re: Origin of our mascot

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U of Tennessee & U of Florida are also Land Grant colleges ala 1862 Morrill Act. All Land Grant colleges were mandated to teach Military Science for 100 years, thus compulsory ROTC until 1970s.

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As is UGA as well. I left those three off because they were (at least UGA and UT, I think UF) were well established state universities for 75 years or more before the Morrill Act. The others pretty well owe their existence or at least a major part of their post Civil War growth to it.