 The colors of UND athletics are green and white , which were adopted in the 1920s . The official school colors of the university are green and pink , representative of North Dakota 's state flower , the Wild Prairie Rose ; however , this combination is rarely employed outside of official or ceremonial applications . UND 's athletic teams previously bore the name of the Fighting Sioux , but were without a nickname and mascot from 2012 – 2015 , in compliance with the NCAA 's policy against the use of Native American nicknames . On November 18 , 2015 , it was announced that the new nickname would be " Fighting Hawks " , effective immediately . 
