Well, the first round is officially in the books, and the Wash U Bears became the third #1 seed to go out in the first round. I guess their Christmas color scheme didn’t do them any favors. I wonder if they would have won if the game had been played in December… That’s dumb. The rest of the matchups pretty much went according the form. The Banana Slugs laid an epic beat down on the Eagles. Now that both sets of eagles and both sets of tigers are out of the way, hopefully we can start getting to some real mascot matchups.
I’m going to split the second round into two weeks because four matches a week seems to be the appropriate number of polls to have on the left side of the blog. Since it’s been a while for some of these teams, and I’m sure they’re eager to see how their mascots fare in the second round, I’m going to start with the “top” half.
8. Tufts Jumbos vs. 5. Case Spartans
In the first round, the Jumbos stampeded their way to an easy victory over the #1 seeds, and the Spartans needed a couple last minute votes to pull out the victory over the Panthers. I really don’t think this should be much of a contest. Tufts has a unique mascot to go with two awesome logos, and the best color scheme there is. For those of you who think the Jumbo is ill-fitting of a Massachusetts school, the mascot actually has a quirky and interesting history.
If the Spartans want to pull off the upset, they’re going to have to appeal to emotion. How could the Spartans lose nary a week after the release of Halo 4? How could anyone choose the elephants when this, incredibly bazaar video is available for anyone to watch on Youtube? I’m still going with the Jumbos, but a little Covenant-killing action makes a strangely compelling case for Western (ha… ha… ok, I’m done).
3. P-P Sagehens vs. 7. Gustavus Adolphus Golden Gusties
Four weeks ago, Pomona-Pitzer won on the strength of their actual mascot. The Sagehen is unique, and it should have been good enough to get them into the Elite Eight by itself, but, with the Gusties pulling off one of the surprises of the first round by beating the Blue Jays, I think P-P has to pull out the big guns this week. I don’t know when this started, but a couple of years ago, the P-P tennis guys apparently decided that the existing Sagehen wasn’t badass enough to accurately represent a bunch of rich, white tennis player, so they came up with this little ditty. I’m a huge fan of teams creating their own personality, so naturally, I love this mascot. Orange and blue is an awesome color scheme to begin with, but it also makes perfect sense for the school and the mascot. These guys have to get through to the next round.
Standing in their way are the Gustavus Golden Gusties. Since nobody has told me what these three crowns mean, not much has changed for GAC. I still love their mascot, and their black jerseys, and their program, and their Indoor National Championships. I just think they’re a little overmatched mascot-wise this round. They’ve proven me wrong before, and it’s obvious that the Midwest schools know how to get the vote out. If not, this might happen. I know, I cried too.
1. Kenyon Lords vs. 5. CMU Tartans
I’m absolutely thrilled that the Tartans made it through to the second round. The bobcats are a good mascot, but they are a little to ho hum. Yes, they are both vicious and cute, but the mascot is essentially a slightly more unique tiger. They just can’t compete with a pattern consisting of criss-crossed horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colors. All kidding aside, I really like the Tartans mascot. Unlike some other mascots (I’m talking to you Bishops), Tartans rolls of the tongue when shouted gutturally in the midst of a heated match. Have I mentioned how much I dig Carnegie’s sweet logo and… umm… provocative live mascot?
Did I also mention how lame I think the Lords mascot is? Their mascot is literally a rich, white dude. Basically, their mascot is what they (predominantly) already are. I’m not an expert, but I think they missed the point of a mascot. Like I said last time, I like their coat of arms, and they really know how to rock the purple, but I don’t think it’s going to be enough to get them past a unique, awesome mascot like Scotty. About the only thing lamer than having your mascot be the “Lords” would be having your mascot be the “Ladies.” Oh wait…
6. Skidmore Thoroughbreds vs. 2. Bowdoin Polar Bears
Speaking of mascots that are hard to yell during a tennis match… Three syllables is one too many. I honestly can’t think of a way to yell that so that it sounds cool, unless they have enough fans to start of Tho-rough-breds! chant, but even then, you can’t exactly do that between points. Skidmore has a great mascot and a great logo, but I have a hard time believing they could take down the Polar Bears. Personally, I would never want to get in a fight with a horse, but we’re talking about an animal that usually from its own weight if it breaks its leg. The fact that horses are as prominent as they are today is an evolutionary mystery, but they sure are pretty.
This is a video of a polar bear cub. This is a video of a polar bear fight. This is a video of polar bears playing with dogs. This is the Bowdoin Polar Bear logo. And since I know you were all missing election season, a vote for the polar bears is a vote against global warming. Any questions?
It’s certainly worth checking out the Sagehens fine mating ritual. You’ll thank me.