Hippos and Buttons and Iron Maidens...Oh My!

Texas' Strangest HS Mascots

By Bobby Horn Jr.

Sun Editor

Are you ready for some football? Ready or not, here it comes.

One of the great things about football is the pageantry of the game; the bands, the drill teams and the mascots. Texas may not have a monopoly on strange mascots, but we do have a fair amount. Of course there are the usuals- The Eagles being the most popular with 151 schools. There are 101 Bulldogs (and Bulldawgs) in Texas and 78 Tigers.

Rabbits may be unique to Texas, but travel to Wabasso HS in Minnesota and you will find Rabbits. Wabasso is the local Native American word for “white rabbit.” Long Beach Polytechnic High, which boasts among its famous alumni baseball great Tony Gwynn, is the Jackrabbits.

But where else can you find Hippos (Hutto HS), Deer (Deer Park HS) and Iron Maidens (Cy-Fair HS’s female lacrosse team) but in Texas.

How would you like your mascot to sound like a cookie? In Amarillo fans will be cheering for the Sandies. OK, “Sandie” is a nickname for a sand storm- something common to Amarillo. But why not call them the Storm, but Sandie?

Read full column in Sept. 2, 2015 edition