College football is unique for several reasons, chief among them the pageantry and pride shown for programs by alumni and fans alike. No amount of pomp and ceremony would be complete without the role of mascots.
There are over 134 different teams in FBS, with as many varied and different backgrounds as there are teams. Uniquely, Florida State is the only school represented by the Seminole. How did the Florida State Seminoles mascot come to be, and in what ways does the history help tell the story that the Seminoles now represent?
Who (or What) is the Florida State Seminoles Mascot?
Founded in 1851, Florida State holds standing as the oldest site of higher education operating continuously in the Sunshine State. After a multitude of name changes, including a stint as a womens’ only institution the school was named Florida State University in 1947 after being publicly reintroduced as coeducational.
After officially changing the name to Florida State University, the school held a vote to decide what to name the mascot. Previous iterations had included such mascots as the “Statesmen” and “Fighting Warriors.”
The Seminole moniker was chosen after an alleged ballot box stuffing incident due to the football team preferring the name and the program has remained the Seminoles ever since.
The Seminoles football program has since gone on to remarkable success, the majority under head coach Bobby Bowden, who coached from 1976-2009 and amassed 377 career wins in addition to two claimed national championships in 1993 and 1999.
Why is Florida State the Seminoles?
With the ballot vote having decided on a name, the next step was trying to find the proper way to represent the name. Soon came the tradition of Chief Osceola and Renegade planting a spear at midfield before the start of every home game as the chosen symbols. Osceola was an influential leader of the Seminole people and a renowned legend in the area.
The tradition began on September 16, 1978 with a student portraying the famous Seminole warrior Osceola leading the football team from the tunnel while riding a horse as if leading them into battle. Before the first play, the student representative hurls a flaming spear into the ground at midfield.
Bill Durham, a graduate of the school in 1965, came up with the tradition in 1978. The Durham family oversees the entire program, provides the horse and personally selects the rider with oversight from the university.
Students who portray Osceola must undertake a two-year apprenticeship and demonstrate the skills to ride the horse while also maintaining a 3.0 GPA. Osceola wears Native-American-themed regalia that is both approved and designed by the Seminole tribe.
There have been 18 different riders and six different Renegades since the tradition began in 1978. The Seminole Tribe of Florida, a sovereign tribe recognized federally has worked closely with Florida State to support the proper usage of the Seminole name and that the iconography is used with the kind of consistency that coincides with the values of the tribe.
Though there has been constant discussion regarding the potentially offensive nature of various mascots in the past, the NCAA gave FSU an exemption in part due to the mutually beneficial relationship that the tribe and school have cultivated as a result.
While no one knows what the future might hold, the current agreement has allowed more collaboration on issues of mutual interest. It continues to be a source of pride for Seminole fans across college football.
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