Goldy Gopher

Goldy Gopher
Goldy Gopher at TCF Bank Stadium
University	University of Minnesota
Conference	Big Ten
Description	Gopher
First seen	1940

Goldy Gopher is the mascot for the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities campus and the associated sports teams, known as the Golden Gophers, as well as the 2015 UCA Mascot National Champion. During the year, Goldy makes over 1000 appearances and is at virtually all home games for University teams, usually wearing the appropriate sporting attire.

History

Minnesota became known as the "Gopher State" in 1857, the result of a political cartoon ridiculing the $5 million Railroad Loan which helped open up the West. The cartoon portrayed shifty railroad barons as striped gophers pulling a railroad car carrying the Territorial Legislature toward the "Slough of Despond". The first U of M yearbook bearing the name "Gopher Annual" appeared in 1887.

Minnesota's athletic teams became widely known as the "Gophers" by the 1920s but it was not until 1934 that the immortal Halsey Hall, great Minnesota sportswriter and broadcaster, dubbed Bernie Bierman's all-gold uniformed team "The Golden Gophers" (Bierman chose the gold color because the football blended in with the uniforms!).

The embodiment of the Gopher mascot came to life in 1952 when U of M assistant bandmaster Jerome Glass bought a fuzzy wool gopher suit with a papier mache head and asked one of the band members to climb into it. "Goldy" Gopher (the first name seems to have appeared sometime in the 1970s) became a fixture with the Marching Band and Pep Band, as each year a band member was chosen to don the suit for that season. Wherever these two bands performed, Goldy was there to glad-hand with the crowd, hug the little kids, torment the cheerleaders and generally add a friendly Minnesota flavor to the event.

During the early 1960s, Goldy was actually written into the football pre-game and halftime shows with a specific place to be. Limited visibility from within the suit made it difficult to see out, and any of the suit’s wearers with glasses would fog up while trying to peer out the mouth hole, as the eyeholes were useless. One benefit during the cold games at Memorial Stadium in November was that Goldy Gopher was one of the few fans that stayed warm.

Each band member who was allowed the joy of being the Gopher developed an individual personality, a unique way of relating to the crowd. And the mystique of Goldy Gopher became a tradition that absolutely prohibited removal of the head while in public, maintaining an illusion for the younger children that Goldy Gopher was a real live huggable animal.

The style of the gopher suit changed many times through the years, sometimes by chance, sometimes by design. Until the early 1970s, the head was narrow and pointy-nosed, reminiscent of the real animal. Then in 1972, Goldy suddenly grew chubby cheeks and a wider, forward-looking face, almost cherubic in appearance. In fact, the gopher of the 1970s and early 1980s was comparable in appearance to a teddy bear, a favorite of children and grandmothers. For a brief period in 1985, a fierce-looking “mega-rodent“ appeared, with a barrel chest, clown feet and sinister eyes. This look didn't last long, and Goldy soon again became a lovable, friendly character.

From 1952 until 1990, the Gopher appearing at U of M sports events was a member of the Marching Band, and a symbiosis developed through the years that on more than one occasion kept Goldy out of trouble. With a propensity for attracting tail-pulling kids, Goldy relied on the band to save him from their clutches. And when the opposing team's cheerleaders or band members managed to “kidnap” the unfortunate rodent (a Big Ten tradition, it seems), band members would always come to the rescue.

In the late 1980s the U of M Athletic Department began to make use of Goldy at an ever-increasing number of events, and held University-wide tryouts to secure a number of students who could cover the busy schedule. The marketing wing of the Athletic Department officially took charge of Goldy in 1992.

The students that portray Goldy maintain anonymity throughout their tenure. They are also recognized as student athletes due to their vigorous schedule and amount of work that goes into it.

https://music.umn.edu/ensembles/marchinggoldy

National Competitions

Goldy also competes in the UCA Mascot National Championships,^[1] and regularly makes the top 5. He placed 3rd in 2009 and 2010. Goldy won his first National Championship in 2011.^[2] In 2012, Goldy placed 5th, but in 2013, he won the championship again, giving him 2 wins in three years.^[3]

Goldy was nominated to and made the 2004, 2007, and 2010 Capital One All-American Mascot Team. In 2007 he finished second to Zippy from the University of Akron.^[4]

Goldy Gopher Statue

Due to the contributions from students, faculty, family, alumni, and friends, the University of Minnesota’s Student Union was able to fund the creation of an all bronze statue of Goldy the Gopher. This was a controversial issue for some in the University community because of the rising costs of tuition and the University’s concurrent appeals to the state legislature for a tuition freeze. The goal of the statue, located in the front of Coffman Memorial Union, was to promote school spirit and start new traditions. The University of Minnesota Administration hopes the iconic symbol will help students interact with the spirit and new traditions involving Goldy the Gopher. The statue is 6 feet, 3 inches tall and made of bronze granite. Next to the statue is a solid granite "M" that is 63 inches in width, 24 Inches in depth, and 48 inches in height. It was sculpted by Nicholas Legeros, who is a Minnesota graduate from the fine arts academy. He has sculpted many pieces for the Twin Cities Metro area. The total cost of the statue was $95,000 dollars.

On Monday, September 23, 2013, the Goldy statue was unveiled during the homecoming kickoff at noon - which happens to be Goldy Gopher's birthday. Governor Mark Dayton declared this day Goldy Gopher Day to create a new tradition for the students.

References

↑ "UCA Mascot Nationals". Varsity.com. Retrieved 2011-09-01.
↑ "2011 UCA Mascot Nationals Results" (PDF). Varsity.com. Retrieved 2011-09-01.
↑ http://tcstarlight.com/2013/01/18/goldy-gopher-wins-second-natty-champ-in-three-years/
↑ "Capital One Mascot Bowl History". Capital One Bowl. Retrieved 2011-09-01.

1. "UCA Mascot Nationals". Varsity.com. Retrieved 2011-09-01.

2. "2011 UCA Mascot Nationals Results". Varsity.com. Retrieved 2011-09-01.

3. http://tcstarlight.com/2013/01/18/goldy-gopher-wins-second-natty-champ-in-three-years/

4. "Capital One Mascot Bowl History". Capital One Bowl. Retrieved 2011-09-01.

5. "Goldy Statue : Student Unions & Activities." Sua.umn.edu. Retrieved 2013-09-25.

6. "Goldy Gopher Statue Unveiled on U of M Campus." Kare11.com. Retrieved 2013-09-25.

7. "MINNESOTA SPORTS ROUND-UP: Goldy Gopher Statue Kicks Off U-Of-M Homecoming Week." Pierce County Herald. Retrieved 2013-09-25.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Goldy Gopher.

Goldy Gopher on Facebook
Goldy Gopher on Twitter

Minnesota Golden Gophers football

Venues	Athletic Park (1892–1898) University of Minnesota Armory (1892–1898) Northrop Field (1899–1923) Memorial Stadium (1924–1981) Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome (1982–2008) TCF Bank Stadium (2009–present)

Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Iowa (Floyd of Rosedale) Michigan (Little Brown Jug) Nebraska ($5 Bits of Broken Chair) Penn State (Governor's Victory Bell) Wisconsin (Slab of Bacon, 1930–43; Paul Bunyan's Axe, 1948–present)

Culture & lore	Goldy Gopher "Minnesota Rouser" Marching band Minnesota shift T formation

People	Head coaches Statistical leaders NFL draftees

Seasons	1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

National championship seasons in bold

Minnesota Golden Gophers men's basketball

Venues	On-campus YMCA (1895–1896) UM Armory (1896–1925) Kenwood Armory (1925–1928) Williams Arena (1928–present)

Culture & lore	History Goldy Gopher "Minnesota Rouser" Scandal

People	Head coaches

Seasons	1895–96 1896–97 1897–98 1898–99 1899–00 1900–01 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17

Helms and Premo-Porretta national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearance in italics

University of Minnesota, Twin Cities

Academics

Colleges and schools	College of Biological Sciences College of Continuing Education College of Design School of Dentistry College of Education and Human Development College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences School of Journalism and Mass Communication Law School College of Liberal Arts Carlson School of Management Medical School School of Nursing College of Pharmacy Humphrey School of Public Affairs School of Public Health College of Science and Engineering College of Veterinary Medicine College in the Schools

Research centers and institutes	Institute for Advanced Study Charles Babbage Institute Institute on the Environment The Geometry Center GroupLens Research Heller-Hurwicz Economics Institute Immigration History Research Center Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy Institute for Law and Politics Institute for Mathematics and its Applications Masonic Cancer Center Minnesota International Center Minnesota Population Center National Center for Engineering and Technology Education The Polar Geospatial Center University of Minnesota primate research University of Minnesota Supercomputing Institute William I. Fine Theoretical Physics Institute

Journals	Mechademia Management Information Systems Quarterly Minnesota Law Review Minnesota Journal of International Law Journal of Transport and Land Use Wíčazo Ša Review

Athletics

Campus

Student life

History

Shyamala Rajender v. University of Minnesota

Mascots of the Big Ten Conference

East Division	No mascot (Indiana) Sparty (Michigan State) Brutus Buckeye (Ohio State) Testudo (Maryland) No mascot (Michigan) Nittany Lion (Penn State) Scarlet Knight (Rutgers)

West Division	No mascot (Illinois) Herky the Hawk (Iowa) Goldy Gopher (Minnesota) Herbie Husker / Lil' Red (Nebraska) Willie the Wildcat (Northwestern) Boilermaker Special / Purdue Pete (Purdue) Bucky Badger (Wisconsin)

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