What Is In A Name?

I don't know what I think of the recent NCAA ruling saying teams with Native American mascots are to be banned from post-season play.  On the one hand naming your team after any kind of ethnic or racial group is, as a rule, bad form.  A nickname like "Redskin" really must go (and can you believe there is an Oklahoma school nicknamed the "Savages"?).  But it is possible to honor a group with a nickname.  I think of nicknames like "Aggies," "Fighting Irish,"  "Tar Heel" and countless others that pay a kind of homage to a people who have added to our cultural identity or history.  I don't think names such as "Braves" or names of tribes (Chippewa, Illini, Seminole, Utes) should automatically be ruled out.  I am willing to entertain counter arguments, but I think North Dakota "Fighting Sioux" is as likely a compliment as an insult.  These are sensitive issues, so I am happy to entertain arguments as to why my thinking is wrong.  FSU is considering suing to keep the Seminole nickname. Back in grad school a buddy of mine and I stayed up into the wee hours ranking every Division I-A football team based on its mascot.  At a minimum it will be hard for Florida State to get a tougher mascot than a Seminole. For the record, the most powerful mascot in Division I-A football is the Arizona State Sun Devil.