Florida can keep its Gators, Georgia its Bulldogs and Alabama its Tide — I’m happy with our University’s own personal apex predator.Each week, football and tailgating replace academics as the God-given reason LSU exists. But while football and tailgating are the University’s reason for being, the rituals and history of our University’s mascot are part of what makes being a Tiger so much damn fun.At each home game, Mike is paraded around the field for the fans to see, then parked in his cage-on-wheels to intimidate the opposing team’s players. Legend has it LSU will score a touchdown for every growl Mike lets slip before the game.Though his traditions are interesting, what’s more fascinating is the history of the University’s mascot and how a school in south Louisiana decided a tiger was a fitting lucky charm.What some students don’t realize is that Mike the Tiger is a reference to Louisiana’s Confederate past. During the Civil War, the Louisiana soldiers attached to General Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia were known as the Fighting Tigers. This was because the Washington Artillery regiment had a roaring tiger’s head as its insignia.The first tiger came to campus Oct. 21, 1936, and was named Sheik. He was later renamed Mike, in honor of Mike Chambers, the University’s athletic trainer at the time.Serving 20 years, Mike I was the longest serving of all the University’s mascots — and during those 20 years he was part of one of the most memorable incidents in the history of the LSU-Tulane rivalry. Mike I was kidnapped by Tulane fans and later found abandoned in his cage — painted Tulane green — in New Orleans.
Despite this traumatic day, Mike still got the last laugh when the highly favored Tulane team barely managed a 14-14 tie. Mike I died on June 29, 1956, but he’s still around. He’s stuffed and on display in the Museum of Natural Science in Foster Hall.Mike II had one of the most controversial tenures of any mascot, despite his short reign. The real Mike II died of pneumonia at eight months while the football team was in the midst of a six-game losing streak, according to local legend. This legend dictates that a new Mike II was secretly brought into Baton Rouge to bring the team a little luck.The Daily Reveille ran a story Oct. 23, 1956, titled “Mike II Undergoes Cage Reconstruction”, denying all rumors and explaining the new mascot needed time to be alone and adjust to his surroundings. Despite his nerves, he apparently had quite the appetite consuming “eight pounds of horse meat along with powdered milk, minerals and vitamins.”Irrespective of whether the rumors were true, Mike II died after one season because of complications from a multiple compound fracture of his rear left leg.Mike III arrived just in time to begin what was perhaps the most memorable reign of any University mascot. Arriving just in time for the 1958 national championship, Mike III’s rule saw Billy Cannon’s 89-yard punt return against Ole Miss, three SEC Championships and eight victories in 13 bowl games.He died in 1976 after LSU’s one losing season in his lifetime.Mike V is best known as the University’s mascot during the first of its two BCS National Championships. It was also during his span as mascot that a new trailer and habitat were built.Like his predecessor, Mike VI also saw LSU win a national championship. The Siberian-Bengal mix is already more than 300 pounds, and his vets believe he could easily hit 700 pounds, making him the largest mascot in LSU history. They also believe his youth and size could make him a much more ferocious-looking tiger for opposing teams.Unfortunately, Mike VI is just too young to pass judgment on in this article.By the way, I didn’t leave out Mike IV — I was just saving the best for last.You can keep your Mikes whose egos demand they be stuffed and preserved and your vain Mikes who demand a new trailer and habitat just for winning a national championship.I’ll take Mike IV any day. He was a gift from beer magnate and former chairman of Anheuser-Busch, August Anheuser Busch III.Despite toiling in athletic obscurity for most of his career, Mike IV had perhaps the most mischievous and dangerous side of any of the University’s beloved tigers. Mike IV is the only mascot to both escape his cage and be held hostage in his cage. The locks to Mike’s cage were cut off Nov. 28, 1981, and he was found roaming in the track stadium. That night he stalked a small tree and had a good ole time catting around campus, at least until he met up with three tranquilizer darts.That’s what I call a good night.—-Contact Matt McEntire at [email protected]