andyphelan45, Flickr
Apparently, Dave Brandon is interested in having a mascot. That is not surprising, since, bit by bit, Brandon is chipping away at whatever it may be that many Michigan fans used to hold sacred. If you have paid attention to Brandon in his time as the Michigan athletic director, you would know that the Michigan brand and Michigan tradition is very important to him — except when it interferes with a cash grab.
In an article for the online magazine Michigan Today, Brandon is essentially quoted as saying he wants to brainwash children so he can have their parents’ money today, tomorrow, the next day, and then take the children’s money as soon as they start getting an allowance. (Somehow, Michigan Today attributed this to his “spirit of competition.”)
Brandon said: “I’m struck by the fact that when opposing teams come to our stadium, and they bring a mascot, all of our young fans are lined up to see if they can get a picture taken with it, whether it’s the Penn State Nittany Lion or Sparty. That’s a little annoying to me. You can’t get your picture taken with a Block M. Mascots are really embraced by the youth demographic and we want to take advantage of that, for all the reasons that are obvious.”
Ye$, all the rea$on$ that are obviou$.
So, Brandon is interested in a mascot so kids can have something to pose with for the camera … and apparently are incapable of standing next to this:
umich.edu
I think what he meant to say was, “It’s hard to hire out a Block M at a birthday party, or to sell a stuffed Block M, or to expect people to buy yet another boring shirt with nothing but a Block M.”
Don’t get me wrong, I won’t scoff at the idea of making money. I like money. I appreciate that Brandon likes money. Sure, sometimes people are beholden to something more inherently meaningful than money, like preserving the culture that has made your historic program unique. And sure, it’s not even difficult to be principled at a place like Michigan with a huge alumni base, where fans already want to come to your games and you are a perennial powerhouse in selling merchandise.
In fact, as the Michigan Today article recounts the history of Michigan’s non-mascots, it notes that while the creators of Willy the Wolverine in the late 1980s were driven by money (not by a “spirit of competition”), the University spurned the chance to turn Willy into a revenue stream.
“Expanding the Michigan tradition wasn’t the students’ only motivation: they were in it for the money, which is why they invested in the trademark and in market research. Their plan was to sell merchandise in the short-term, building a fanbase for Willy before selling him to the University to serve as the official, on-the-field mascot.”
The University never supported the mascot. Athletic director Jack Weidenbach showed no interest, and Michigan put the kibosh on Willy.
But that’s not Dave Brandon. It doesn’t matter if Michigan starts to look and act and walk and talk like every other school. It’s more important to make up throwback legacy jerseys so he can cash in. He probably looks at Michigan State Athletic Director Mark Hollis promoting The Situaton’s upcoming visit to Spartan Stadium and thinks, “How can I get Snookie?” — because darn it, the kids like it!
“Our history and our tradition is great for those of who were there to experience it, or remember it,” Brandon told Michigan Today, “but there’s a generation coming up and you’ve got to connect with them and keep them excited.”
Yes, Brandon is being guided by the whims of seven-year-olds who have influence over the spending habits of parents and grandparents.
A mascot is not imminent, but it is inevitable, just like maize jerseys, Thursday-night games, and pony rides outside Michigan Stadium. The only way we won’t be seeing a Michigan mascot in the next decade is if Brandon is replaced with an athletic director who is truly concerned with Michigan culture, and doesn’t just pay lip-service to it. But my expectation is that Brandon will continue to get his opportunity to “expand the Michigan tradition” — or perhaps simply kill it.