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TU mascot gets makeover
Will this version of Captain 'Cane rock fans?

MIKE SIMONS / Tulsa World

 
By ERIC BAILEY World Sports Writer
Published: 9/22/2009  2:22 AM
Last Modified: 9/22/2009  5:24 AM

 The University of Tulsa unveiled Captain 'Cane, a superhero-looking mascot, before football coach Todd Graham's press conference Monday.

Graham smiled and looked at the muscle-bound figure and said, "We could have used you last Saturday."

The mascot wasn't available during the 45-0 loss at No. 10 Oklahoma, but it will make its debut for fans at Saturday's 6 p.m. home opener against Sam Houston State.

The hurricane-type mascot has been a part of TU tradition since 1977, but it's now taken on a human form for the first time.

"We've had Captain 'Cane from the 1970s, and he's still our mascot," Tulsa athletic director Bubba Cunningham said. "It's difficult to depict a hurricane or wind.

"Captain 'Cane is still Captain 'Cane. We've made him more of a superhero than depicting a hurricane."

The former Captain 'Cane was a hurricane-shaped mascot with angry eyes that was voted by Foxsports.com as the second-worst college mascot behind Stanford's tree.

"Looking like you lost a fight with a pottery instructor is no way to go through life," the Web site reported.

The hurricane-type mascot has been a part of TU since 1977, when the mascot was known as "Hurc" and later made a transformation to the nickname "Huffy." In the early 1990s, Captain 'Cane took on a new look.

A coloring book featuring Captain 'Cane will be given to the first 2,000 youths at Saturday's game.



The birth of Captain ’Cane

The origin of captain ’cane, courtesy of the TU athletic department: Colin Cane, a freshman at The University of Tulsa, worked in IT support at night to help pay his way through college. During an electrical storm one night, Colin was called to the TU sports complex to fix a malfunctioning satellite that was broadcasting a live game. … As he adjusted the satellite, the roar of the crowd coursed through the transmitter just as it was zapped with static electricity from the storm. Colin became entangled in a web of cyber-athletic forces. The atmospheric oddity known as a “binary vortex” mutated Colin over the course of several years. He eventually lost his hair but gained super-human powers. Thus he became Captain ’Cane.



Mascot Poll Question

Tulsa’s revamped Captain ’Cane mascot has fans talking — many of them unhappily. Here are some of your comments from the story posted Monday on tulsaworld.com:

jarede: So we got rid of a guy walking around with a cowpie and replaced it with a cheap knock-off of the X-men?

hawkdaddy: My 4 year old son said he looked awesome. I believe that’s all that matters anyway.

Bixby Jeff: This is an improvement over the old one. He looked like one of those Bugle corn chips wearing a cape.

stuie33158: I am a huge TU fan and support them in just about everything but this is awful. I feel sorry for the kid who has to run around wearing that thing.

Vote on our online poll question: Which had fans most worked up — the Cowboys 4Ever theme song at OSU, the new Captain ’Cane mascot at Tulsa or Landry Jones’ mustache at OU?

tulsaworld.com/sportsextra

Eric Bailey 581-8391
eric.bailey@tulsaworld.com
By ERIC BAILEY World Sports Writer

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COMMENTS 
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9 comments have been made for this team so far. Tell us what you think below!
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If you see a comment that violates our terms and conditions, please help us by clicking the "Report this Comment" link next to a comment. That will alert the web staff to review the comment. Thank you.  -- Web Editor Jason Collington
 

 
Report Comment
Rhymeister, Tokyo, JPN (9/22/2009 7:12:44 AM)
Beehive-head dude was cooler, hah hah.
Report Comment
bill m, (9/22/2009 7:54:18 AM)
Never thought I would say this, but ScrewHead was better than this new thing. Looks too much like a Duke Blue Devil to me.

Bring back Huffy, the big fat happy hurricane of the 70's! Stop trying to make it look like a muscular person.
Report Comment
bill m, (9/22/2009 8:19:24 AM)
Upon further reflection, if we can't have Huffy back (and I'm not talking about the version in the picture above, which is also ridiculous) then a person running around with a brown paper bag over their head is better than any of the versions of Captain Cane. We can call it the Anonymous Golden Hurricane or something like that.
Report Comment
aball, (9/22/2009 8:57:36 AM)
Its bad...but at least it isnt an oversized plastic cowboy head! Now that is awful.
Report Comment
drudge2, Tulsa (9/22/2009 12:32:03 PM)
In its three decades of existence, the TU has made the odd transition from "big head" to "big feet."
Report Comment
BLA, Tulsa (9/22/2009 12:45:52 PM)
aball...right on bro! That Pistol Pete thing in Stillwater scared the beejeezus out of my 3 year old. Captain Cane, Santa Claus, and an oversized Sir Topham Hat didn't scare him. Hell, Pistol Pete plastic cowboy head that doesn't match the size of his body scares me!
Report Comment
ORU_TXAlum, (9/22/2009 7:17:43 PM)
This is too bad.... I will miss making fun of the walking donut/ Michelin Man's cousin. I hope Leno is getting some sort of royalty payment from TU for this mascot...
Report Comment
Hurricane4Lyfe, (9/22/2009 7:58:27 PM)
TOO FUNNY:
Looking like you lost a fight with a pottery instructor is no way to go through life," the Web site reported.
Report Comment
TulsaTimer, (9/25/2009 10:38:08 AM)
I think TU just knocked itself out of the running for the Princeton Review's happiest students list. Way to go Tulsa.
 

 
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