THE NACHO HAT TROPHY was the MCAA's oldest traveling trophy, presented each year to the winner of the Iowa A&M - Springfield Tech game.  The Nacho Hat image was placed on the winning team's home page for the year. It is unclear exactly how the Nacho Hat came to be the trophy for the game between these two schools, but there is one theory that seems to have the most credibility.
On the eve of the first-ever meeting between the two schools, the Iowa A&M equipment manager was testing new ideas in the kitchen for his team's game-day meals. One idea was the 'Nacho Hat'. This was a hat made from delicious nacho chips that held it's own salsa. Simply break off a piece of the hat, dip it in the handy salsa, and you've got a great game-day snack!
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The story goes that Springfield Tech Athletic Director Homer Simpson was sneaking around the A&M campus, trying to steal the Cowtippers playbook. He got wind of the concoction cooking in the kitchen, and headed that direction. Stumbling into the equipment manager, Simpson took quick action, taking both the equipment manager and the nacho hat captive, fleeing to the basement of his home.
Once at home, Simpson poorly disguised his voice thru a comb and piece of paper, placing a call to the A&M campus. "If you want your Nacho Hat back, you'll have to win the game against us!" he shouted. The Police arrived shortly afterwards, and Simpson took the equipment manager and nacho hat to the theater, where he released the equipment manager. Simpson ran away again, and was next seen at the A&M - Tech game, wearing the hat (see photo above). Simpson denies that it was the 'Nacho Hat' on his head, instead claiming it was a doctor-prescribed hat to "keep brain from freezing". Tech went on to defeat A&M 96-62, and a rivalry was born. A&M got revenge the final week of that inaugural regular season, 57-48.
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