Admit it, these are some weird mascots
Burnie, Phillie the Phanatic and the banana slug make the ranking
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Mascots.
They’re big, fuzzy and bring joy to thousands of people. Kids love them, and you can admit it, you like them a little bit, too (it’s the fact that they can’t change expression on their face, no matter how much pain they're in on the inside). They do goofy dances, fire t-shirts and hot dogs into the stands and help to embarrass the other team.
But, let’s be honest – they are weird. A list of weirdest mascots out there could easily be a top-fifty, but for this, we did our best to limit it to just the ten absolute oddest mascots out there, looking at professional and collegiate sports (sorry, Wichita Wingnuts).
Big Red — Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
The Hilltoppers named this … uh … this, guy (?) their mascot in the fall of 1979.
Big Red looks like nothing else on Earth. He is just an oversized fat, furry, red blob. He has appeared in multiple mascot competitions and was named to the Capital One All-America Mascot Teams from 2002-2004, as well as ESPN commercials and the 25,000th SportsCenter.
He is arguably the most recognizable thing about WKU sports, and that’s just for looking weird.
Steely McBeam — Pittsburgh Steelers
For the most part, mascots on this list are some form of giant animal, or amorphous "thing,” for lack of a better term. Not so for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ mascot, Steely McBeam.
Steely is the youngest mascot on the list, as he was introduced as the team’s mascot just last summer. He seems to be a hard-working steel man, who wears a hard hat, carries a steel beam and has Bill Cowher's jaw. McBeam doesn't look funny and friendly like the other mascots; he looks more like someone you might want to get a beer with.
In addition to his interesting appearance is his equally interesting name, which won a contest of more than 70,000 entries. The winning title came from Diane Roles of Middlesex, Pennsylvania, who, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, said it was "meant to represent steel for Pittsburgh's industrial heritage, ‘Mc’ for the Rooney family's Irish roots, and Beam for the steel beams produced in Pittsburgh. And also for Jim Beam, her husband's favorite alcoholic beverage."
A close second was Footbally McPittsburgh.
Phillie Phanatic — Philadelphia Phillies
The Godfather of all the "Um … what exactly is that?" mascots, the Phanatic was created after the 1977 season by a mascot company when a Phillies executive decided the team needed a mascot, similar to San Diego's famous chicken (some say, the original mascot).
The Phanatic is a fat, furry green creature, with a round beak and a tongue sticking out, who wears a Phillies uniform top (but no pants). He is named after fanatical Philly fans that drove Dodgers pitcher Burt Hooton into losing his composure in the third game of the 1977 NLCS.
But Hooton is not the only one who’s been bothered by the mascot’s antics: Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda got into a scuffle with the Phanatic, while broadcaster Joe Garagiola once lamented that "baseball is being invaded by the Muppets."
According to his profile, the Phanatic was born on the Galapagos Islands and his favorite song is "Motown Philly”.
Funny, we always thought of him as more of a Bell Biv DeVoe type of mascot.
Stomper — Oakland Athletics
Follow along here: Oakland gets their nickname, the "Athletics," from late 19th century "athletic clubs," specifically the Athletic of Philadelphia (where they originated). Their nickname, "the A's," is in reference to the blackletter "A," a trademark of the team and the old Athletic of Philadelphia. So, naturally, their mascot is an elephant. Huh?
Turns out, it is in reference to onetime New York Giants' manager John McGraw's calling the team a "white elephant,”a name they defiantly adopted as their mascot, and by 1909, the A's were wearing an elephant logo on their sweaters. In 1997, the elephant took its current form, Stomper.
Stomper's full name, according to his profile, is Stomper Ele Phant. In addition to being an animal with no logical connection to his team name who is also very large (automatic mascot funny points), Stomper will totally take you in a break dancing battle.
Burnie — Miami Heat
What would the Philly Phantic look like on an acid trip? It appears the Miami Heat tried to answer that question when they thought up "Burnie," who resembles a flame with a basketball for a nose.
Burnie has his own page and a profile on the Heat's site. Fun fact about Burnie: He's been sued in federal court.
Burnie was sued in 1994 for dancing with a woman in an exhibition game at Puerto Rico during a timeout. The woman was the wife of a judge and as she pulled away from Burnie, she fell down. Somehow, Burnie faced 20 years in jail for aggravated assault and battery, and was also sued for $1 million in emotional distress. The case was settled for $50,000.
We don't want to know what would have happened to Burnie had he wound up in prison.
Mad Ant — Fort Wayne Mad Ants (NBDL)
Easily the scariest looking mascot, not only does Mad Ant look like the harbinger of doom and necessitate the Deadspin tag of “Nightmare Fuel", he also does the Napoleon Dynamite dance, just to further haunt your dreams.
According to his profile, his goal is to make all of us smile.
Hey, sure thing, Mad Ant. Whatever you say … please — just don't hurt us.
Zippy the Kangaroo — Akron Zips
First, the nickname: “Zips” is short for “Zippers,” Akron’s original name. In 1925, after a campus-wide contest to determine an athletic nickname, the winner was chosen, and it was Zippers — a $6 pair of rubber overshoes and a brand name of the B. F. Goodrich Company. Yep, Akron's sports teams are named after some shoes.
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Zippy, whose favorite drink is Pepsi, was named the winner of the 2007 Capital One Bowl Mascot Challenge.
Sammy the Slug — UC Santa Cruz Banana Slugs
Somehow, they made the mascot version of a banana slug look creepier than the real thing.
For awhile, the banana slug was the unofficial mascot for the University of California at Santa Cruz campus. According to Slugweb, “It represented many of the strongest elements of the campus: contemplation, flexibility, non-aggressiveness and, perhaps above all, an iconoclastic challenge toward the status quo.”
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