Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Bulldogs and brackets

It's NCAA tournament time here Lexington. You might say it's everywhere, but you can really feel it here in the Bluegrass. It's a great time of year when our Cats are on top: the excitement of the tourney met with the brink of warm weather, approach of Keeneland's spring race meet and relief of spring break for UK students. We've reached a hopeful period between fickle winters and humid summers when our basketball brackets and 60-degree temperatures seem like good excuses to take a Friday off early.

Not that I will.

While I am a Cat fan, I can't deny that bulldogs as mascots have peaked my interest throughout my life. My high school mascot was a bulldog. I've even been known to fall in love with an opposing team's mascot, that is, if it happens to be a bulldog. I dated a guy in high school whose dad had prime seats at UK football games. We once attended a game against the Georgia Bulldogs, a team that travels with "UGA" the English bulldog. At this particular game, UGA was lounging just below our seats, probably in danger of suffering a heat stroke. While most people were hollering "defense" or "hold em," I was calling out sweet nothings to UGA, who plopped down on the sidelines exhausted. I squealed when they showed him on the big screen in his cute little red and black jersey. No doubt my date was annoyed. I remember him asking, "Do you think we came here to see some dog or watch a ballgame?"

And while keeping up with the tournament this year, I couldn't help but notice the prevalence of the bulldog mascot. In addition to Georgia's bulldogs, we've got the Gonzaga bulldogs, the Butler bulldogs and Mississipi State bulldogs (who SHOULD have been in the tourney). With a little more research you find there's the UNC-Asheville bulldogs, Union bulldogs, South Carolina State and Louisiana Tech bulldogs. The list goes on.

But here's the thing about mascots: some can be really lame, obviously unfitting or nonsensical. Think of what you would want your team's mascot to express. It's probably a symbol of aggression, perseverance and pride. Some regal figure or creature that is widely looked upon as admirable and triumphant. It's also nice if it can slide smoothly into pre-game chants and cheers, or you can fit it into your team's logo.

You might think finding the right mascot out there would be easy. Off the top of my head I can think of some animals that achieve the aforementioned qualities: lions, wolfpacks and eagles (I think we hit the nail on the head with ferocious cats, wild dogs and predator-birds). I might even make a human reference, say a "colonel" or "commodore" if appropriate to the team's history. Then, often times, you get the random, the unexplainable, yet all the more coveted by the fan: the Volunteers, the Golden Gophers, the Terrapins or the ORANGE. Yes, it's true, sometimes the most formidable of all mascots are not animals or warriors ...they are simply colors: Big Orange, Big Red. Or, if you're Western Kentucky University, you get your inspiration from McDonald's Grimace and select a red, lump-like, unidentifiable blob, which you call "a hilltopper," not a more logical tiger, bobcat or bear. I'd definitely be more afraid to play the team of "golden gophers" than a team of red blobs.... as scary as both of those would be.

Then there's the bulldog. And to evaluate whether we can use "bulldog" to intimidate another team, I look to my own bulldog, as well as experiences with the English bulldog, the more traditional face of the mascot. And both bulldogs, to my knowledge, have an innocent love of people, a kind affection for the human race. Though some English can be defensive, they are not attackers, nor do they seek confrontation. Most owners I know say if their English or French bulldog had their say, they would lounge on the couch with a cuddle buddy all day. And with other dogs, they would rather play and wrestle than brawl.

So perhaps, as much as we love the grit of the bulldog's underbite and the wrinkles around his eyes, the bulldog is not so much a symbol of "go-fight-win" as a symbol of "let's play." But that doesn't mean we can't kid ourselves into rooting for a bulldog, because appearance is half the battle, right? Either way, bulldogs make delightful little side shows when the game is dull, or your team is getting beat beyond interest. And if they build team spirit, then what's the difference? At least they are better symbols for competition than a crimson tide (what is that anyway, a wave?), a volunteer (lame) or a gamecock (inappropriate). Either way... no offense, dogs, I have to say... GO CATS!

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