Golden Gophers Sports History: Football

The University of Minnesota Twin Cities has a long history of academic and athletic excellence. The U of M sports teams go by the moniker of the Golden Gophers. The University adopted the Gopher team name early on and deemed it appropriate since Minnesota is known as the Gopher State in the union.

The 'golden' adjective was added to the University of Minnesota's football team name in the 1930's when KSTP-AM radio announcer Halsey Hall coined the term 'Golden Gophers' referring to the team's all-gold pants and jerseys on the field. The golden name stuck and the University amended their formal moniker to the Golden Gophers. The University of Minnesota's colors today include maroon, white and gold.