[edit] History

Sammy the Owl is the mascot at Rice University An early symbol of Rice's athletic teams was large canvas owl, a tempting target for the Institute's rivals. In 1917, when students from Southwest Conference football rival Texas A&M kidnapped the owl, Rice students pooled their resources and hired a private detective to go to College Station to find the missing mascot. When the detective, having recovered the owl, sent a coded telegram to Houston that read "Sammy is fairly well and would like to see his parents at eleven o'clock," the Rice mascot had a name.

Eventually, the canvas representation of Sammy was replaced with a live owl. During this period, handlers kept Sammy in a roost in front of Lovett College. Prior to football games, Sammy was known to fly into the stadium.

Sammy the Owl at a Rice football game in 2007

Rice University's later discontinued its tradition of a live owl, replacing it with a student dressed in an owl suit. As such, Sammy the Owl is an elected position of the Rice University Student Body.

[edit] Notable events

• 1917 - Canvas depiction of Rice Owl stolen by students from Texas A&M. Mascot is recovered and given name Sammy.
• 1991 - Sammy the Owl suit reinvented and redesigned to meet the needs of the 6'+ Keith Jaasma and Greg Meeks.
• 1995 - Student Sammy the Owl is tried before UCourt (Rice student judicial organization) on charges stemming from November 9, 1995 football game against No. 9 Texas A&M.
• 1995 - Sammy the Owl elected homecoming queen.
• 1996 - Sammy receives a make-over and a new suit is unveiled. This suit would later be ranked as one of the worst collegiate mascot uniforms.
• 2004 - Sammy the Owl is featured in Playboy Magazine's story on College Mascots^[1]
• 2006 - Sammy the Owl suit is replaced.
• 2007 - Sammy joined Facebook, the popular online social community.
• 2009 - Sammy is ejected from a basketball game against Tulane for bumping an official.

[edit] Other appearances

Sammy the Owl has also served as the image of Rice athletics for many years. Past images have depicted Sammy as wearing a sailor hat. In 1995, the image of the owl swooping in behind the university's name replaced old images of Sammy.

The Rice Thresher awards its annual "Sammies" to the best performances in Rice theater. These awards are given by the Thresher staff without consultation with the mascot, but use his name nonetheless. Remarkably, Greg Meeks, Sammy the Owl, 1991-1992 also won a Sammie best actor award for his performance as Richard the Lionheart in 1992.

Sammy the Owl is also the mascot of a fictional high school in the movie Rushmore, filmed in Houston.

[edit] Debates Surrounding Sammy

Sammy the Owl is elected annually during the Rice University Student Association's spring election. This practice, however, has been debated since the mid-1990s. In 1995, following an incident during the Rice-Texas A&M football game, the question of who should be responsible for Sammy the Owl was raised. Following much debate, it was decided that Sammy would remain an elected student, but would be formally accountable to the athletics department.

[edit] Past Sammys

[edit] References

1. ^ Playboy.com - On Campus - College Team Mascots - Sammy the Owl - Rice University
2. ^ U. Court to try Sammy the Owl (December 8, 1995)
3. ^ The Thresher Online: Election Notes (March 22, 1996)
4. ^ The Thresher Online: Election Results (March 21, 1997)
5. ^ The Rice Thresher Online
6. ^ The Rice Thresher Online | NEWS | IM fee approved in Spring Elections
7. ^ http://sa.rice.edu/files/2008%20SA%20General%20Election%20Results.pdf