“The Golden Knights” Origin as The College of Saint Rose Nickname
On Wednesday, October 24, 1979; a general election was held in the Campus Center Lobby to vote on the nickname for the intercollegiate athletics teams at The College of Saint Rose.
The three names on the ballot were the “Saints”, “Golden Knights”, and “Cougars”.
The results of a previous public opinion poll were that the College’s original name, the “Saints”, be dropped for a more animated name. The popular opinion was that the “Saints” name was incapable of generating the possible amount of fan support. Although there were some complaints about changing tradition, the majority of people at Saint Rose agreed that “Saints” was a bland nickname that could not elicit enough excitement.
The “Golden Knights” was the victor in the poll, winning by a landslide. The “Golden Knights” name captured 135 of the 187 votes. The men’s basketball team from the ’79-80 season voted unanimously for “Golden Knights” to be the new Saint Rose name.
The new nickname immediately spun off 25 slogan suggestions such as “CSR-Knight Fever-Catch It”. Another slogan, “Knights in the Camelot Room, home of the CSR Golden Knights”, mentions one of the College’s dining halls. The Camelot Room may have inspired the idea of “Golden Knights” in order to keep within the same theme.
On August 29, 2001; Saint Rose officially unveiled a new Golden Knight logo (above) for use by the athletic department that truly reflects the strength and vigor of Saint Rose student-athletes. The logo is a graphic mark that continues to serve as the cornerstone of a multifaceted image campaign invigorating team spirit, building name recognition and establishing a marketing identity for Saint Rose athletics.
The College’s in-house office of public relations designed the logo. Chris Parody, a 1999 graduate of the College’s graphic design program, was the principal designer. Mark Hamilton, a 1991 graduate, provided art direction while Lisa Haley Thomson, Vice President for Strategic Communications and Public Relations, and David Alexander, Assistant Athletics Director for Communications, served as project managers.
