It was moving to watch students such as the RUF/NEKS (basically cowboys of Oklahoma) and Silver Spurs (basically cowboys of Texas) take care of their animals with such tenderness.
Decades ago, Tulane fans cut the lock on Mike's then-less-fortified cage. No one is being paranoid with this level of security: The people who care for these animals just want to be sure fans of rival teams don’t show up and mess with the precious mascots. My producer was not allowed to send the location to anyone else, so I found myself being driven to the middle of nowhere and miraculously ending up, in the case of the ponies and Bevo, at beautiful, sprawling ranches that are home to the most famous animals in the state. But they have one thing in common: The levels of secrecy surrounding their locations are akin to those afforded to the president of the United States. Like the schools themselves, all of these animals are very different. I learned Boomer and Sooner are both girls and they have a friend named 700, who is a 21-year-old blind horse. I learned Mike does not purr but, rather, "chuffs" when he’s happy. I learned Miss Reveille is the highest ranking member of the corps of cadets at A&M and if she jumps on her handler’s bed, he has to sleep in hers for the night. I learned Bevo has a best friend, another steer named Two Spot, and they miss each other when they're not together. Charlotte speaks with Charles Seiler, Uga's handler, about a day in the life of Uga and the process of getting the French bulldog ready for game day. Ĭharlotte Wilder meets Uga, the legendary Georgia Bulldogs' mascot. I spent time with the ponies who pull the Sooner Schooner in Oklahoma. Somehow (and by somehow, I mean, "because we deliberately sought them out"), I met every live mascot possible. Live mascots have better security than most celebrities. Because unless you went to one of these big college football schools, there is no way you can fully feel - that’s what the college football fan experience is about: feeling - how much cultural and personal significance it carries.ġ. I also knew this: I’d written about it before this tour, covered games and followed the sport from an "I need to know what’s going on because this is my literal job" perspective.īut I didn’t understand just how much it means to people. Most of America gets that college football is a big deal. I finally fully comprehend the weight of rivalry week - and why many of your holiday weekends will be ruined if your team loses this week. I now understand college football in a way I never could have without those trips. It was an experience that I, a woman from New England who went to a Division III college, emerged from forever changed (and very tired).