it apparently, was also near coastal range mountains which contained a whole field of flowers located near by the campus or on the campus; either way, this field was with them. These flowers are the state flower of California called The California [golden] poppy (see of left). Hence it's a possible reason to the whole orange color thing. Though the color hue/tone it is now, was a different back then; it still is some type of orange-ish regardless. (back then, it was a golden orange like the ribbons of 1886. These golden poppies also appeared in the some of the yearbooks in deigns with one of the names of the yearbook being called Naranjado (that being Spanish for Orange color) and supposedly it has the poppies on the cover of the 1891 version that I cant's find in the online archives versions)
Black
This one didn't become official until much later in 1925 and wasn't always set to be black. There were other colors before black such as blue, olive green, and possibly blue(?).....an' you're not hearing me wrong, there are other colors, but I will be discussing about it more so in the Sports section as that's where those ties will give it justice. But to keep it brief: it was just something that caught on which was slowly generally accepted by both fans, the athletes, and then by the whole university.
As I was doing more research, I found a pdf for the branding guidelines (2020) that gives the colors names, hex codes and RGB etc. These colors are ones that they use, both primary and secondary [they also call it Pantone but I'll also provide it's color name for those who don't know what the heck is a "Pantone"]: (I wont give out too much but I will show you the colors, plus if you want to see/read the guide yourself it will be in sources page)
Primary
Colors
Secondary
Colors
Neutral
Colors
Heavy connection to athletic sports
From what I've been told where to look and where this cat showed up most often, is in the athletic sports sections; more often found in relation to [American] football than other sport. This cat may be the jack of all trades when it comes to anything athletic, but it still has lingering effects of "football fever" from it's football era.
From what I can find available to me, and without digging too far into madness, it's likely possible that the athletics teams of UOP shares/has the same colors all across their team uniforms. (I say that because, when trying to find the refs in the first doc that every shows up first, I can't prove or deny most their sources. Some either don't exists or are locked behind a pay wall etc. so even with the some of the colors its likely hard to back that up. Plus the amount of research to prove and make sure that their even right is taking too damn long).
Anyway, what you will find is that it's definitely tied to the football and rugby team. I can say that when looking up anything for this, these 2 stick out like a sore thumb. I'll try me best to break it down the best I can:
Football/Foot-ball (1885-1995)
This may counter act against all of the things in the archives and probably ones such that I've used, but let me explain myself to say why I put 1885 rather than 19s somethings. As I digging through the archives deeper and deeper, I found something that pre-dates its supposed-ed start date. This being from April 6th 1865 from The Hatchet, a student newspaper by the university. It now may it say of Versity of Berkley, but its still under pacific archives and as such I'm still counting it (as wrong as it sounds).
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Anyway, the first mention is 1865 when it was still a football club there at Berkely. Then some time later it became a sport officially at UOP; when? Idk....where was I going this? oh right; I'm supposed to tell you why this is here at all.
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Like the other sport I will be mentioning, its colors have been noted in some of the newspapers of them being seen in orange and black [stripes]. They weren't the ones who enacted the change but they kept it going after/from.....↗
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Fight song (not the one by Rachel Platten)
Come on you hungry Tigers - fight - fight – fight Let’s win the game you Tigers - fight - fight - fight See the Tigers breaking through, After goals, we’ll get them too - Fighting for UOP, we’re after victory So hail, oh hail, the orange and the black See those banners gleam We’ll shout for fame, cuz we’ll win the game!! We’re the fighting Tiger - We’re the fighting Tiger - We’re the fighting Tiger Team!!
Rugby
This sport is not talked about that much as its neighbor, as it kinda forgotten about with the exception that it's also the reason why the whole tiger thing stuck (semi-officially so). According to most of the research that can be found about it when to why they are referred to as "Tigers" is because in 1908, they replaced football (though despite being "replaced" they kept on going in the background...until officially getting discontinued due lack of budget reason) and their uniforms included black stripes (the outfit and some say it was also the socks etc) to the already orange ensemble, made people associate the team to Tigers; Hence the tiger thing.
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The music
There are many cheers and at least one music sheet to this tiger thing. For my sake of mental health and to not bore you death any further, I will only put a few here: (if you'd like to, you can play or sing them yourself, I can't sing nor play an instrument that well to present here)
Tiger Chorus (1911)
It is on again, and on again The Orange and the Black, The Tigers now are in the game And spirit ne'er will lack; With Pacific vim, we're in to win So we will ever sing— Go on, go on, and ne'er turn back Oh, the Orange and the Black.
The Princeton Theory/Rumor/Legend
There's been a small TRL for quite some time in the 19-somethings that, supposedly, when UOP was being created, it took heavy inspiration from Princeton University; right down to its main principal goals/sole mission, its colors, to even their mascot, and the possible reason of the letter "P" in UOP's name. There is no actual proof of this being true or false in any of its history, nor is there anything said about it -or mentioned- by the original founders about Princeton during that time in its development stages. It was just something that kinda popped up in peoples heads an kinda was living there rent-free, until it slowly faded away from notoriety. You just gonna have to see for for yourself an wonder: Do you think that Pacific copied/ripped off Princeton?
When seeing them kinda side-by-side, it is a just a bit weird and eerily similar. An I can say when I first heard about this while researching this topic, it confused me. I can now see why most would think that to be a thing.
His name according to their official site, is just named: The Tiger. I guess Princeton isn't concerned with names....?
