It's all in the name...

During my first six months of ultimate, I thought that Urban Sprawl was the coolest team name ever. As soon as I played more than one night a week, my opinion quickly changed. With such a diverse cross-section of people playing ultimate, there are some very creative and amusing team names. The following are a sample of the more memorable ones that come to mind.

1. Chewbaca Defense – I totally geeked out when the Berts and Ernies were on a field next to Chewbaca Defense last summer. How high is my degree of nerdom? Between points, I tried to make a deal for a Chewbaca Defense shirt…but to no avail *sigh*. Having given the captain credit for his great choice of names, I was disappointed in my own gullibility when watching an Ultivillage DVD and seeing Chewbaca Defense is an open team out of the States.
2. Hucktalotopus – Knowing the captain of this team, she assured me it was her idea to bastardize the name of my favorite Sesamee Street character (close second - Cookie Monster). I'll assume she's honest, and give Marianne props for having the best Friday night team name.
3. Force Gnome – Perhaps not as amusing as other OCUA names, but the t-shirt more than makes up for it. Oddly, I was almost a part of this upper tier team last summer.
4. The soft, furry, deranged, buzz saw wielding, killer pink bunnies…now with 10% less anal leakage – Leave it to Mike Belanger to push Leaguerunner to its limits by seeing how long of a name it can accommodate. Mike is as funny as he is talented. Sadly, after two weeks, the name was shortened to the Killer Buzz Bunnies.
5. Bourbon Sprawl – My lawyer captain of Urban Sprawl swore to me under oath that he had never heard of this hilarious competitive mixed team out of the States. Since he's a senile old man, I tend to believe him. Any name that combines drinking with ultimate is a winner.
6. Mental Toss Flycoons – Yet another American competitive mixed team with a hilarious name. A perfect ultimate team name on so many levels.
7. Furious George – I know, I know, it's obvious to pick a perennial contender for the UPA title as a favorite team name. Still, they have the best logo ever and use their name in cheers creatively.
8. 668 – A long-standing OCUA league team that's as awesome as their name. I guess you have to be talented when you're a neighbor to the beast.
9. The John Duffy Experience – A Big Fish player with a great sense of humor. I can guarantee this was an original name.
10. The Huckamaniacs – I'm a sucker for names with 'huck' in them, add the wrestling reference, and of course I'll mark out. The fact the team has yellow shirts with red writing doesn't hurt either. Sadly, this team wasn't super fun to play, and didn't huck as much as I expected. On the flip side, they did have a player who caught all of my pulls one handed. When asked why he did it, the kid cracked me up when he answered "To show off for the ladies".

Honorable Mentions – Poach Motel, The Poodle Club, Flytans, MOFO, SMUT, GOAT and Drunk 24/7.

In contrast to the great names above, any name with "disc" (obvious exception – Disco Fever) or "ultimate" (obvious exception – Ultimate Warriors) in it is lame. As for my own foray into naming, it hasn't happened yet. But, assuming I can make IID again next year (iffy given my Mehmet curse (to be explained at a later date)), I'm going to try to talk my captain into "IID's Egos and Superegos". I'm also partial to the name DeathPROUF, if spelt like that, and accompanied by red and black shirts. If I've missed any wondrous names, feel free to call me an idiot (warning: it's a long line-up). Until next time, happy hucking!