Georgia Tech
Georgia Tech became the “yellow jackets” in 1905 when their fans physically wore yellow jackets to every game. Years later, Georgia Tech created Buzz the Yellow Jacket to become their mascot.

Georgia Tech University According to the school, the mascot grew out of the name yellow jackets given to Georgia Tech fans who showed their support by wearing yellow jackets to sporting events. Buzz was adopted later as the official mascot.

The story behind our Yellow Jacket symbol dates back to the early 1900’s when our first athletic teams were fielded. The term Yellow Jackets was used to describe our fans, and in 1905, John Heisman declared that he wanted our team to be known as the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.

Ramblin’ Wreck
Buzz
Georgia Institute of Technology/Mascot

By 1980 this new incarnation of the yellow jacket mascot was given the name Buzz Bee and was adopted as an official mascot by Georgia Tech. This new Buzz character would be the model for a new Georgia Tech emblem, designed in 1985 by Mike Lester.

American International Yellow Jackets

1980
Buzz — who made his first campus appearance in 1980 — is the world-famous and beloved mascot of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.

Dooley the Skeleton
Swoop the Eagle
Emory University/Mascot

Although their yellow and black stripes are similar to those of bees, yellow jackets are not bees. Rather, yellow jackets are wasps and differ from bees in a number of ways. Yellow jackets also feed on nectar, but they depend primarily upon insects, meat and fish for nourishment.

Not surprisingly, yellowjackets get their common name from their typical black and yellow color pattern banded across their abdomens. They are primarily flying insects, similar to bees, but are more noticeably segmented with a very small ‘waist.