Aug. 29, 2011
Vote For Buzz
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TEXT BUZZ to 78527 to vote for Buzz
MCLEAN, Va. – After a few years off, Georgia Tech’s own mascot, Buzz, will be back in competition as a representative in the Capital One Mascot Challenge during the 2011 Football Season. Buzz is one of 16 mascots chosen from all across the country, and all walks of life to compete in the 10th annual challenge.
The 16 mascots, representing nine conferences and including several natural gridiron rivalries, will go head-to-head throughout the college football season in a battle royale determined exclusively by fan voting. When the dust – and fur – settles, one lucky creature will be named the Capital One National Mascot of the Year at the 2012 Capital One Bowl.
Members of the 2011 Capital One All-America Mascot Team, as nominated by their schools and selected by a panel of judges from Capital One and the mascot community, are detailed below.
Buzz of Georgia Tech
Wilbur T. Wildcat of University of Arizona
Sparty of Michigan State University
Aubie of Auburn University
Mike the Tiger of Louisiana State University
Testudo of the University of Maryland
Wolfie Jr. of the University of Nevada
Hairy Dawg of the University of Georgia
Boomer of the University of Oklahoma
Brutus Buckeye of The Ohio State University
Big Blue of Old Dominion University
Duck of the University of Oregon
Benny Beaver of Oregon State University
SuperFrog of TCU
Cy of Iowa State
Big Red of Western Kentucky University
New this year, fans will be able to view never told before stories for each mascot to learn more about their journey to become National Mascot of the Year. The videos will be available on www.CapitalOneBowl.com and www.Facebook.com/MascotChallenge all season long.
Buzz will face off against Sparty, the Michigan State Spartan in the first week of competition, followed by a rivalry match up in week two with Hairy Dog out of Georgia in the featured match up of the week.
“The Capital One Mascot Challenge is a long-standing tradition for our organization during the college football season,” said Marc Mentry, Senior Vice President of Advertising and Sponsorships at Capital One. “We are proud to honor these unheralded mascots who tirelessly roam the sidelines cheering on their schools. The fan support and growth of this program has been outstanding over the past 10 years, as evidenced by the millions of fan votes cast each year. We are anxious to see how this year’s competition plays out.”
The 16 mascots will go head-to-furry-head for 12 weeks during the college football regular season in a voting contest to determine the Capital One National Mascot of the Year. Fans will be able to vote at www.CapitalOneBowl.com , on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/MascotChallenge and via text voting. Regular season voting officially opens at 12 p.m. EST on August 29, 2011, and continues weekly through November 21, 2011. The top eight mascots with the best head-to-head records will then compete in a bracket-style, single-elimination competition to determine the overall winner.
The Capital One National Mascot of the Year will be announced at the Capital One Bowl on January 2, 2012 and will be awarded a $20,000 scholarship to help fund its school’s mascot program. Each of the 2011 Capital One All-America team members receives $5,000 for their university mascot program.
