If your two favorite teams are Georgia Tech and whoever is playing Georgia, this site is for you. Find all of your white and gold Georgia Tech sports apparel right here. Can’t decide what to buy, no problem, take a few moments, relax and read about Clean, Old Fashioned Hate – the rivalry between Georgia Tech and the University of Georgia.

More than your basic sports rivalry, these two schools disliked each other at least two years before they ever played their first football game. UGA was founded as an Agricultural and Mechanical school in 1785, then after the Civil War when it was decided that a new technological school should be founded, UGA president Patrick Mell argued it should be located by Georgia’s main campus in Athens. The Georgia Institute of Technology was established in Atlanta in 1885.

The first hostilities started only a few years later in 1891 over, of all things, the school colors. UGAs school magazine declared the school colors to be gold, black and crimson, but the football coach felt gold was too close to yellow (symbolizing cowardice). That same year, the Tech student body voted white and gold as the official school colors. Tech would use gold on their football uniforms for their first ever game against Auburn (in 1891) as a slap in the face of Georgia. Two years later, after Tech defeated Georgia in their first football game, gold was forever removed from Georgia’s school colors.

That first game took place in Athens on November 4, 1893. Georgia Tech, then known as the Blacksmiths, won 28 – 6 on four touchdowns by 33 year old US Army Physician Leonard Wood. Some claim that Tech cheated, but Wood was officially registered as a student a few days before the game, making him eligible to play. Georgia fans did not appreciate this since during and after the game they hurled rocks a debris at the Tech players. The next day an Athens sports writer claimed in the Atlanta Journal that Tech’s football team was nothing more than a collection of Atlanta residents with a few students thrown in.

A rivalry was born.

After several years of performing poorly, Georgia Tech would hire a new football coach in 1904, John Heisman (after who the Heisman Trophy would be named). By 1908, Georgia alumni were having Tech’s recruiting tactics investigated, by the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association, who later ruled in favor of Tech. In his 16 seasons at Georgia Tech Heisman led the Golden Tornado (as Tech was known) to three undefeated seasons, including a 32 game winning streak and an all important 23 – 6 victory over Georgia (Heisman defeated Georgia 5 times during his tenure at Tech). Heisman also led Tech to the highest scoring football game ever played with a 222 – 0 win over Cumberland State in 1916 (too bad it wasn’t Georgia!).

By 1917, both schools decided the series had become too intense, and with the US entry into WWI, the games were cancelled. The rivalry would not resume until 1925.

In 1932, Georgia and Georgia Tech would become 2 of the original 13 members of the SEC, of which UGA is still a member. Tech however, would leave the SEC in 1964 after coach Bobby Dodd began a feud with Alabama’s Bear Bryant, and also concerns of scholarship allocations and student athlete treatment. However, during his tenure at Georgia Tech, Dodd’s Yellow Jackets would win 8 games in a row (1946 - 1954) and outscore Georgia 176 – 39 during that time. This remains the longest streak of any team in the series.

Tech would attempt to re-enter the SEC but they were voted down thanks to the opposition of Georgia. With no league to compete in, Tech would form the Metro Conference, for all sports except football, where it would compete as an independent for 15 years, until joining the ACC in 1979.

Not surprisingly, both institutions have also tailored their fight songs to the rivalry. Tech’s Ramblin Wreck song contains the line “To Hell with Georgia”, and “Up With the White and Gold” features the lyrics “Down with the Red and Black” and “Drop the Battle Axe on Georgia’s Head”. The Georgia fight song, “Glory Glory”, which has remained unchanged since first published in 1909, officially ends with G-E-O-R-G-I-A, students however have changed the lyrics to “and to Hell with Georgia Tech!”

Currently Georgia leads the series 60 – 39 – 5.

So the next time Georgia and Georgia Tech face off in football, basketball, baseball, softball, and even women’s volleyball, make sure you have all the White and Gold you need.

By the way, did I mention, “I’m a Ramblin Wreck from Georgia Tech, and a Hell of an Engineer”.

ChE – class of ‘85