UNC Bears

Sports teams at the school are called Bears. Northern Colorado joined the Big Sky Conference on July 1, 2006. The school mascot is Klawz the Bear and the school colors are navy blue and gold. The Fight Song is the “UNC Fight Song”. Northern Colorado's Athletic Director is Darren Dunn.

The Bears play their football games at Nottingham Field, while the men's and women's basketball teams and women's volleyball team play at the Butler-Hancock Sports Pavilion. "Fear The Claw" is the student section slogan. Northern Colorado won its first Big Sky Championship in 2009 when the women's volleyball team beat Portland State to capture the Big Sky Volleyball Championship.

Professional Athlete Bears

The Bears have many athletes in the pros. The best known is probably Vincent Jackson, who attended and played football at Northern Colorado from 2001 to 2004 before being drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the 2005 NFL Draft. Other famous football alumni for the school are: punter Dirk Johnson, safety Reed Doughty who plays for the Washington Redskins, defensive lineman Aaron Smith of the Pittsburgh Steelers, and over 10 others.

UNC Athletic Conference History

Before upgrading to NCAA Division I in 2006, UNC was a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference from 1923 to 1972. Joining the Great Plains Athletic Conference for four years (1972–76). Following several years of being confe rence independent, the university joined the North Central Conference. The Bears have won two Division II Football National Championships in 1996 and 1997. On March 9, 2011 the Bears won the Big Sky Conference tournament championship in men's basketball, clinching a trip to the 2011 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, the first in the school's history. The Northern Colorado men's baseball program also ranks among the top 15 schools for most all-time NCAA College World Series appearances, tied with the University of Oklahoma at 10 appearances apiece.

Mascots

UNC’s mascot has been a bear since 1923. Before the school adopted the bear, athletes used the nickname the “Teachers.” The bear was said to be inspired by a bear on top of an Alaskan totem pole donated by an 1897 alumnus in 1914. The totem pole was kept in the University Center, but under the federal Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of 1990, the pole was reclaimed by the Tlingit in 2003.

Klawz is the mascot that attends all the sports games. Klawz is the newest addition to the long line of Bears' mascots over the years at the university. Klawz made his first appearance in Nottingham Field on August 30, 2003 before the UNC football team opened their season against New Mexico Highlands