I've always had good experiences with it. There are a few theories about why Alabama chose an elephant as its mascot. How did Big Al became Alabama's mascot? Elephantidae is the only surviving family of the order Proboscidea; other, now extinct, members of the order include deinotheres, gomphotheres, mammoths, and mastodons. In 1907, a live elephant was brought to campus as a mascot for the universitys football team. Why is Alabama's mascot an elephant? It appears that the SSL configuration used is not compatible with Cloudflare. That person is in charge of the first quarter and third quarter, because in the third quarter we do box visits. Roll tide. Everyone puts their fours in the air. The Alabama Crimson Tides elephant mascot is one of the most recognizable symbols in college football. Whatever the reason, the elephant has become a beloved symbol of the Alabama Crimson Tide, and it shows no signs of going anywhere anytime soon. Compared to its more fearsome mascot counterparts around the country like LSU's live tiger, Mike, Big Al looks like a big stuffed animal. First and foremost, elephants are strong and powerful animals that convey a sense of strength and power. The Alabama elephant is the state animal of Alabama. The Elephant Story. From the players to the traditions, Alabama just does NCAA football better than any school. Strupper and other writers continued to refer to the Alabama linemen as "Red Elephants," the color referring to the crimson jerseys. But the history of the Crimson Tide's mascot began decades earlier at an Alabama-Ole Miss football game. The nickname stuck. Dickey: "There definitely is. A young woman attending the ball decided to wear crimson to match those colors. He'll also drop in on your nuptials, if youre willing to pony up his $400 wedding appearance fee. The cheerleaders will tumble through the end zone. But the history of the Crimson Tide's mascot began decades earlier at an Alabama-Ole Miss football game. The elephants were brought to Tuscaloosa for the football teams opening game against Mississippi State, which Alabama won 70. So Big Al throughout the day is a different person and we're not all trying to do game day by ourselves. Why does Alabama use an elephant as a mascot? In order to clear up the Bama faculty and staff's curiosity over the origin of the ever-present pachyderm, director emeritus of alumni affairs at the time, Jefferson Coleman, wrote a memo to legendary head coach Paul "Bear" Bryant in 1977. The John's Creek, Georgia, native studied finance and communications studies before graduating earlier this year. By contacting the University of Kentucky and a few other schools, Tart discovered that their mascots were designed and constructed by the Walt Disney Company. Big Al walks in to the room and he has to interact with the props in multiple different ways, but he can't use any of the props for their intended purpose. If there's not enough students like if it's super hot one day and there's not a lot of students left and it's a blowout game, he won't body surf because that's just kind of tacky. More than 40 years since Big Al earned the stamp of approval, he's still spreading spirit at Bryant-Denny Stadium and other Alabama athletics events. Instead, the school's "Spirit Planning Committee" started hiring elephants often from traveling circuses passing through or by Tuscaloosa for every homecoming. Q: Something tells me Big Al is pretty busy on Saturdays. Dickey: "I'm not actually sure why, but it's just always been the thing that Big Al does. Why is Alabama's Mascot an Elephant Named Big Al. "At the end of the quarter, the earth started to tremble, he wrote, there was a distant rumble that continued to grow. "Some excited fan in the stands bellowed, 'Hold your horses, the elephants are coming,' and out stamped this Alabama varsity. The elephant mascot even has its own name: Big Al. 1 Alabama's nickname of "Crimson Tide" brings to mind the school's costumed elephant mascot, Big Al, no matter how hard you try. We had Good Morning America. Some excited fan in the stands bellowed, 'Hold your horses, the elephants are coming,' and out stamped this Alabama varsity. Unmatched in size that Alabama team knocked me [out] cold, men that I had seen play last year looking like they had nearly doubled in size." ", Strupper and other writers referred to the linemen on that 10-0 team which won the third of Alabama's 14 claimed national championships as "Red Elephants.". We don't have people that are very large, so making sure we have people who can be very animated with their full body movements is super important. All rights reserved (About Us). The first day consists of an interview and clinic, where the candidates learn to emulate the character and walk of Big Al. The tradition of an elephant mascot continued for many years, with various live animals appearing at games and even marching in parades. You won't know what the props are beforehand. Since then, the Crimson Tide has had several live elephants as mascots, the most recent of which is named Big Al. Tusks grow throughout an elephants lifetime; an individuals tusk length is a useful criterion for age determination as elephants reach physical maturity at around 15 years old. Wearing white in the fourth quarter really makes him pop out.". Bulls use their tusks aggressively while fighting; elephants also use them for tasks such as moving trees and stripping bark from trees for food. The origin of the mascot dates back to 1930. It's not an obvious type of thing.". The first time an elephant was mentioned in relation to Alabama athletics was in 1907, when then-head football coach Eugene Beaumont called his squad a great big blue elephant. The nickname stuck, and in 1931, then-sports editor Everett Strupper of the Atlanta Journal wrote that Alabamas football team had the biggest, grandest show on earth.. The two assured him that it was just a person in an elephant costume and not a real elephant, to which Bryant grinned and said he knew all along. Nonetheless, a student in a doe-eyed elephant costume struts his stuff at every Bama home game, having become a fixture at one of the states proudest institutions. And in the early 1960s, Alabama student Melford Espey went the extra mile and dressed up as the animal to cheer on his beloved team. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. We always say if you can see the camera, Big Al is looking somewhere else. and kind of ran onto the field and all was goodthankfully nothing too bad.". Big Al wears a white jersey for the fourth quarter of football games. That was not the image of his players he wanted to portray.". He became Big Al in the spring of 2019 and is currently one of five students on the Big Al team. It's the controversy over whether Alabama freshman phenom Brandon Miller should be playing basketball after his role in a tragedy the . And Big Al's been an omnipresent fixture on the Crimson Tide sidelines ever since. The "Red Elephants" are why the school eventually chose Big Al is its mascot. He makes appearances at university functions and events, he stars in commercials and public service announcements, and he even has his own line of merchandise. ", VIDEO: Ole Miss streaker gets leveled by security, PHOTOS: 2012 college football uniform tracker & grader, PHOTO: Passed out Georgia football fan becomes infamous, Alabama fans' family portrait includes baby as football, PHOTOS: Top 10 ugliest college football helmets ever, WAGS of college football players ft. USC's Matt Barkley, PHOTOS: Insane H.S. We'll take Big Al around the Quad, we'll drive him around and he'll wave to kids and everybody tailgating. Why Is An Elephant Alabamas Mascot? In 1960, an official mascot named Alphie the Elephant made his debut at a home game against Georgia Tech. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. A majority of the fan base is actually caring about the game, so you can focus on the little kids and the people who really want to see Big Al. If there are enough students in the student section and we're ahead by enough points, Big Al will body surf up the student section, and that's always a fun experience. ", Webster: "I think it's on the website too but if a corporate company wants Big Al its $400 to the university. It shut out eight opponents and allowed only 13 points all season while scoring 217. It was a regular on gamedays, and for several years it would carry that year's homecoming queen onto the field prior to the game. In the late 1940s, student humor magazine The Rammer Jammer began referring to the Crimson Tide as Thrift Shop Elephants, a reference to the thriftiness of Alabamians. That's a lot of weight on your neck. In the 1960s, student Melford Espey would wear an elephant costume to games, much to the delight of legendary coach Paul Bear Bryant. That person will go back into the locker room and the next Big Al will come out for the first quarter. (He was portrayed by a different student, of course, as Espey had long since graduated.). The tradition of an elephant mascot continued for many years, with . We do have a roster on rolltide.com. Some excited fan in the stands bellowed, 'Hold your horses, the elephants are coming,' and out stamped the Alabama varsity. That does get problematic for our September games that are upwards of 98 degrees. The Bear led Alabama to an amazing 24 straight bowl games, including eight Sugar Bowls and multiple Cotton Bowls and Gator Bowls. Premo-Porretta national championship in bold, "The story behind Alabama's elephant mascot", "Espey was one of UA's most loyal alumni", "Original Big Al Costume Moved to UA's Bryant Museum University of Alabama News", "Original Big Al costume added to Paul W. Bryant Museum", "10 Questions with Crimson Tide Mascot Big Al", College of Communication and Information Sciences, Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama v. Garrett, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Big_Al_(mascot)&oldid=1118445329, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 27 October 2022, at 01:50. Given that they are not indigenous to the North American continent, let alone the general Tuscaloosa area, it may seem odd that an elephant serves as the mascot for the University of Alabamas football team. uniforms even crazier than Oregon's, PHOTO: Alabama fan gets massive $1,700 elephant back tattoo, 'Bama's heroic effort in holding heavily favored Auburn to a 66 tie in a mud-soaked game, 'Hold your horses, the elephants are coming,', Top 10 college football live mascots ft. Auburn's "War Eagle", kept a live elephant mascot named "Alamite. By the 1950s, keeping a live elephant year round proved to be too expensive for the university. And then second quarter is kind of their own thing and that will bleed into halftime depending on how long it takes to set up props for the person doing the halftime skit. Thankfully I never had any problems with it. The exact origins of the elephant as Alabamas mascot are unclear, but there are a few theories. It's not just a random date that the food company picked out of thin air. Which isn't to say that elephants didn't factor in prominently to gameday tradition. A sportswriter named Everett Strupper wrote about how head coach Wallace Wade's Alabama team's big and aggressive linemen resembled elephants after pounding . In 1896, a sportswriter for the Birmingham Age-Herald came up with the nickname Crimson Tide to describe the University of Alabamas football team. We also have 'Elephant Stomp' which is at Gorgas Library. Dickey: "We try to keep it a secret for the most part, because we don't want to be on the Quad as Big Al and there be a bunch of kids around us and some drunk college student come and be like, 'Is that trey in there?' Big Al walks into the room and everyone lights up. Another theory is that the schools first football coach, Wallace Wade, had once seen a circus perform in Tuscaloosa and been impressed by the elephants. So join me on this journey as we explore the answer to this important question: Why is Alabamas mascot an elephant? Q: How does being Big Al work with multiple people? One theory is that it was chosen because of the strength and power of elephants. Our head is actually larger than most university mascots. The gray, anthropomorphic elephant has been the team's official mascot since 1979, when Bear Bryant finally approved the trunked animal despite a history that dates back to 1930. Ill also be discussing why an elephant was chosen as the Tides mascot, and what it represents for the team and its fans. The team went on to be named National Champions, according to rolltide.com. The story of how Alabama became associated with the "elephant" goes back to the 1930 season when Coach Wallace Wade had assembled a great football team. Q: What was the process of becoming Big Al? 1 Alabama, No. Needless to say, Alabama opponents in the SEC aren't nearly as fond of seeing the Crimson Tide's elephant mascot. Nothing about No. Sign up for daily stories delivered to your inbox. Although Big Al . So how did one of college football's blue bloods on the path to win its third national title in four years come to be represented by an animal most often associated with the circus, Dumbo and the Republican Party? Big Al is the costumed elephant mascot of the University of Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Since you see out of the corner of your eyes the way they push you up you can see yourself on the screen whenever they put you on the screen. The expiration date also labeled Arew is the go-to source for all your home improvement, gardening, cooking, and family needs. 2 Alabama at Tuscaloosa isn't the Crimson Tide's mascot Big Al. This mirrors the close bond that exists between members of the Alabama Crimson Tide football team and its fans. You get to make everyone's day. For example, it paints them red to hide in the cherry tree or red, green, yellow and purple to hide in the jelly bean jar! William Webster spent four years as Big Al from 2018 to 2021. 1 Alabama's nickname of "Crimson Tide" brings to mind the school's costumed elephant mascot, Big Al, no matter how hard you try. Dickey: "My favorite gamewe lost the game. Bryant Museum in Tuscaloosa, told Yahoo Sports in 2012. So what took so long for the Alabama administration to adopt the animal as the school's official mascot? Big Al was named by a student vote. Another theory is that elephants are widely considered to be lucky animals, and thus choosing one as a mascot would supposedly bring good luck to the Crimson Tide. The elephant, named John Heisman, after the famous coach, was a big hit with students and fans. Take a trip to Tuscaloosa and you'll find Nick Saban, who is undoubtedly the greatest college football coach of our generation. We're actually athletes at the university just as much as a cheerleader is. "Some of the mascots they're afraid of, but they're just drawn to Big Al.". But the same students that worshipped the Bear persisted, and he finally relented in the late 1970s. "We get it a lot from people not familiar with Alabama. That was probably one of the coolest experiences I had as Big Al. Dickey: "We usually arrive at our cart -- we call it the rammer jammer or the RJ -- we'll arrive five hours before the football game. . Big Al was named by a student vote. Later that afternoon, the candidates come either prepared with a minute-and-a-half skit or they can make an impromptu one at tryouts. Even the Alabama Crimson Tide's elephant mascot, Big Al, is considered the GOAT when it comes to the big, furry friends that roam college football's sidelines. The first elephant to be associated with the team was actually a live animal, brought to games in the early 1900s. This could happen for a several reasons, including no shared cipher suites. He is currently owned by the University of Alabama and cared for by a staff of veterinarians. Q: OK, what's it like wearing that suit? So that's kind of looking for the creativity part. Your IP: It is the largest land mammal in the state and is the only elephant that lives in the United States. What does a blinking blue light on a smoke detector mean? In any case, elephants have long been associated with both Alabama athletics and the state of Alabama as a whole. Nonetheless, a student in a doe-eyed elephant costume struts his stuff at every Bama home game, having become a fixture at one of the states proudest institutions. Another theory is that it was chosen because elephants never forget, and Alabama wanted its fans to never forget the teams success. Q: Wait, can Big Al pick things up? Ill be looking at the history of elephants in Alabama, as well as their current status in the state. Strupper and other writers continued to refer to the Alabama linemen as "Red Elephants," the color referring to the crimson jerseys. The biggest thing to look for in someone who wants to be a Big Al is are they creative enough to think on the spot and are they animated enough? Q: What's crowd surfing up the student section like? This tradition continued for many years and eventually, Melford Espey Jr., a student at UA, became the Crimson Tides official mascot by wearing an elephant head costume. Velyrhorde. The mascot represents the strength and power of the Crimson Tide, and its presence on the sidelines is a source of inspiration for the teams players. link to Can you cook mince 1 day out of date? 1 . So Quad is everything that happens before Big Al even arrives in the stadium. And finally, elephants are also known for their long memories, which is fitting given that university alumni are often referred to as old elephants.. Big Al celebrated his first year with Bear Bryant's 300th win against the Kentucky Wildcats and a victory against the Baylor Bears in the 1981 Cotton Bowl. That's what helped me the most in my tryout.". ANSWER. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). And the rest is history. With Bryants support, the university made an elephant the teams official mascot in 1980, and Big Al made his debut at the Sugar Bowl. The elephant in the room going into the Arkansas Razorbacks' 1 p.m. Saturday showdown with No. Despite their large size and weight, elephants are capable of running at up to 25 km/h (16 mph). Hugh Roberts, sports editor for the Birmingham Age-Herald, is widely credited as being the first to use "Crimson Tide" to refer to Alabama's football team. 2 The Big Al costume was first officially worn in 1979. link to How Do You Get Rid Of Hard Calcium Deposits In The Shower? We have five different assignments for every game day split between all five of us. It's the interactions you get to have with people in other circumstances you would never get to meet. In the early days of the University of Alabama (UA), a spirit committee was formed to help boost school morale. It just runs deep. With Bryant's support, the university made an elephant. Big Al never stops moving, and so that is a huge aspect of who he is.". Over time, showerheads can become clogged with deposits of calcium, magnesium, lime, silica, and other minerals. We both went to the tryout together. He received a price quote from Disney for the design and construction of the elephant costume. Crowd surfing is kind of a five minute lay-down-catch-your-breath situation. So very rarely will you see Big Al on the sideline in Bryant-Denny during the third quarter because he's actually up in the boxes visiting people up there. The story of how Alabama became associated with the "elephant" goes back to the 1930 season when Coach Wallace Wade had assembled a great football team. They play 'Tusk' and it's just kind of a cool little tradition we have. [2] Throughout the 1940s, for instance, the University kept a live elephant mascot named "Alamite" that was a regular sight on game days, and it would carry the year's Homecoming queen onto the field every year prior to kickoff at the Homecoming game. It's just kind a fun way to be creative on game day. Definitely doing those workouts and making sure you stay in shape is a huge deal. I don't know how else to put it.". Since then, the Crimson Tides elephant mascot has been represented in a variety of ways, from costumed mascots to cartoon characters. The Crimson Tide's mascot is an elephant because the UA spirit committee began hiring elephants from travelling circuses or Tuscaloosa to attend every homecoming. That's kind of where the trunk and the nose is. Some excited fan in the stands bellowed, 'Hold your horses, the elephants are coming,' and out stamped this Alabama varsity. Unmatched in size that Alabama team knocked me [out] cold, men that I had seen play last year looking like they had nearly doubled in size." ", Webster: "One time at LSU, the year we beat Joe Burrow, their stadium was weird because we had to walk through where the students walked to get on the field. On October 8, 1930, a sportswriter for the Atlanta Journal, Everett Strupper, wrote about the previous weekend's Alabama-Ole Miss football game. The gray, anthropomorphic elephant has been the team's official mascot since 1979, when Bear Bryant finally approved the trunked animal despite a history that dates back to 1930. Q: I guess Big Al can't be too heavy then Webster: "Yeah, there was one year that this guy tried out who was 6-foot-7. Bryant Museum in Tuscaloosa, told Yahoo Sports in 2012. Auburn has two mascots. In addition to being the live mascot at Crimson Tide football games, Big Al is also used in a number of other ways to represent the university. So if it's a pretty day and it's only about 70 degrees, it's probably around 100-110 degrees inside the suit. Dickey: "That's actually a really funny story. The African elephant is larger than its Asian counterpart and has larger ears. Of course, Big Al has very rigorous training to make sure that we're not going to do anything questionable.". The "Big Al" mascot officially debuted at the 1979 Sugar Bowl, when the 1979 Alabama Crimson Tide football team defeated the Arkansas Razorbacks. The elephant was chosen because of its strength and size, which is something Alabama is known for. 2 Alabama the national title. The tradition of using an elephant as a mascot has continued ever since. The students were really involved in the game. Strupper wrote a story on October 8, 1930, describing Alabama's college football team after watching them pound Mississippi, 64-0, on October 4. After originally going by "varsity," "Crimson White" (the school colors) and "The Thin Red Line," Birmingham Age-Herald sports editor Hugh Roberts coined the term "Crimson Tide" to describe 'Bama's heroic effort in holding heavily favored Auburn to a 66 tie in a mud-soaked game in 1907 that had the 'Bama players looking like a red tidal wave. The history of the Alabama Crimson Tide's elephant mascot is a long and storied one. However, elephants featured prominently to gameday tradition long before this point. It doesn't look very good. None of us even have close to a full scholarship. Since then, Alphie has been a fixture at Alabama sporting events, accompanying the football team onto the field before every home game. The no thumbs -- that takes some getting used to. Henry "Zipp" Newman, who became the sports editor of the Birmingham News at the age of 25, helped popularize the nickname. Photo courtesy of William Webster. Is Alabama's mascot an elephant? Well, the story goes all the way back to the 1930 National Championship team. He told Paige that several schools in the Southeastern Conference had obtained mascot costumes and proposed that the University of Alabama should get one as well. It's definitely not the reason to be Big Al. [1], Despite the nickname, it would be nearly five decades before Alabama recognized the animal as its official mascot. When those big brutes hit you I mean you go down and stay down, often for an additional two minutes. The story of how Alabama became associated with the "elephant" goes back to the 1930 season when Coach Wallace Wade had assembled a great football team. Q: What was your favorite game or moment as Big Al? Additional troubleshooting information here. On October 8, 1930, sports writer Everett Strupper of the Atlanta Journal wrote a story of the Alabama-Mississippi game he had witnessed in Tuscaloosa four days earlier. From that point, Strupper started calling Alabama the Red Elephants, and the association stuck. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. 'S a lot from people not familiar with Alabama few theories character and walk of Big 's... 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