Mike the Tiger - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Mike the Tiger is the official mascot

Mascot

The term mascot – defined as a term for any person, animal, or object thought to bring luck – colloquially includes anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name...

of Louisiana State University

Louisiana State University

Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...

in Baton Rouge and serves as the graphic image of LSU sports. By tradition the tiger is a live Bengal tiger

Bengal Tiger

The Bengal tiger is a tiger subspecies native to the Indian subcontinent that in 2010 has been classified as endangered by IUCN...

, although, the last two tigers were of mixed breeds. Mike V was a Bengali-Indochinese mix, while Mike VI is a Bengali-Siberian hybrid.

Costumed Mike appears at most LSU sporting events and also appears at several LSU-related functions. In August 2007, Costumed Mike was featured on a This Is SportsCenter

This is SportsCenter

This is SportsCenter is the name of a series of comical television commercials run by ESPN to promote their SportsCenter sports news show. The ads are presented in a deadpan mockumentary style, lampooning various aspects of sports, and sports broadcasting. The commercials debuted in 1994...

Commercial with LSU alum Shaquille O'Neal

Shaquille O'Neal

Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal , nicknamed "Shaq" , is a former American professional basketball player. Standing tall and weighing , he was one of the heaviest players ever to play in the NBA...

.

LSU's men's and women's sports teams are called the Fighting Tigers and Lady Tigers, respectively, and the university's football team plays its home games in Tiger Stadium

Tiger Stadium (LSU)

Tiger Stadium is an outdoor stadium located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It is best known as the home stadium of the Louisiana State University football team.Tiger Stadium opened with a capacity of 12,000 in 1924...

. LSU first adopted its "Tigers" nickname in the fall of 1896. The moniker is a reference to the state's Confederate

Confederate States of America

The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...

heritage; the Louisiana

Louisiana

Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...

troops of Robert E. Lee

Robert E. Lee

Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....

's Army of Northern Virginia

Army of Northern Virginia

The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...

became known as the Tigers during the Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

in recognition of the bravery of two New Orleans brigades, the Tiger Rifles

Louisiana Tigers

Louisiana Tigers was the common nickname for certain infantry troops from the state of Louisiana in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. Originally applied to a specific company, the nickname expanded to a battalion, then to a brigade, and eventually to all Louisiana troops...

and the Washington Artillery (whose logo featured a snarling tiger's head).

Mike I (1936–1956)

Born on October 10, 1935, the first Mike was purchased from the Little Rock Zoo

Little Rock Zoo

The Little Rock Zoo was founded in 1926 and is located in Little Rock, Arkansas, United States.It is presently home to more than 725 animals representing over 200 species, and covers an area of...

with money raised by collecting 25 cents from each LSU student for a total of $750. Originally named Sheik, the new mascot was renamed in honor of Mike Chambers, LSU's athletic trainer at the time, who was the person most responsible for bringing him to the school. Mike assumed his duties as the living symbol of LSU only three days after arriving on campus on October 21, 1936. In the 1950s, Mike was kidnapped by Tulane fans before a Tiger-Green Wave football game. He was found, abandoned, in New Orleans -- he and his cage sprayed Tulane green. Mike I lived for 20 years before dying of kidney disease in 1956. He has been displayed in the LSU Natural Sciences Museum on the campus in Baton Rouge.

Mike II (1956–1958)

A few days after Mike I's death, a resolution endorsing the purchase of another tiger was introduced in the Louisiana legislature

Legislature

A legislature is a kind of deliberative assembly with the power to pass, amend, and repeal laws. The law created by a legislature is called legislation or statutory law. In addition to enacting laws, legislatures usually have exclusive authority to raise or lower taxes and adopt the budget and...

and a fund was set up by LSU students to underwrite the cost. Mike II had a short but somewhat mysterious life. He was born on February 28, 1956 at the Audubon Zoo

Audubon Zoo

The Audubon Zoo is a zoo located in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is part of the Audubon Nature Institute which also manages the Aquarium of the Americas. The zoo covers and is home to 2,000 animals. It is located in a section of Audubon Park in Uptown New Orleans, on the Mississippi River side of...

in New Orleans and was chosen because his paws were larger than those of the other cubs. He was unveiled on September 29, 1956, during the opening game of the new football season. Legend has it that less than a month after his arrival at LSU, Mike II died of pneumonia, at only eight months of age, during a six-game losing streak and that a second Mike II was secretly brought in as a ringer. To explain Mike's absence, and after much rumor, the LSU student newspaper, The Daily Reveille, printed a statement that the young tiger needed time alone to adjust to his new home and position as mascot, with its attendant excitement. All rumors of Mike II's death and replacement were denied. The official story is that Mike II reigned for only one football season before his death on May 15, 1958 in Audubon Zoo

Audubon Zoo

of complications associated with multiple fractures to his left rear leg.

Mike III (1958–1976)

Mike III was born on November 26, 1957 and arrived from the Seattle Zoo

Woodland Park Zoo

Woodland Park Zoo is a zoological garden around the Phinney Ridge neighborhood of Seattle, Washington. Occupying the western half of Woodland Park, the zoo began as a small menagerie on the estate of Guy C. Phinney, a Canadian-born lumber mill owner and real estate developer...

just in time for LSU's 1958 National Championship

1958 LSU Tigers football team

The 1958 LSU Tigers segregated football team represented Louisiana State University during the 1958 college football season. Under head coach Paul Dietzel, the Tigers cruised to an undefeated season capped by a win over Clemson in the Sugar Bowl...

football season. During Mike III's 18-year reign, LSU also won three Southeastern Conference

Southeastern Conference

The Southeastern Conference is an American college athletic conference that operates in the southeastern part of the United States. It is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama...

football championships (1958, 1961, 1970) and eight of 13 bowl games. Mike III died of pneumonia in 1976 after the only losing LSU football season of his lifetime. The mascot's death affected the students and faculty so greatly that the vet at the time, W. Sheldon Bivin, said he would never allow another tiger to die on campus.

Mike IV (1976–1990)

Mike IV, originally called Jerry, was born at Busch Gardens

Busch Gardens

Busch Gardens is the name of two amusement parks in the United States, owned and operated by SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, a division of Blackstone Group. One of the parks is in Williamsburg, Virginia, and the other is in Tampa, Florida...

in Tampa

Tâmpa

Tâmpa may refer to several villages in Romania:* Tâmpa, a village in Băcia Commune, Hunedoara County* Tâmpa, a village in Miercurea Nirajului, Mureş County* Tâmpa, a mountain in Braşov city...

, Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

in 1974. He was donated by August A. Busch III and was two years old when he came to LSU in August 1976. One memorable incident involving Mike IV began in the early-morning hours of November 28, 1981 when pranksters cut the locks on Mike's cage. The tiger roamed freely for hours, attacked a small tree, and appeared to be enjoying himself before becoming trapped in the Track Stadium near his cage. Three tranquilizer shots later, the wandering mascot was returned to his home without further incident and awoke without ill effects. Mike IV reigned for 14 years and retired in 1990 to the Baton Rouge Zoo where he lived until his death in 1995 at the age of 21, the oldest of the tigers serving as LSU's mascot.

Mike V (1990–2007)

Mike V was considered to have the best personality of all the tigers that have served as LSU's symbol. Originally named Stevie, he was donated by Dr. Thomas and Caroline Atchison of the Animal House Zoological Park in Moulton

Moulton, Alabama

Moulton is a city in Lawrence County, Alabama, and is included in the Decatur Metropolitan Area, as well as the Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area. As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 3,260. The city is the county seat of Lawrence County.-Geography:Moulton is located at ...

, Alabama

Alabama

Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...

. Born on October 19, 1989, the 7-pound baby tiger was introduced to LSU fans at a basketball game in February 1990. In his 17-year reign, Mike V saw an LSU football team win another National Championship (in 2003

2003 LSU Tigers football team

The 2003 LSU Tigers football team represented Louisiana State University in the college football season of 2003–2004. Coached by Nick Saban, the Tigers played their home games at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. After a bit of controversy, LSU won the BCS National Championship, the first...

) and received both a new trailer and a massive renovation of his enclosure.

In March 2007, Mike V officially began a three-stage retirement. His personal vet, David Baker, cited his age and health as reasons. Mike V retained his mascot status and lived in his on-campus habitat until his death.

Mike the Tiger died on May 18, 2007 at 2:23 AM, which coincided with the undergraduate commencement ceremonies. The cause of death was renal failure

Renal failure

Renal failure or kidney failure describes a medical condition in which the kidneys fail to adequately filter toxins and waste products from the blood...

Mike VI (2007–present)

After Mike V's death PETA

Peta

Peta can refer to:* peta-, an SI prefix denoting a factor of 1015* Peta, Greece, a town in Greece* Peta, the Pāli word for a Preta, or hungry ghost in Buddhism* Peta Wilson, an Australian actress and model* Peta Todd, English glamour model...

contacted the university and urged them not to replace him with a new tiger.

However, LSU chancellor Sean O'Keefe

Sean O'Keefe

Sean O'Keefe is the CEO of EADS North America, a subsidiary of the European aerospace firm EADS, a former Administrator of NASA, and former chancellor of Louisiana State University . O'Keefe is also a former member of the board of directors of DuPont...

rejected PETA's request by stating that LSU would acquire a new tiger. O'Keefe further defended LSU's decision by noting that four of the previous five 'Mikes' lived to be at least 17 years, nearly twice the normal 8-10 year lifespan of tigers in the wild. O'Keefe further explained that tigers were currently a critically endangered species in the wild, and any attempt to preserve them as a species would require some level of raising them in captivity, such as at LSU's veterinary school.

LSU did not wish to buy a tiger but instead sought for one to be donated to the school. On July 27, 2007 WBRZ ABC News 2 announced that LSU had located a tiger at Great Cats of (Idaville) Indiana, an Indiana-based large cat and carnivore rescue facility.

"Roscoe" arrived in Baton Rouge on Saturday, August 25, 2007, after a plane ride from Indiana

Indiana

Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...

and was kept quarantined in the "night house" in the LSU habitat, away from the public. On August 31, 2007, LSU officials decided that the tiger was adjusting well and allowed him into the public habitat during morning outings. He was returned to the night house each evening. On his first outing on September 1, 2007, LSU staff invited members of the media and the public to view and take photographs of the tiger.

On September 8, 2007, LSU staff acknowledged that "He’s Mike VI" in a press release.. A ceremony dedicating the tiger as officially "Mike VI" took place on September 14, 2007, Mike VI was to make his Death Valley

Tiger Stadium (LSU)

debut at the September 22 game against the University of South Carolina

University of South Carolina

The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...

., but LSU Veterinarian David Baker felt that a day game would be rough for the new tiger, delaying his anticipated debut until the October 6, 2007 night game against the University of Florida

University of Florida

The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...

.

Mike VI is a 5-year old Siberian-Bengal mix male currently weighing over 450 pounds. The product of an "unintended breeding" at Great Cats, University staff believe his youth, size and temperament may give the athletic department a "more ferocious mascot much sooner than watching a cub grow up at LSU." Estimates by LSU Veterinary staff are that Mike VI may top out at 600 lb (272.2 kg) or more, making him LSU's largest tiger mascot ever.

In Mike VI's first year as the LSU tiger, the LSU football

LSU Tigers football

The LSU Tigers football team, also known as the Fighting Tigers or Bayou Bengals, represents Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States in NCAA Division I FBS college football. Current head coach Les Miles has led the team since 2005. Since 1999 when Nick Saban took over as...

team won the BCS National Championship

2007 LSU Tigers football team

The 2007 LSU Tigers football team represented Louisiana State University during the college football season of 2007–2008, winning the Southeastern Conference championship and the national championship. The team's Head Coach was Les Miles who entered his third year at the helm of LSU Football...

for the 2007 college football

College football

College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...

season.

Mike VI is frequently visited by Darrell Bezet, who is known as "Darrell, Tiger Whisperer." Brought to local stardom through YouTube and word-of-mouth, Bezet is often at Mike VI's habitat talking and playing with him. Observers say that Mike VI instantly recognizes Bezet's white Lincoln Towncar and his distinct walk, steadied by his black cane, as soon as he arrives at the habitat. After watching Bezet for several seconds, Mike will ease into a pouncing stance, inching closer to him. Then without hesitation, he'll sprint and launch himself towards Bezet, pawing and jumping at the net that separates the two. At which point, a giggling and pawing back Bezet will respond:

“That’s my buddy! I love you, too! That’s my buddy!”

Upon drawing crowds to watch Mike VI interact with Bezet, an onlooker has recalled:

“One time [Bezet] came in the afternoon, and that’s when Mike sleeps in the corner. There were people in the corner calling and as soon as [Bezet] said, ‘Hey buddy,’ boom! He’s right up."

New habitat

In 2005, a new $3 million habitat was created for Mike. The Tiger Athletic Foundation (TAF) raised funds, entirely from private sources, to subsidize the construction project. The habitat (situated between Tiger Stadium

Tiger Stadium (LSU)

and the Pete Maravich Assembly Center

Pete Maravich Assembly Center

Pete Maravich Assembly Center is a 13,472-seat multi-purpose arena in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The arena opened in 1972. It is home to the Louisiana State University Tigers and Lady Tigers basketball teams. It was originally known as the LSU Assembly Center, but was renamed in memory of Pete...

) features state-of-the-art technologies and includes among its amenities lush plantings, a waterfall, a flowing stream that empties into a wading pond, and rocky plateaus. The new habitat ranks among the largest and finest Tiger preserves in the country and expanded Mike's home from 2,000 to 15000 square feet (1,393.5 m²). It also features research, conservation, and husbandry programs, as well as educational, interpretive, and recreational activities. Mike's new home can be viewed via the live Tigercam.

Retirement

After the death of Mike III in 1976 while he was still LSU's active mascot, a three-stage retirement plan was instituted for the tigers:

Stage 1: He no longer participates in pre-game events such as the roar before the game.
Stage 2: He stops attending the games altogether.
Stage 3: He retires to another location.

Traditions

On home football game days, Mike's cage on wheels is parked by the opponent's locker room at the southeast end of Tiger Stadium. Opposing players must pass by Mike's cage in order to reach their locker room.
With his cage topped by the LSU cheerleaders, Mike rides through Tiger Stadium before the start of home games.
According to tradition, LSU will score a touchdown for every one of Mike's roars on game day.
Many students seek to take a picture with Mike on graduation day wearing cap and gown.
After a new search for a mascot is announced, the public eagerly anticipates white smoke blowing from the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, announcing that the new tiger has been located, mimicking the white smoke which billows from the Sistine Chapel
Sistine Chapel
Sistine Chapel is the best-known chapel in the Apostolic Palace, the official residence of the Pope in Vatican City. It is famous for its architecture and its decoration that was frescoed throughout by Renaissance artists including Michelangelo, Sandro Botticelli, Pietro Perugino, Pinturicchio...

when a new Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...

is elected.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Mike I (1936–1956)

Mike II (1956–1958)

Mike III (1958–1976)

Mike IV (1976–1990)

Mike V (1990–2007)

Mike VI (2007–present)

New habitat

Retirement

Traditions

Further reading

External links