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Bring Back George
Bring Back George
Earlier this summer Vanderbilt University announced a facility upgrade that is expected to exceed $50 million. This upgrade will include five phases that will include upgrades to Vanderbilt Stadium, Memorial Gymnasium, Hawkins Field, and the McGugin Center. These upgrades will put Vandy in the SEC Arms Race and keep its athletic department competetive. Along with these upgrades Vandy should look into an image upgrade. Bring back George the basset hound.
Who is George you ask? George was the name of the basset hound mascot that once represented Vanderbilt University and its athletic teams. Now don't be confused, Vandy was never nicknamed the Basset Hounds, they were still the Commodores, but the dog was the mascot.
In the early 1960's a Vandy student by the name of Toby Wilt started bringing George to football games. On November 28, 1964 George gained fame by chasing a Tennessee Volunteer mascot(a horse at the time) out of the stadium. This sent the Vandy crowd into a frenzy and helped led the Dores to a 7-0 victory over the Vols. Ironically, Wilt was George's owner "I don't know what George was thinking. My guess is he had never seen a horse before and thought it was a big dog" Wilt said. From that point on George was the mascot for Vandy for much of the 60s as the student booster organization approved George.
George would be seen at all football and basketball games that Vandy played. The unpredictable antics of the basset hound made him a favorite with Commodore fans. George lived with Wilt at the Sigma Chi house and even would attend Vandy football practices. Unfortunately, after George started to gain fame he was booted out of the Sigma Chi House by the Metropolitan Health Deparment which didn't approve of a dog living in a frat house.
George needed a home. Luckily for the dog the campus loved him and wouldn't leave George homeless. Not only were plans for a doghouse made up, but the plans called for George to live with first class treatment. The split-level doghouse had wall-to-wall carpet and a central heating system. In all the doghouse had an estimated cost of $2,000. While this plan sounded perfect, it was rejected and George ended up with a $300 doghouse.
In November of 1966 George was in a tragic accident and was killed after chasing an ice truck. The dog was given a hero's funeral and was even given a coffin by a local funeral home. George was buried in a small plot just north of Dudley Field and can still be found there today. After George another basset hound by the name of Samantha. While Samantha was well received by the student body, she just didn't have that "it" factor and the idea of a basset hound mascot was left alone by Vandy.
This brings us to the future of Vanderbilt Athletics. The Dores haven't been to a bowl in over 25 years now. The crowds at Vanderbilt Stadium are less than impressive and many times the average attendance numbers are helped by teams like Alabama or Tennessee's fans making the short trip to Nashville. The program tries to bring in some bit of tradition. After each TD you have a foghorn go off and during the pregame you even have some TNT(For Vandy's fight song "Dynamite"). Still the program is lacking a good represenative, someone the student body can rally around.
Bring back George!! Those three words should be on every Vandy fans lips. Not only would the school be celebrating a hero of the past that once chased a Tennessee mascot out of the stadium, but it would also be making a smart marketing decision. Basset Hounds have always been one of the most marketable dogs in the United States. For years the shoe company that made Hush Puppies used the basset hound as a mascot. In the Maytag commercials there was often seen a basset hound as a companion of the lonely Maytag Man.
Basset Hounds are also popular figures in pop culture and TV. WHo hasn't seen Hazard County's most lovable pup on The Duke's of Hazard, Flash? In "Smokey and the Bandit" the trucker Snowman is seen with a basset hound friend Fred while driving on the road. The cartoon character "Droopy Dog" was a basset hound. Chips, Columbo, Coach, and even the People's Court have featured the breed at various times.
What better way to bring in new revenue to Vandy. Look at all the money Georgia makes off of UGA t-shirts, hats, and stuffed animals. Smokey has made Tennessee plenty of money over the years. The basset is kid friendly and family friendly. The dog has marketing powers unlike most breeds.
Come on Vandy, pay respect to your past and give all of us in the south a new mascot to love. Become the only major university with a basset hound mascot. Only this time go ahead and build the new George that $2000 doghouse he deserves.
Matt Barber
dixiefriedsports@gmail.com
Below my basset hound Flash(original name I know)
In November of 1966 George was in a tragic accident and was killed after chasing an ice truck. The dog was given a hero's funeral and was even given a coffin by a local funeral home. George was buried in a small plot just north of Dudley Field and can still be found there today. After George another basset hound by the name of Samantha. While Samantha was well received by the student body, she just didn't have that "it" factor and the idea of a basset hound mascot was left alone by Vandy.
This brings us to the future of Vanderbilt Athletics. The Dores haven't been to a bowl in over 25 years now. The crowds at Vanderbilt Stadium are less than impressive and many times the average attendance numbers are helped by teams like Alabama or Tennessee's fans making the short trip to Nashville. The program tries to bring in some bit of tradition. After each TD you have a foghorn go off and during the pregame you even have some TNT(For Vandy's fight song "Dynamite"). Still the program is lacking a good represenative, someone the student body can rally around.
Bring back George!! Those three words should be on every Vandy fans lips. Not only would the school be celebrating a hero of the past that once chased a Tennessee mascot out of the stadium, but it would also be making a smart marketing decision. Basset Hounds have always been one of the most marketable dogs in the United States. For years the shoe company that made Hush Puppies used the basset hound as a mascot. In the Maytag commercials there was often seen a basset hound as a companion of the lonely Maytag Man.
Basset Hounds are also popular figures in pop culture and TV. WHo hasn't seen Hazard County's most lovable pup on The Duke's of Hazard, Flash? In "Smokey and the Bandit" the trucker Snowman is seen with a basset hound friend Fred while driving on the road. The cartoon character "Droopy Dog" was a basset hound. Chips, Columbo, Coach, and even the People's Court have featured the breed at various times.
What better way to bring in new revenue to Vandy. Look at all the money Georgia makes off of UGA t-shirts, hats, and stuffed animals. Smokey has made Tennessee plenty of money over the years. The basset is kid friendly and family friendly. The dog has marketing powers unlike most breeds.
Come on Vandy, pay respect to your past and give all of us in the south a new mascot to love. Become the only major university with a basset hound mascot. Only this time go ahead and build the new George that $2000 doghouse he deserves.
Matt Barber
dixiefriedsports@gmail.com
Below my basset hound Flash(original name I know)
