The name “Cortaca” is a portmanteau of the names of the two schools. The “cort” part coming from SUNY Cortland and the “aca” part coming from Ithaca College. The schools are located less than 21 miles apart in the Finger Lakes Region of New York State.

The Cortaca Jug was introduced to the already competitive rivalry between Ithaca and Cortland in 1959 by the captains of the two teams. While driving in nearby Homer in 1959, Cortland football captain Tom Decker stopped at a yard sale and purchased a $2 jug from a local farmer, named Freddy Testa, that he thought could be used as a trophy during the annual game between the two teams. After meeting up with friend and Ithaca football captain Dick Carmean, the two painted the jug blue, gold, red, and white in honor of both schools’ colors. The first Jug ran out of room for scores in the mid-1980s, necessitating a second Jug that sports the most recent results. After 2015, Cortaca Jug II was also full, and we are now on Cortaca Jug III