Battle of the birds
YoUDee faces off against Carolina's Cocky in mascot challenge
1:17 p.m., Sept. 24, 2012--In a hard-fought battle that came down to the final hours, the University of Delaware’s national champion mascot YoUDee was edged out in the third round of the 2012 Capitol One Mascot Challenge by Sebastian the Ibis of the University of Miami (Fla.)
The vote was 50-50 early Monday, with Sebastian pulling ahead for the win as the morning wore on.
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YoUDee is now 2-1 in the challenge and this week is matched against unbeaten Cocky of the University of South Carolina.
In addition to YoUDee, the challenge features All-America team mascots Wilma T. Wildcat of the University of Arizona, Testudo of the University of Maryland, Cam the Ram of Colorado State University, Truman the Tiger of the University of Missouri, Ms. Wuf of North Carolina State University, the Scarlet Knight of Rutgers University and Sebastian the Ibis of the University of Miami.
Also vying for the national title are Cosmo of Brigham Young University, Raider Red of Texas Tech University, Sparty of Michigan State University, Mike the Tiger of Louisiana State University, Wolfie Jr. of the University of Nevada, Bucky Badger of the University of Wisconsin, the Duck of the University of Oregon and Cocky of the University of South Carolina.
Fans can vote at www.CapitalOneBowl.com and on Facebook as well as Twitter. All voting information appears at the Capital One Bowl website.
The top eight mascots with the best head-to-head records will compete in a bracket-style, single-elimination competition to determine the overall winner. Three mascots – Cocky, Sebastian and Michigan State University’s Sparty – are unbeaten in the first three rounds. YoUDee is one of five mascots at 2-1.
“We very much appreciate the efforts of loyal Blue Hens everywhere who are voting for YoUDee in the Capital One Mascot Challenge,” said Sharon Harris of UD’s Office of Communications and Marketing, director of the YoUDee program. “As the contest moves into the fourth round against a formidable foe in Cocky, we encourage UD fans around the world to continue to cast their ballots as the competition continues with round four.”
YoUDee is the defending national mascot champion, having won the top prize at the Universal Cheerleaders Association (UCA) College Cheerleading and Dance National Championships held in January at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla.
After being selected by Capital One, members of the YoUDee mascot team traveled to Los Angeles to participate in the preparation of promotional materials for the challenge.
The Capital One National Mascot of the Year will be announced at the Capital One Bowl on Jan. 1, 2013, and will be awarded a $20,000 scholarship to help fund its school’s mascot program. Each of the 2012 Capital One All-America team members will also receive $5,000 for their university mascot program.