The next time you find yourself at a Georgetown basketball game in the Verizon Center, give your hands a break from clapping, pause before you scream “We Are Georgetown” and keep your ears open for a brand new chant hitting the student section—Saxa Gray.

Founded earlier this fall, Saxa Gray is an undergraduate student group open to all Hoyas whose goal is to promote school spirit and revelry at Georgetown basketball games.

“Georgetown, though a university with a renowned basketball program, is a school whose student section has never been up to par,” said co-founder Akhil Ramanadham (MSB ’14). “It’s an essential element that has been lacking at basketball games during my time here at Georgetown. That’s how I first thought up Saxa Gray.”

While Hoya Blue serves as the University-sanctioned spirit organization, Saxa Gray isn’t burdened by the rules that govern clubs. “Saxa Gray provides a previously nonexistent outlet for avid Georgetown fans to gather together as a unit,” Saxa Gray member Matt Burdumy (COL ‘15) said. “Our major advantage is that we aren’t subject to the supervision of the athletic department and thus our support for our Hoyas can be unrestricted.”

For their part, Georgetown Sports Information declined to comment on Saxa Gray.

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Fall is in the air, and so is men’s basketball season. In preparation for the Hoyas’s 2011-2012 season, Hoya Blue has officially begun voting for the slogan that will soon emblazon thousands of grey backs in the Verizon Center. Here are this year’s options:

1. Hear the Bark, Fear the Bite
2. Passion for the Moment, Pride for a Lifetime
3. One Team. One Goal. One Georgetown.
4. Guarding the Tradition, Building A Legacy
5. Our Blood, Our Sweat, Your Tears

It took a little while to decide on which slogan to bestow the Vox endorsement. Numbers three and five are pretty much immediately out, as they’re respectively overly cheesy and kind of gross. We’re also thoroughly disappointed by the lack of references to our team’s recent international reputation for badassery or issues with our dwindling conference. We think ultimately, though, we’re going to have to go for number two, mostly because it sounds like it could double as the back cover for a bad romance novel. If only they could put Fabio on the shirt’s front.

You can vote for your favorite slogan here. And if you have any suggestions for better ones, let us know in the comments!

Since we’re within spitting distance of Midnight Madness, it’s time to vote for this year’s “We Are Georgetown” t-shirt slogan.

So, what’ll it be? We figure we can already ignore “From Conquest to Conquest Towards the Ultimate Victory,” since it’s failed to win in years past. “DC is our Playground, Playtime is Over” has a synergistic advantage, but still seems a bit lame. And we’re going to pretend “Hear the Bark, Feel the Bite” never happened.

Ultimately, we settled on “Victory Now, Georgetown Forever,” but only because some of our favorite submissions weren’t included.

What’s your choice?

Photo: Casual Hoya

Key Criteria: Which slogan will best fit on a poster

Hoya Blue’s annual basketball t-shirt slogan contest is here once again, and the final five slogans are as amusing as ever.

Here are your top five choice this year, Georgetown:

1. Seasons Pass, Hoyas Last
2. No Slogan, Just Business
3. From Conquest to Conquest, Towards the Ultimate Victory
4. Victory Now, Georgetown Forever
5. Envy Our Past, Fear Your Future

Vox doesn’t usually make endorsements, but we think it’s pretty clear what the best slogan of the bunch is.  After all, what slogan besides number three can be used by both crusading warriors and pick-up artists?

Cast your vote for the slogan you think belongs on thousands of tee shirts here!

It’s not rare to catch a glimpse of Gaston Hall on television, but soon enough you’ll be seeing it on an unexpected channel: ESPN. Hoya Blue announced in an email on Tuesday that the Worldwide Leader will be coming to Georgetown to film an interview with Georgetown great and former NBA All-Star Alonzo Mourning for “signature series” ESPN Homecoming. The email, which is posted at Hoya Blue’s website, invites Georgetown basketball fans to attend the one-on-one interview between Mourning and sportswriter Rick Reilly on July 23rd.

ESPN Homecoming, which debuts Thursday night, is an interview show filmed “in the hometown or formative place of a top athlete.” The program will air regularly Thursdays at 7 pm this summer, and will feature athletes such as Michael Phelps and Tony Hawk in the coming weeks. The Alonzo Mourning episode is scheduled for August 6th, according to the show’s website.

What can those Hoya fans who make it to the filming expect? ESPN promises it will be amazing:

Resilience is perhaps the single the best word to describe basketball great Alonzo Mourning. From turbulent childhood to NBA stardom, he has repeatedly bounced back from adversity to ultimate success. His time as part of the legendary Georgetown University basketball program was a turning point in his life and career. It is here where his story will be told, by Alonzo himself, in front of family, friends, teammates and supporters. It will be an amazing.

Anyone hoping to attend the interview must send an email to espnevents@onsetproductions.com. Full details are available at the Hoya Blue site. The deadline to RSVP is not until July 20th, but obviously tickets are limited.

So, unfortunately there’s no actual money involved in winning Hoya Blue’s t-shirt slogan contest, but at least your season tickets will be free (they’ll set you back $125 otherwise.) Email your catchphrases to hoyablue@georgetown.edu.

The slogans on the student section basketball t-shirts have gotten steadily worse since John Thompson III took over as head coach for the 2004-2005 season. “Now they know / here we come,” last year’s slogan, was a far cry from the “Some have forgotten / We will remind them” of yesteryear.

Luckily, Hoya Blue is trying to reverse the downward spiral by bringing in reinforcements. They’re holding a campus-wide contest for this year’s slogan, according to an email from Hoya Blue member Katie Cohen. Submissions will be accepted until October 7. No word yet on where to send them, but start brainstorming now and we’ll keep you posted. There’s a cash prize, but even if there wasn’t, seeing the Verizon Center full of people wearing your witticism is so money.

Update: Email your suggestions to hoyablue@georgetown.edu. No cash money dollar bills involved, but you’ll get free season tickets if your slogan is the winner.