The source and/or meaning of the nickname "Keydets" is not easy to find. The term began to catch on in the mid 1930's - prior to that time, the football team was referred to as "The Flying Squadron".

A popular, but unproven, explanation of the word "Keydet" is that due to the Southern drawl of some of the members of the Corps of Cadets, the common term cadet was transformed into Keydets. There are, of course many other possibilities. Regardless of which explanation is correct, the word "Keydet" like kangaroo, will continue to identify VMI's athletic teams.

VMI's school colors are derived from the three colors that symbolized the three prominent branches of the United States Army.

Dr. J.H. Campbell, a resident of Lexington and a distinguished graduate of the Institute, is credited with drawing on the significance of these colors and in 1886, wrote "Let red represent the Artillery,White the Infantry, and Yellow the Cavalry." The colors were gradually adopted for the athletic teams into the next century.