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The Denton 7 Tailgating Nickname Hall of Fame

The Denton 7 Tailgate Nickname Hall of Fame (D7TNHOF) is for those athletes from the University of Maryland who by their exceptional play, unique personality, or just by having a name that rhymes with something catchy, have earned a nickname so popular that one must stop and think about the athletes real name when discussing them outside of Denton 7 Tailgates.  An athlete can be introduced in the Hall of Fame via two ways.  The first is to have a nick name so blatantly obvious that there is no reason to even discuss whether a vote needs to be taken.  The second it to be nominated by any individual and then have that nomination accepted by 8 of the 11 original D-7 tailgaters.  A player may only be eligible for D7TNHOF once they have completed their eligibility at the University of Maryland.  In the rare event that a D7TNHOF member disgrace’s himself or the University that player may be removed from the D7TNHOF by a vote of 8 or more from the original 11 D-7 members. 

The D7TNHOF Class of 2004:

Name:  Shawne Merriman

Better Known As:  Light’s Out   

Position:  DE              Stats: 6-4   245lbs

Hometown:  Upper Marlboro, Maryland

Origin of Nickname:  Shawne Merriman was best known for his tattoo of a light switch on his forearm.  Underneath the light switch are the words “Lights Out”. 

Defining Moment of Nickname:  During his freshman year in 2002 Shawn made a huge hit while picking up some trash time late in a game.  As he got up from the ground he stood over the opposing player held out his arm and “flipped the switch” signaling Light’s Out.  He was then quickly removed from the game by an irate Ralph Friedgen.

Name:  Nick Novak

Better Known As:  Das Boot

Position:  PK              Stats: 6-0   186lbs

Hometown:  Charlottesville, Virginia

Origin of Nickname:  Nick Novak is named after the famous World War 2 movie “Das Boot” which is about a German U-boot and it’s crew.  Though the German to English translation is “the boat” our loose German to English translation makes it “The Foot”, in reference to his leg strength.