Knightro
Encyclopedia
Knightro is the official mascot of the University of Central Florida
, and its sports teams, the Knights
. Knightro appears at UCF sporting events and also appears at UCF-related functions. Knightro is sometimes seen riding a horse around the campus, and occasionally uses a custom car designed and built by UCF Engineering
students dubbed "Chariot II."
The first costume was made by Costume World, of Pompano Beach. Gordon filled the mascot position during that first season of 1994-95. At the start of the 1995-96 season, Trey recruited a freshman engineering student named Jay Lovelace to join him. Lovelace would fill the position of Knightro for four more years. In 1996, a new Knightro was created by a Disney character developer, and the female "Glycerin" was added. But after two years, the costumes had fallen apart.
In 1998, Dave Minichello, of Wizzards Production, created the molds for the third rendition of Knightro. In 2000, Glycerin was phased out and the glitter finish was added to Knightro's coat. In 2005-2006, a group of senior engineering students, as a part of their senior project, created a motorized car, called the Chariot II, for Knightro to use during the annual Homecoming Parade.
Today, Knightro is operated by the Team Knightro Mascot Squad, which consists of 3-5 students who perform in costume at all football games, men's and women's basketball games, other athletic events, pep rallies, and special events and appearances. The head coach for Team Knightro is Mike Callahan, a former member of Team Knightro.
The mascot was revised for the 2007 season, as part of the "Knights are Coming Home" campaign, where the athletics department dropped "Golden" from the team name, released new logos, and opened new on-campus venues (Bright House Networks Stadium
and the new UCF Arena
.) Knightro's look has been updated to closely resemble the new logo, this time with a fully enclosed helmet. The newest addition to Knightro includes his name spelled out on the back of his cape.
Knightro also placed second in EA Sports
' fan poll to select the mascot that would grace the cover of the Wii
version of NCAA Football 09
. EA Sports used the older version of Knightro for the poll and all related material, even though it was held exclusively in 2008, after Knightro's redesign.
Finally, Knightro also submits a video each year to the Capital One Mascot Challenge. In 2009, he was the alternate for the competition.
University of Central Florida
The University of Central Florida, commonly referred to as UCF, is a metropolitan public research university located in Orlando, Florida, United States...
, and its sports teams, the Knights
UCF Knights
The UCF Knights are the athletics teams of the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Florida. All of UCF's varsity sports teams are known as the Knights, with the women's teams sometimes referred to as the "Lady Knights." The Knights, which includes the university's 16 varsity sports teams,...
. Knightro appears at UCF sporting events and also appears at UCF-related functions. Knightro is sometimes seen riding a horse around the campus, and occasionally uses a custom car designed and built by UCF Engineering
University of Central Florida College of Engineering and Computer Science
The UCF College of Engineering and Computer Science is an academic college of the University of Central Florida located in Orlando, Florida, USA. The dean of the college is Marwan A. Simaan, Ph.D....
students dubbed "Chariot II."
History
In 1994 a committee was formed to explore and develop a character mascot that would attend athletics events. A number of drawings were submitted by Trey Gordon. With Linda Gooch, Gordon and SGA commissioned Metropolis Graphics to sketch a knight. UCF's first mascot had been the Citronaut in 1969.The first costume was made by Costume World, of Pompano Beach. Gordon filled the mascot position during that first season of 1994-95. At the start of the 1995-96 season, Trey recruited a freshman engineering student named Jay Lovelace to join him. Lovelace would fill the position of Knightro for four more years. In 1996, a new Knightro was created by a Disney character developer, and the female "Glycerin" was added. But after two years, the costumes had fallen apart.
In 1998, Dave Minichello, of Wizzards Production, created the molds for the third rendition of Knightro. In 2000, Glycerin was phased out and the glitter finish was added to Knightro's coat. In 2005-2006, a group of senior engineering students, as a part of their senior project, created a motorized car, called the Chariot II, for Knightro to use during the annual Homecoming Parade.
Today, Knightro is operated by the Team Knightro Mascot Squad, which consists of 3-5 students who perform in costume at all football games, men's and women's basketball games, other athletic events, pep rallies, and special events and appearances. The head coach for Team Knightro is Mike Callahan, a former member of Team Knightro.
The mascot was revised for the 2007 season, as part of the "Knights are Coming Home" campaign, where the athletics department dropped "Golden" from the team name, released new logos, and opened new on-campus venues (Bright House Networks Stadium
Bright House Networks Stadium
Bright House Networks Stadium is the football stadium for the University of Central Florida’s football team, nicknamed the Knights. Located in Knights Plaza on the main campus of the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Florida, the stadium was the first on-campus stadium in NCAA Division I...
and the new UCF Arena
UCF Arena
The UCF Arena is a multi-purpose arena complex located on the main campus of the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Florida, USA. It is the home to the UCF Knights men's and women's basketball teams...
.) Knightro's look has been updated to closely resemble the new logo, this time with a fully enclosed helmet. The newest addition to Knightro includes his name spelled out on the back of his cape.
Competitions
Knightro competes in the UCA Mascot National Championships each year and has been ranked numerous times. He has placed in the following positions: 1994: 4th place, 1996: 6th place, 2003: 10th place, 2004: 10th place, 2008: 8th place, and 2011: 9th place. Knightro continues to work for a national championship every year.Knightro also placed second in EA Sports
EA Sports
EA Sports is a brand of Electronic Arts that creates and develops sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they tried to mimic real-life sports networks by calling themselves "EA Sports Network" with pictures or endorsements of real commentators such as John...
' fan poll to select the mascot that would grace the cover of the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
version of NCAA Football 09
NCAA Football 09
NCAA Football 09 is a college football video game created by EA Sports, a subsidiary of Electronic Arts. The game was announced on February 14, and was released on July 15,...
. EA Sports used the older version of Knightro for the poll and all related material, even though it was held exclusively in 2008, after Knightro's redesign.
Finally, Knightro also submits a video each year to the Capital One Mascot Challenge. In 2009, he was the alternate for the competition.