One of the fun traditions of college football is the teams mascot, and the energy they bring helps create an entertaining environment. Yet the Michigan Wolverines don’t have a mascot. Why not? We dive into that pressing question.
The Michigan Wolverines Mascot History
After seeing Wisconsin carry live badgers at their games, Fielding Yost decided Michigan needed a live Wolverine at their games. Both parts of that sentence are equally terrifying. Trappers even tried to tell Yost that it wasn’t a good idea, but he ignored them. Fortunately, he was unable to fine one.
MORE: Michigan Gets Win No. 1000
In 1924, Yost found a stuffed Wolverine to be the mascot. “Biff” was the school’s mascot until 1927, when Yost’s luck (if you want to call it that) changed. The Detroit Zoo acquired 10 live wolverines from Alaska, and Yost quickly slid in to strike a deal with the zoo.
Michigan had its first two live mascots in school history named Biff and Bennie. The animals would walk around the stadium during Michigan games during the 1927 season. It wouldn’t last long, though.
In one of the least shocking developments ever, both animals were removed from the stadiums as they became too dangerous and ferocious for the players to control. There are debates about how long the mascots were brought to games, but the tradition didn’t last long.
Michigan’s Mascot Today
Michigan’s athletic department maintains the belief that a mascot is unnecessary and also does not properly reflect Michigan athletics. Many have come forward to pitch ideas of a mascot, but the athletics department denied all of them.
There are some who feel left out in the mascot department, including former Michigan star Charles Woodson. However, the Wolverines chose a different approach to representing their program.
Fortunately for Michigan, there’s plenty of tradition surrounding the program that they don’t have to concern themselves with a mascot. The football program has a number of other traditions that they sell as the symbol of Michigan.
From the Big House to national championships, Michigan markets itself outside of a mascot. They embody the idea of a wolverine more than having a physical one present. As the winningest program in college football, it’s easy to see why they chose that approach.