Final decision--> No Mascot

[dogsrus]

Squirrel -

1) It is hard to market or sell for a bad product. (winning teams sell tickets and gear - not mascots)

2) I thought we were off the list. (we have had a generic logo with no mascot for a while to support the generic blanketing of the term Braves)

We are on a "watch list" and they made it clear we needed to be proactive. The status quo does nothing to help us.

And I can argue against point 1 all day long. It is hard to market and sell a generic product. I know mascots are not the only thing that sells. BUT they can help you stand out.

Take a look at the college basketball 2007 game by 2K sports. Two of the unlockables are the Wichita and Indiana St mascots. Not the most popular by any means, but invaluable recognition.

The proactive action was changing the name of the Chiefs Club. It's over and done with.

I don't think it is. Time will tell. The only way I see it ending is if there was a completely different visual symbol.

I will say this...when you say Braves I will and think I always will think of Indians. So to me BU is STILL "hostile and abusive" under the stupid NCAA standards.

My point Squirrel is as long as we are the Braves I don't see a symbol changing the fact that Braves=Indians. Its ingrained in society's mind IMO.

You either drop Braves or simply redesign the logo. You can be the BU Braves with a clock, rocket, gargoyle, Bobcat, etc. Your name still says Scalp em, war paint and all those stereotypes the NCAA wants gone.

 

[squirrel]

Squirrel -

1) It is hard to market or sell for a bad product. (winning teams sell tickets and gear - not mascots)

2) I thought we were off the list. (we have had a generic logo with no mascot for a while to support the generic blanketing of the term Braves)

We are on a "watch list" and they made it clear we needed to be proactive. The status quo does nothing to help us.

And I can argue against point 1 all day long. It is hard to market and sell a generic product. I know mascots are not the only thing that sells. BUT they can help you stand out.

Take a look at the college basketball 2007 game by 2K sports. Two of the unlockables are the Wichita and Indiana St mascots. Not the most popular by any means, but invaluable recognition.

The proactive action was changing the name of the Chiefs Club. It's over and done with.

I don't think it is. Time will tell. The only way I see it ending is if there was a completely different visual symbol.

I will say this...when you say Braves I will and think I always will think of Indians. So to me BU is STILL "hostile and abusive" under the stupid NCAA standards.

My point Squirrel is as long as we are the Braves I don't see a symbol changing the fact that Braves=Indians. Its ingrained in society's mind IMO.

You either drop Braves or simply redesign the logo. You can be the BU Braves with a clock, rocket, gargoyle, Bobcat, etc. Your name still says Scalp em, war paint and all those stereotypes the NCAA wants gone.

I understand what you are saying Dogs. . .and that is what is so darn frustrating. The NCAA left the onus with us to do something, and we did nothing. That's why for those heralding this a victory have another thing coming, in my humble opinion.

This will definitely be a major issue during the upcoming Presidential search.

 

[MacabreMob]

This will definitely be a major issue during the upcoming Presidential search.

And maybe this is why there was nothing done right now.

Bradley will then fill a panel with a bunch of liberals to hire a liberal President and the first thing he/she will do is rid Bradley of the nickname and adopt the Squirrel.

That sounds like what is going to happen.

 

[tornado]

Or maybe we'll get a mascot like a tree or a flower.

 

[MacabreMob]

Or maybe we'll get a mascot like a tree or a flower.

If a girl dressed up as the tree mascot, I could be called a 'tree-hugger'. :-o

:lol:

 

[Dubl R 1]

GOOD! I think this was the best thing to do given the ideas that they had narrowed down to as finalists. IMO, the clock mascot winning would have signaled the end of life on Earth.[/quote

yeah or the fireman/firefighter??? :lol:

Yeah, a Firefighter is rediculous exponentially. In the online survey, I actually wrote that In my 29 years of life I have never associated Bradley basketball to firefighters, and God willing I will never have to. My mom actually entered the contest of the mascot naming. At first I didn't think her idea was that brilliant, but after seeing the finalist that this committee came up with, it was by far better than those. Her idea was obviously to keep the nickname of Braves, which IMO, is the most important part of all of this, and to have an Eagle as the mascot, with his name being BRAVO. Like I said not brilliant, but definitely better than a
clock :?: or a firefighter, or a gargoyle(what the hell?) or any of the rest that have NOTHING to do with Bradley Basketball. At least the Eagle can be associated with home of the Brave or Braves in our case. She also sent in athletic logo samples, which were actually very atttractive, IMO. I don't know, it makes you wonder what the committee was looking for. It's like they made all choices so bad that the public would have to go with the most logical one left, but they forgot to include any choice at all to me that was logical.

 

[abesimpson]

With Broski retiring this year, the mascot issue will resurface again soon. It won't take long for people on both sides of the issue to lobby the next BU president to change the "BU Braves" script logo or to do away with "Braves" all together. Especially with all the campus additions that are coming, between now and the next 15 years (or probably as soon as the first building is operational), it would be prime to suggest a change again.

 

[Scouter]

I disagree, abe. While I think a logo change could be in the works in the near future, I don't think the Braves nickname is leaving anytime soon. It has a sense of stability and tradition (even if there is no mascot). And if the new nickname proposals were anything like the mascot proposals, maybe there shouldn't even be a nickname.

 

[MacabreMob]

And if the new nickname proposals were anything like the mascot proposals, maybe there shouldn't even be a nickname.

ABSOLUTELY RIGHT!!!

 

[real fan]

BU Braves is here to stay and we Don"t need no stinking mascot; our logo looks great the way it is and Bergners made a bad decision because they lost all my sales to the bookstore this year.

 

[ser_solace]

I'm happy there is no mascot. All of those finalists were terrible suggestions. A Clock? What?! How can that be a finalist.

I'd rather keep the Braves name with no mascot. If we want to be able to market the Bradley name better, it's simple. Just win. National champions are always famous.

 

[real fan]

Winning sells a lot of merchandise and making it to the sweet 16 gets you a huge amount of publicity ; did we have a mascot last season, no.

 

[Braves4Life]

New President

New President

I would love to see BU get a "strong" President who is not afraid to make a decision! I have always hated this committee crap approach that these lib universities take. These committees take forever and never make the right decision. Just get a strong leader who gathers the facts and opinions of the people and let him have the courage and insight to make the right choice.

If he is too dumb (read liberal :wink: ) to make the right choice then there will hopefully be the appropriate uproar to fire his @ss (I say "his" because I'm not a PC lib :wink: )

My vote is Bradley Braves, or Brave. I'd be happy either way. Anything else is unacceptable! :evil:

 

[That Guy]

a missed opportunity,imo.

Now, if the logo can be redesigned to a much more marketable style, we will be in business. The 'BU Braves' script logo has run its course.

I concur. Schools like Indiana have no mascot, but they have one of the most marketable logos in the NCAA. I'm tired of going to Northwoods mall, and seeing 5 BU hats and 10-15 ISU hats. I feel the real search should be for an updated, marketable logo.

When did we adopt the current logo, just curious?

 

[bravesonly]

guys we're all completely overlooking the obvious here...how bout we become the bradley bradleys and the mascot is just a group of current students named bradley...any thoughts/feedback?

 

[dogsrus]

Squirrel -

1) It is hard to market or sell for a bad product. (winning teams sell tickets and gear - not mascots)

2) I thought we were off the list. (we have had a generic logo with no mascot for a while to support the generic blanketing of the term Braves)

We are on a "watch list" and they made it clear we needed to be proactive. The status quo does nothing to help us.

And I can argue against point 1 all day long. It is hard to market and sell a generic product. I know mascots are not the only thing that sells. BUT they can help you stand out.

Take a look at the college basketball 2007 game by 2K sports. Two of the unlockables are the Wichita and Indiana St mascots. Not the most popular by any means, but invaluable recognition.

The proactive action was changing the name of the Chiefs Club. It's over and done with.

I don't think it is. Time will tell. The only way I see it ending is if there was a completely different visual symbol.

I will say this...when you say Braves I will and think I always will think of Indians. So to me BU is STILL "hostile and abusive" under the stupid NCAA standards.

My point Squirrel is as long as we are the Braves I don't see a symbol changing the fact that Braves=Indians. Its ingrained in society's mind IMO.

You either drop Braves or simply redesign the logo. You can be the BU Braves with a clock, rocket, gargoyle, Bobcat, etc. Your name still says Scalp em, war paint and all those stereotypes the NCAA wants gone.

I understand what you are saying Dogs. . .and that is what is so darn frustrating. The NCAA left the onus with us to do something, and we did nothing. That's why for those heralding this a victory have another thing coming, in my humble opinion.

This will definitely be a major issue during the upcoming Presidential search.

good point.....like someone said in another thread. Before too long its another attempt to come up with a bunch of other names that no one will like.

My contention is IT CAN'T BE DONE. Braves=INDIANS.....

 

[squirrel]

I know for a fact that at least 3 different people at ESPN took the survey and voted for the squirrel as even they saw endless potential with the mascot.

So for those who think it would be a joke or an embarassment. . .that's lost time on ESPN to me.

 

[Dallas Brave]

This is entirely speculation on my end. I truly have no inside scoop on why this "final decision" was made at this time.

But, in reality, no decision can arbitrarily be forced to be final just by saying it's final. As some earlier posters suggest, the mascot issue will continue to be debated and by that virtue will leave open the possibility for a new and future final decision to be made.

I suspect ol' DB decided to put this hot potato to rest for the remainder of his term in office. He, quite wisely I would add, doesn't want a decision to choose some sort of mascot to be the last thing people remember about him and his time at BU. He wants people to remember his legacy as the guy who brought in JL (good move), spearheaded the long-term capital campaign (good move), and the guy who announced the $100 million building projects (well done ol???‚¬?„? chap). BU has prospered under DB - he did a good job and that's how he wants to be thought of as he goes off into the sunset. He does not want that last thing that people remember about him to be the guy who picked the Clock for a mascot. Which, by the way, I do kinda like the clock ???‚¬??? seriously.

In some ways, I think it is right and proper to push this mascot issue of to the next President of BU. The mascot issue is a great "get to know ya" opportunity. He, or she, can use this issue as way to get to know all the student and alumni factions who like to get their emotions wrapped around the axle. Whatever the next final decsion is, it will be sure to hack off at least 50% of the BU Nation. Welcome to BU - Home of the Brave(s).

 

[BTID]

I agree you don't need a mascot to associate with your team of choice. If the new prez is intent on Bradley getting a new logo or nickname, I still stand by "Bulldozers". Many BU students have interned at Caterpillar over the years, and the company is synonamous with Peoria. It's been very good to our alma mater. Instead of the Chief's Club, you could have the Earthmovers. The student section could call itself the Dirtbags, or something much more clever than that. My logo would have a red bulldozer with menacing eyes for headlights and "BU" on the scoop.

If we go with a tree-flower-plant concept, I opt for a gigantic venus flytrap! It would be cool to see it courtside with Dana Altman's or Chris Lowery's legs hanging from its jaws!

 

[BU Bill]

This AP article appeared in a number of newspapers in Illinois:
http://www.nwherald.com/articles/2007/02/03/sports/college/doc45c47dd61fb43471487979.txt

Same article in Chicago Trib:
http://chicagosports.chicagotribune...radley,1,2808975.story?coll=cs-home-headlines