UC Berkeley’s got Oski the Bear, Penn State has the Nittany Lion—and UC Santa Cruz has the fierce and powerful… Sammy the Banana Slug?
Strange, but true. UC Santa Cruz isn’t a sports-focused school, so students unofficially adopted the slow-moving slug as a humorous commentary on the school’s lack of athletic prowess. At one point, college officials tried to switch the mascot to a sea lion, but the protest from students was so great that the slimy yellow slug was reinstated, and you’ll find countless odes to Sammy in toy, t-shirt, and shot glass form at the school’s campus bookstore. UCSC isn’t the only school with a not-so-normal mascot. Here are just a few other quirky mascots representing colleges around the United States:
Randy Son Of Robert/Randy
The Anteater. California students have a quirky sense of humor, it seems: the Anteater is the official mascot of the UC Irvine sports teams. During school sports games, students often chant, “Zot, zot, zot!” — supposedly, this is the noise that the anteater’s tongue makes as it laps up ants.
John the Poet. Poets aren’t normally thought of as sports stars, but at Whittier College, which is named for poet John Whittier, the school decided to pay tribute to its literary star on the playing field. Richard Nixon is the school’s most famous grad, but we’ve got a feeling Whittier won’t be swapping the Poet costume for a Nixon mask any time soon.
Speedy the Geoduck. Ever heard of a geoduck? You might be surprised to know that it’s not a duck at all, but a type of mollusk, probably not too far removed from Santa Cruz’s Banana Slug, Sammy. Speedy is the face of Evergreen State College in Washington, which boasts The Simpsons creator Matt Groening among its alums. Maybe one day, a life-sized Bart will join Speedy on the courts for a little pre-game fun.
Artie the Fighting Artichoke. In the 1970s, Scottsdale Community College asked students to vote on a mascot for the school’s sports teams. However, most students were annoyed that the administration was devoting much of the school’s funds to sports rather than academic programs, and came up with a few ridiculous options to choose from: The Artichokes, the Rutabagas, or the Scoundrels. The Artichokes won the vote, and the giant green veggie has been raising school spirit ever since.
alvarezperea/Alberto Alvarez-Perea
The Billiken. St. Louis University’s Billiken looks a bit like E.T., with giant pointed ears, but apparently, the odd-looking creature bears a striking resemblance to one of SLU’s early coaches. Billikens were all the rage for a six-month period in the early 1900s, and are intended to be used as good luck charms. For a sports team, that sure sounds like a good omen.
The Fighting Okra. Okra is a Southern staple on the dinner table—and the ferocious Fighting Okra is a staple at Mississippi’s Delta State University . Although the school’s athletic department has chosen the more appropriate Statesmen and Lady Statesmen as monikers for its teams, the Fighting Okra has long served as an unofficial mascot and student favorite.
Who did we miss? Share your favorite bizarre mascots in the comment section below!
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Tags: artie the fighting artichoke, billiken, bizarre mascots, college, delta state university, evergreen state college, fighting okra, geoduck, john the poet, john whittier, penn state, penn state university, sammy the slug, school mascots, scottsdale community college, slug, speedy the geoduck, sports teams, st louis university, university, university of california berkeley, university of california irvine, university of california santa cruz, weird mascots, whittier college
How can you forget the Syracuse Orangeman!? Tons of fun, great mascot.
Thanks for the addition, we hadn’t heard about Otto the Orange – definitely a worthy mascot! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_the_Orange
The Oregon School of Science and Technology boasted The Flying Nerd as it’s mascot when I was a student. At the time, the school was known as Merlo Station Natural Resources Science and Technology High School, thus having more letters in it’s name than students in it’s building!
How about Franklin & Marshall’s “Diplomat”?! That is one goofy outfit and the chant goes, “Let’s Go Dips!”
My alma mater, Carthage (near Chicago) has an odd mascot. His name is Torchie, and his head is a torch/flame. My kids had no idea the first time they saw him at a game.
LOL — thanks for the addition of Torchie. That is a great one!
[...] sometimes have really unusual college mascots – or, possibly even more unusual — no mascot at all! That’s the case with the [...]
Ottawa University’s is an Otter. Yup…LOL
Let’s hear it for the TUFTS JUMBOS!