USF to use REAL Brahman for Mascot

[DKW 86 7,424]

http://www.tbo.com/sports/bulls/MGB6CXBGDPE.html

Yeah, but can he fly around the field?

Real Bull Might Prod USF Fans

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By PHILIP MORGAN The Tampa Tribune

TAMPA - The University of South Florida's newest football recruit has built-in cleats and should tip the scales at close to a ton.

Meet Rocky, the baby Brahman from Riverview. If all goes as planned, he will charge out next year as the real live mascot of the USF Bulls.

"Everybody's excited about it," said Tom Veit, assistant athletic director. "Everybody thinks it's a great idea."

Details such as care, feeding and liability insurance are yet to be worked out, he said.

It will take some training to keep Rocky from turning homecoming into a personal stampede.

"We think we have the right calf," said Riverview rancher Robert Newsome, 43.

Newsome, who did not attend USF, donated the calf to the school after listening to a pitch from USF alumnus John Massaro. "He's a nice guy and has an infectious personality," the rancher said.

Massaro, a 1989 graduate and owner of four Beef O'Brady's franchises in the Tampa Bay area, said he long has dreamed of seeing a live bull run onto the field at Raymond James Stadium as the school's mascot.

"I go to the games; I don't see the excitement. This bull will bring us to the next level," he said.

The new Rocky won't threaten the livelihood of the current Rocky, a person dressed in a bull costume, Massaro and Veit said.

Each has advantages, Massaro said.

"There are a lot of things a real bull can't do, such as back flips."

Massaro said he offered to buy the calf - worth $2,500 to $5,000 - but Newsome told him, "If you can pull it off, I'll donate him to you."

Manna Pro Feeds has agreed to keep Rocky in bull chow, and Massaro hopes to get Hillsborough County 4-H students to provide care such as feeding and worming.

Rocky will need a 20-by-40-foot shelter from the rain and a 100-by-100-foot pen, preferably connected to a pasture where he can graze, Newsome said.

Bulls, like dogs, have different personalities, and Rocky seems like a gentle animal that can adapt to his role if properly handled, Newsome said.

The rancher is spending as much time as he can with the calf, and he plans to start it on a social calendar after weaning. Rocky's caregivers will have to continue the work, he said.

And it might be nice to have a cow around, because Rocky will retain the equipment he was born with.

Newsome noted it would be "kind of silly" to castrate the mascot.

[MDM4AU 332]

Can you imagine the damage to your car windshield if he could fly?

[AuNuma1 1]

It will take some training to keep Rocky from turning homecoming into a personal stampede.

Nice.

If Colorado or whoever it is can get a buffalo out on their field, why not USF? It's all for show right?

[quietfan 233]

But wait, isn't a Brahman also a Hindu/Indian religious figure? ...or caste? Isn't that too un-PC for the NCAA?