When I grew up, I had one irrational fear. A fear that affected my life so much that I could not enjoy childhood the same way my peers could.
Places that normally brought happiness and laughter to kids like Chuck E Cheese, theme parks, and football games were nightmares for me.
This is all because of that one overarching fear. Today, I decided to become what I once feared the most. This is how to be a mascot.
Mascots are weird. They only have one facial expression, yet they act very buoyant and outgoing. They never talk but are somehow always the loudest in the room.
If you ask me, they are kind of creepy. Nonetheless, mascots undoubtedly bring identity and spirit to their respective schools.
The concept of mascots have been around forever. It is important for schools and brands alike to have something to symbolize them. The first physical representation of mascots used by schools was through live animals.
This tradition has been carried on through several schools, ranging anywhere from pets such as huskies and bulldogs, to schools like Colorado, who have a live buffalo run onto the field before football games.
The concept of costumed characters appearing at sporting events began in the mid-1960s with Ohio State’s Brutus the Buckeye and Mr. Met of the New York Mets. The concept was largely propelled to the mainstream by the San Diego Chicken of the San Diego Padres.
This year, Buffalo State purchased a new Benji the Bengal mascot costume. “Having an updated mascot that reflects our logo more accurately adds spirit to campus. It adds an environment to certain events,” Head of Athletics Jeffrey Ventura said.
Originally, I had planned to interview the person behind the mask. However, when asking the head of athletics to direct me to them, there was nobody to be directed to.
“Unfortunately, we do not have a person who serves as the mascot,” Ventura said.
“We sign the costume out for various events to different offices on campus and they provide the person for the costume. Our mascot only makes appearances at occasional games and at that time it is just a random student volunteering to wear the costume.”
Knowing that no student directly served as the mascot, I knew I had to take matters into my own hands. I had to become the mascot, the thing I once feared so much.
I tried the costume on beforehand and planned on a date in which I could be the mascot. It was an extremely warm day outside. It was the type of warmth that would have you sweating bullets from wearing a hoodie, much less a heavy costume covered in fur.
The boots were clunky, and the body was, as you might expect, very hot. When I first tried on the head, I felt trapped. Not only did it take several attempts putting on due to my glasses, but it was hard to see out of the mesh eyeholes.
The worst part was that I could barely breathe with it on. I had scheduled the date for the following Wednesday at the women’s soccer game against St John Fisher.
Due to both my historic fear, and less than stellar experience wearing the costume, I was understandably nervous.
Once the day came, I walked up to the press box at Coyer Field beforehand to put on the costume. It was Wednesday night and the women’s soccer team was about to play their first home game of the season.
The sun was glaring. It was so hot inside the suit that I could barely survive in there. I had taken the costume off in hopes of going back down to the field after the sun set. The away team had other plans. I watched as the lead went from 1-0 to 2-0 to 3-0 to 4-0.
I reluctantly put on the costume at half time only for the other team to score a fifth goal before I could even get out there.
Once the game had ended the Bengals had lost by an abysmal eight goal margin. Maybe this was what being a mascot was all about. Sticking through it when your team is getting blown out and the sun is glaring at you.
That’s how to not only be a mascot, but also overcome your fears. I may have struggled at first, but the end result was better than I ever thought it would be.
Sources:
Marzick, Jeff (n.d.). The History of Team Mascots. The Culture Crush. https://www.theculturecrush.com/feature/mascots
Lefton, Terry Marketing and Sponsorship: Memories of a well-traveled chicken that sparked a mascot revolution. (2024, June 24). Sportsbusinessjournal.com. https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Articles/2024/06/24/san-diego-chicken mascot-revolution