Class Acts

Nothing incites school spirit and lifelong allegiances quite like the live mascots prowling the grounds of Texas universities

Photographs by Jeff Wilson

A white megaphone

The college mascots of Texas inspire a certain level of fealty that’s hard to shake. Stadiums filled to capacity roar to life when they trot onto the field. We celebrate when new ones are chosen, and we mourn the old ones when they’re gone. Live mascots are more than just symbols of school pride; they represent communities built and reshaped over generations. The tradition of live mascots dates to 1889, when Yale introduced Handsome Dan, a white bulldog. Universities across the country followed suit, including in Texas. The first in the state appeared in Austin in 1914—a little tan-and-white dog dubbed Pig Bellmont. Predating UT’s love affair with the longhorn steer, the scrappy pooch was named after the football team’s starting center, Gus “Pig” Dittmar, and L. Theo Bellmont, the university’s first athletics director. Since then, Texas has become home to Bevo and Reveille, two of the most well-known figures in college sports. But in a state this proud—and this fanatical about football—it’s best to know Texas’ most valuable players.

A red penant flag reading 'Shasta'

The University of Houston

The University of Houston’s football program and its fans have long exhibited an “us against the world” mentality. That feisty attitude can be traced to Shasta I, a North American cougar who served as UH’s first live mascot. While traveling to the Cougars’ inaugural game against Texas in 1953, Shasta I’s toe was severed by a cage door. Legend has it that as the Longhorns cruised to a victory, their fans mimicked Shasta’s injury by bending their thumbs over their ring fingers.

The mocking gesture made its return at Houston’s ensuing matchups with Texas, but reinvented by the Cougar faithful as a badge of honor. The “Cougar Sign” was immortalized and has been used as a show of resilience since.

Throughout my time at UH in the 2000s, the cougar sign was everywhere, but Shasta himself was nowhere to be found. After the passing of Shasta V in 1989, the mascot existed only in costume for 23 years due to ethical concerns of housing a wild animal on campus.

A live version didn’t return until 2012 with Shasta VI, who served for 10 years before he passed away from a progressive spinal disease. Several months later, Washington State Fish & Wildlife Services rescued two orphaned 4-week-old cubs and flew them to the Houston Zoo for rehabilitation. There, the natural leader of the siblings was dubbed Shasta VII, and his brother took the name Louie.

Shasta VII doesn’t attend football games, but students can visit him in his habitat at the Houston Zoo free of charge. And prior to fall and spring commencements, Shasta guards a box filled with class rings the night before ceremonies.

A portrait of a mountain lion with golden brown fur and a white stomach
Jeff Wilson

Species: North American cougar

Origin: 1947

Habitat: the Houston Zoo

Trivia: Shasta was named in a student contest. Joe Randol dubbed the original female cougar after the phrase “She has to”: “Shasta have a cage, Shasta have a keeper, Shasta have a winning ball club, Shasta have the best.”

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A red pennant flag reading 'Reveille'

Texas A&M University

I didn’t know much about tradition when I landed at Texas A&M University in the 1980s, but I learned quickly that a silky brown-and-white collie named Reveille got top billing on campus.

Other schools had lizards or masked riders as mascots, but we had Miss Rev, the First Lady of Aggieland, and she loved to be petted. She of flowy fur and tapered nose embodied the pride and values of Texas A&M: loyalty, excellence, selfless service. (I question whether she abides by the Aggie Code of Honor, which prohibits stealing; I once saw her swipe a scrap of food.)

As the origin story goes, a group of cadets was driving back to campus in January 1931 when they hit a small black-and-white dog. They scooped the animal up and smuggled it onto campus, where pets were forbidden. The next morning, as a bugler played “Reveille,” the dog began to bark, blowing its cover and earning its name. That fall, she became the official mascot. A series of other mutts—Tripod, Spot, and Ranger—followed in her wake, but it wasn’t until a Shetland sheepdog arrived in 1952 that Reveille II was anointed. Next in the royal line was Rev III, the first pure-bred rough collie—a tradition that has held since 1966.

Reveille outranks every other member of the Corps of Cadets, the school’s military-style student leadership organization. Five stars glint on the satiny maroon coat she wears at special events. She even sleeps in a dorm room and attends classes.

I met Rev dozens of times during my years on campus, as she trotted alongside whichever sophomore from Company E-2 was chosen as her handler. That job comes with perks and drawbacks. This year Theodore Neal (right), an agriculture economics major from Baytown, earned the honor.

“We get along very well because we both like taking naps,” Neal tells me of Reveille X. “I don’t know if she knows her title is Queen of Aggieland, but she definitely knows she’s special.”

If Rev dozes off on his bunk, Neal confirmed he must find another place to sleep, as she outranks him. On the plus side, if she barks while attending class, the professor is supposed to dismiss students. Perhaps best of all, she’s a boon to Neal’s social life. “I don’t use her to get dates, but I’m not going to lie and say it doesn’t help,” he says.

When the time comes, all Reveilles retire to a pampered life in private homes or in the Stevenson Center at the university’s vet school. And in the end, they’re buried in a small cemetery at the north end of Kyle Field. There, they can keep a watchful eye on the miniature scoreboard above their final resting place.

A person wearing a cadet uniform runs with a long-haired dog on a leash on a green football field. Smoke and flames are visible in the background.
Jeff Wilson

Species: American rough collie

Origin: 1931

Habitat: a dorm room on campus with her handler, a sophomore in A&M’s Corps of Cadets

Trivia: In 1993, someone plucked Reveille VI from the backyard of a Dallas home a few days before the Cotton Bowl. The perpetrators alerted the Austin American-Statesman, demanding “ransom”—A&M would have to declare UT the superior university. Before that happened, and presumably when the perpetrators learned they’d face stiff penalties if caught, the dog was found tied to a signpost near Austin’s Lake Travis.

A portrait of a collie in front of a gray statue
Jeff Wilson

Two people in white shirts and blue pants walk with a small black horse on a football field
Jeff Wilson
A blue penant flag reading 'Peruna'

Southern Methodist University

I ngrid Mayer, the Peruna Handlers Team Captain, tells me the off-campus home of Southern Methodist University’s live mascot is a closely guarded secret. But that doesn’t stop me from recruiting my 5-year-old son for a reconnaissance mission. When I explain my plan to a colleague who has spent decades at SMU, where I earned my bachelor’s and now teach writing, she suggests I start at some stables tucked away in a residential neighborhood near my home in central Dallas. I strap my son into his car seat and follow my GPS to meet the emblem of my time as an SMU student in the early 2000s.

The sounds of traffic disappear, and bright sun filters through the leaves of live oak trees. We pass several horses in a field, but see no sign of a miniature black Shetland pony—the ninth and latest in the line of feisty little horses named Peruna.

The first Peruna, named after a Prohibition-era medicinal tonic that was said to have a “strong kick” from its 18% alcohol content, made his debut in 1932. He began the tradition of an unruly pony leading the Mustang football team onto the field at the start of games and galloping alongside his handlers after every touchdown. Peruna IX, who “exchanged reins” in 2011 with Peruna VIII, who served during my school years, is known to have a louder whinny than past ponies. He can be heard across the stadium in moments of on-field excitement. And though he isn’t as headstrong as Peruna VIII, his undergraduate handlers say he still gives them a hard time with his powerful sprints. Rowdy and spirited on game days, Peruna IX boasts a personality consistent with the purported effects of his namesake spirit: he’s rambunctious and a bit wild.

There is a gentler side to Peruna, though. Nate Lovasz, a first-year handler, spends a good amount of time with the pony at his secret location—which despite our best efforts, I never do find. Lovasz tells me how calm and playful Peruna is during his downtime. It’s a version of the elusive pony that rests hidden in a corner of Dallas, away from prying eyes, crowds, and the cheers that inevitably follow in his wake.

A closeup of a black horse wearing reins in front of green trees
Jeff Wilson

Species: black Shetland pony, which typically weigh 400 pounds, roughly half that of a full-size horse

Origin: 1932

Habitat: a private ranch in Dallas

Trivia: Just days before his death in 1934, Peruna I gained the ­dubious distinction of being the only live mascot to ever kill another live mascot, ­after landing a fatal kick to the ­Fordham University’s ram.

A bear stands on its hind legs and shows its front paws in an enclosure with a pool
Jeff Wilson

Species: American black bears

Origin: 1917

Habitat: the Bill & Eva ­Williams Bear Habitat on ­Baylor’s campus

Trivia: Since 1974, all of Baylor’s bears hold the title “Judge.” The tradition was started to honor the mascot who served between 1961-71 and was named after Baylor’s then-president, Judge Abner McCall.

A portrait of a black bear in an enclosure
Jeff Wilson
A green penant flag reading 'Judges'

baylor University

O n a visit to Waco in spring 2016, I had my first bear encounter. A pair of female American black bears sized me up through the glass walls of their enclosure in the middle of Baylor University’s campus. They looked at me with the same curiosity and eagerness that I was feeling on that first visit to my future school, and I arrived a little less anxious the following fall.

Named Judge Joy and Judge Lady after spouses of past university presidents, the two bear sisters lived in the Bill and Eva Williams Bear Habitat, outfitted with a waterfall, caves, and an indoor relaxation space. Students passing by the dwelling on their way to class could see the bears engaged in enrichment activities or sitting at a mock newsroom desk predicting the outcome of upcoming football games.

The university’s first live bear, Ted, was a gift from soldiers at Waco’s Camp MacArthur. Ted made his gameday debut in 1917 during halftime at a matchup against Texas A&M. There have been 50 bears at Baylor since Ted’s arrival, and until regulations went into effect in 2003, the animals frequently attended football games, accompanied by handlers, to cheer on the team.

One iteration who served in the 1930s, an especially charismatic bear named Joe College, happily participated in parades and social events. He was described as a “giant dog” who often went swimming with students in the Brazos River and took frequent walks through campus with his handler. He was also the first Baylor mascot to learn to chug a bottle of Dr Pepper, a tradition that hasn’t continued in modern times. Once the Baylor Chamber of Commerce took over bear care, they provided a steadier home and more responsible guardianship of the campus mascot.

For four years, my friends and I watched Joy and Lady playing in their pool and eating meals of raw meat, fruits, and vegetables. Occasionally they would hold up Baylor’s signature hand signal, a raised claw called a “Sic ’Em”—an easy feat since wild bears use the same movement to knock food out of trees.

In 2022, Joy became sick and passed away, and Lady “graduated” and moved to her own private quarters. A new pair of ursine sisters arrived at the habitat in 2023: Judge Indy (pictured), named for Baylor’s first location in the town of Independence; and Judge Belle, named after the bells that sound throughout campus. Born in January of the same year, the bears are already showing the curiosity and playfulness of their predecessors—not to mention a natural ability to flash a perfect Sic ’Em sign.

A Texas longhorn wearing a tag reading "Bevo" stands in front of a partly-cloudy sky
Jeff Wilson
An orange penant flag reading 'Bevo'

The University of Texas

I ’ve stood in the presence of Texas royalty many times. He’s handsome, with a wet pink snout and a silky burnt orange hide. He weighs more than a ton and boasts horns over 6 feet long. He is a king among mascots. He is Bevo.

Though I’d met him on the sidelines at Longhorn football games and graduation festivities, in October 2020 I got to meet Bevo on his own turf. His kingdom is a sprawling ranch located northwest of Austin where he spends most of his days with his best friend, Two Spot. “Longhorns are social creatures,” says Ricky Brennes, the executive director of the Silver Spurs Alumni Association, the group responsible for caring for Bevo. “He needs his buddy.”

At the time, I was an editor for the Alcalde, the university’s alumni magazine. In an effort to raise the Longhorn community’s spirits during the pandemic, I was sent to check in on how Bevo was faring since he was last seen the previous fall. For me—and many other Texas Exes—he is a sign of comfort, a reminder of my most formative years in a place I cherish.

A longhorn is led out of a silver metal pen while people wearing University of Texas apparel spectate
Jeff Wilson

Species: Texas longhorn

Origin: 1916

Habitat: a ranch outside Austin

Trivia: In 1920, 100 UT Austin lettermen and Aggies barbecued and ate the first-­ever Bevo at a football banquet. The inaugural bovine turned out to be a bit temperamental (and expensive to keep), so they fattened him up and served him for dinner. “By the time this invitation reaches you, Bevo will have chewed his last cud and his juicy steak will be awaiting your appetite,” the invite read. Fortunately, this is one event that didn’t become tradition.

No other mascot screams Texas like Bevo. He is a Texas longhorn, designated the state’s official large mammal in 1995. He was first introduced in 1916 at the Thanksgiving Day game in Austin against Texas A&M—helping secure the Longhorns’ 21-7 victory. In a 1920 issue, the Alcalde noted the longhorn had come to connote “courage, fighting ability, nerve, lust of combat, efficiency in deadly encounters, and the holy spirit of never-say-die.”

Bevo XV is, as his title states, the 15th steer to wear the crown. I remember just four years before, in 2016, when they first brought Bevo XV on the scene. His predecessor, Bevo XIV, had died prematurely the year before of a rare bovine leukemia. At 18 months, Bevo XV made his first appearance at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium as a little babe with tiny pink horns. “He is perhaps the sweetest the school has ever had,” Brennes says.

Long may he reign.

From the July/August 2024 issue

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