One of General Neyland’s seven game maxims is “Ball, oskie, cover, block, cut and slice, pursue and gang tackle . . . this is the WINNING EDGE.” The term oskie appeared first in General Neyland’s journal in 1938 and is believed to come from the University of Illinois, where “Oskee Wow Wow” was the title of a 1911 fight song. Neyland employed the term as a way for pass defenders to alert teammates that the ball had been intercepted. By yelling “oskie wow wow,” the defenders quickly converted from playing defense to offense, improving the chance of a successful interception return. Neyland may have learned of the term from Professor Robert “Red” Matthews, UT’s first cheerleader, who had cheered at Illinois before joining the UT faculty.
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