GW, George Mason Get New Mascots
Looks like there are some changes on the sidelines at some local schools. George Washington had the first appearance of their new Little George mascot during Saturday's exhibition basketball game, and George Mason will be getting a mascot to replace Gunston, the furry green thing, on Monday.
Gunston, named for George Mason's house, rose to prominence after the Patriots' improbable Final Four run in 2006. The guy even had his own Myspace page and pretty funny YouTube videos. The plan had been to phase him out, but he was saved from the chopping block then, with a university spokesperson saying "he is very much here to stay." Until now, that is.
Dan Steinberg at the Post's Sports Bog reports that Gunston will be replaced on Monday by a mascot "closer to a person than to a muppet." Steinberg goes through the history of the mascot situation, including a blue ribbon panel recommending he go away. Gunston will still appear at university events.
And over in Foggy Bottom, GW's Little George mascot, a life-size likeness of George Washington, has been replaced with a hatchet-wielding foam version (at left). Little George, with his blank stare and kind of Michael Myers-ish face, was twice named one of the worst mascots in the country. The new one looks more like the Commodore from Vanderbilt and is "intimidating, not old and creaky" according to the university's spirit director. We think he looks pretty good, though he has kind of a puffy face.
Now we'd like to see these two mascots face off at basketball games between their schools, plus ones with the Hoya and Terp.
Photo of Gunston courtesy gomason.com/Photo of new GW mascot by Andrew Wiseman