Friday, June 17, 2011

Michigan Mascot?!

Great article (not to mention I used to work with the author) about Michigan mascots - a little long, but I would definitely suggest reading it all.... Maybe we will have one soon...

The wolverine that wasn't

It's not quite true that Michigan never had a mascot. Fielding Yost himself introduced Biff and Bennie in 1927. But the creatures were so feral they lasted only a year before being shipped off to zoos. (Photo courtesy U-M Bentley Historical Library.)
"Why doesn't Michigan have a mascot?"

Hang out at University of Michigan football games, especially the first few of the year, and you're bound to hear the question asked a few times—usually by children or by adults who are new to Michigan football. U-M does have a mascot—the wolverine—but what people are wondering about is an animal, real or a costumed character, that gallivants along the sidelines during games leading cheers.

The typical answer is a terse grumble about "tradition" and how "Tom Harmon never needed a mascot" and that Michigan "doesn't need one now."

The lack of a live mascot makes the University of Michigan something of an anomaly among big-time college athletic departments. No matter the region, no matter how long the school's been around, no matter whether public or private, mascots are the rule. Michigan is one of few exceptions. For the 132 seasons Michigan football has been around, the idea of a mascot never captured the collective imagination of the Blue faithful.

That might change under Athletic Director Dave Brandon. Since taking the helm in January 2010, Brandon has prided himself on moving the Michigan tradition forward.


The rest of the article here.

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