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I have been asked the question - When did the Pony Ears sign (with two fingers) become
a tradition at SMU - or - when was it first used? I was hoping that some of you old timers
might have the answer. It is something that might have originated with the SMU Band and
I have been told is might be in the early to mid '70s.

Does anyone have information on this? I started work at SMU in 1968 and I don't remember
it being used at that time and can't remember when I first became aware of it.

It was started by hippies that 94 now hates. Peace, brother.

This has come up before, and no conclusive answer was found. The early/mid 70s origin is popular, but there are also some on here who remember the hand symbol in various eras as representing the front legs of a rearing mustang, as opposed to ears. Personally I like this better as Peruna's ears have always seemed straight to me, not slightly curved.

and now you know...............the rest of the story.

Yeah - I remember going to some games (as a kid) in the mid-sixties & they were using the sign.

Thanks Diamond Girl - the Daily Campus article gave a lot of information and
that answers my question.

When I was at SMU in the 1980s nobody curled the pony ears. Before I knew they were called Pony Ears, I thought it was a V for Varsity. You know, the alma mater.

Not sure where the idea of bending the index and middle fingers came from - probably to distinguish SMU's hand sign from the peace sign, and "V for Victory" sign. USC (Southern Cal) also uses a V sign.

And in fact a horse's ears are not curled. They may bend forward, but they are always, ahem, erect.

Bending the first two fingers also puts you dangerously close to TCU's hand signal. My Pony Ears will point straight upward.

Longtime wrote:And in fact a horse's ears are not curled. They may bend forward, but they are always, ahem, erect.

Even a geldings?

couch 'em wrote:This has come up before, and no conclusive answer was found. The early/mid 70s origin is popular, but there are also some on here who remember the hand symbol in various eras as representing the front legs of a rearing mustang, as opposed to ears. Personally I like this better as Peruna's ears have always seemed straight to me, not slightly curved.

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