Every dog, or wolf, has its day

'10 Football Required Reading You Write The Story18

Stepping outside the realm of normal blog topics, I wanted to share an interesting story from Saturday’s Spring Game. I got an email from one of SFN’s loyal readers following the game to let me know he had taken his “wolf” dog out to Carter-Finley to take in the festivities. I’ll let Aaron tell the rest of the story.


The blogosphere has often discussed the possibility of a live mascot for NC State. The debate ranges from a single canine to a rabid pack of wolves corralling the opposing team during sporting events and even feeding wolves live ram. However the discussion goes, the conclusion is always the same, it’s not going to happen! I think that could and should change.

With that in mind, my wife and I decided that we were going to bring our husky keeshond mix puppy up to the second annual Kay Yow Spring Game. Our tailgating companions were all busy with other obligations so we decided we could walk her around the tailgate for a couple hours before the game. We have discussed bringing her to games before, but we always decided against it for the obvious logistical reasons. But Saturday was a day trip to and from Raleigh making it much easier on us and the “wolf.”

April 18 was a beautiful day to watch NC State’s only guaranteed win of the year. The two hour drive was pleasant as the wolf just sat and enjoyed the sights and smells. It’s a common joke in our house that it’s like driving Ms. Daisy.

We arrived about 11:15 with enough time to enjoy the Rockies and take in the sea of red. After stretching and drinking for a few minutes it was time to introduce the Wolf to the pack. We were in front of the Vaughn Towers and decided to simply walk her up and down the rows of parked cars. Let me tell you, she was a hit!

Behind my sunglasses I watched as every single tailgate stopped and watched her go by. Reaction ranged from, “What kind of dog is that?” to, “That’s a damn wolf!” And let me tell you, it takes you a long time to walk anywhere with the wolf at an NC State tailgate.

It was the kids that were unexpected. It shouldn’t have been, but it was. The “wolf” was wearing a collar with a loop over her nose to prevent her from pulling. It made her look like the Hannibal Lecter of canines. None of that mattered to the kids. They ran up to her, hugged her and had their photos taken. The parents were just as surprised to see their kids hugging a “wolf” to actually seeing the wolf. They were in no danger. The wolf is a big baby and they were apart of the pack anyhow.

The “wolf” isn’t normally around that many people. She was so nervous her legs were shaking and her tail was between her legs. However, she needed to get used to it, so we led the sheep through the rest of the wolves until we were ready to go into the game.

Back at the car a state fan came up and told us he loved the wolf and said she looked just like the wolf on the 2010 NC State Football poster. I assumed he wasn’t serious until he gave me an extra poster he had. It was almost the exact same animal.

Because of the close resemblance to the wolf on the poster we decided to take her down the ramp towards the tunnel that leads onto the field. It made perfect sense. If she indeed looked exactly like what the Athletic Department thought a wolf should look like then more people should see her. Logical, right? I love the taste of the Rockies.

I didn’t think it would be that easy. I thought there would be someone to tell us to turn around, some gate you had to get through, or some sign to say, “Event Staff Only.” It turned out there wasn’t a single event staff member, let alone a single person between the tailgating community and simply walking onto the field.

So we did. Sort of…

I brought her to the end of the tunnel right next to the artificial turf and simply stood there to see what happened. Fans near the tunnel saw her and took pictures. The event staff and people standing around stared at her. The cheerleaders came over and assumed NC State now had a live wolf mascot and took pictures with it. As the team came off the field before the game started, some players petted her, some kept their distance. Every one of them stared.

Nate Irving avoided the wolf, making sure to turn slightly to put more distance between the two.

Very interesting…

So with great success we stayed there for a while longer. Eventually a staff member told us animals were not allowed in the stadium and that we needed to leave. So we did, smiling the entire way back to the car.

The wolf stayed in the car with a bowl of water, biscuits, and the windows cracked. We came prepared.

We watched and enjoyed the spring game, but we were only thinking about the wolf and the tunnel. Or is it a cave now? We left and ate at the Cameron Village Draft House still discussing the day’s events. Eventually we left Raleigh after a harrowing experience on some unexpected traffic circles on Hillsborough Drive.

The drive was worth it simply to see the faces of the kids and the reaction of the fan base to a simple concept – a live wolf mascot. Who would of thought?

Pretty darn interesting stuff if I do say so myself. Let us know what you think. Should NC State have a live mascot to go along with Mr. and Mrs. Wuf? If nothing else, you’ve to give Aaron credit for doing what he did Saturday. Also, if you have photos from Saturday’s game, send them to us or put them in the fan photo portion of the Facebook page.

Here’s some pictures…


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'10 Football Required Reading You Write The Story

18 Responses to Every dog, or wolf, has its day

  1. Sw0rdf1sh 04/19/2010 at 8:00 AM #

    Man, I missed seeing this because my kids needed grub and my wife and Mom were slowing me down to the seats! My neighbor who saved us some seats told me about it and I thought he was pulling my leg. Sweet beast!

    I did see my man wearing the Lunatic Fringe shirt up in Section 24 and told him I was all about it though. I might have to get one of those printed up myself……maybe with “Giving them the Business” on the back…..

  2. crazyck 04/19/2010 at 8:19 AM #

    YES! I’m a complete supporter of a live mascot. I have been since seeing old pics of state games when they had one.. please lobby to get her involved. Everyone saw how Butler’s live ‘bulldog’ gets all that love and attention, during the NCAA tournament.. Keep mr and mrs wolf of course, having all 3 doesnt hurt. Mr and mrs wolf can go up in the stands and interact with fans while this beautiful animal roams the field eyeballing its prey.

  3. packplantpath 04/19/2010 at 9:03 AM #

    LOL, it would be the guy with the “lunatic fringe” shirt who has the live wolf. I love it, we just need a few more of them.

  4. foz 04/19/2010 at 9:38 AM #

    Trying to save a picture of a real wolf from my recent trip to Alaska. Will try again later.

    Giving up unless one of you smart guys can help me out posting a picture here.

  5. Will NCSU 04/19/2010 at 10:07 AM #

    I have a friend with a husky-malamute mix that she brings to our tailgate sometimes(when its not too hot) and he is always a hit. We definitely need a live mascot. My pet growing up was a gigantic 150lb Alaskan Malamute. Looked just like a wolf. Something like that would be perfect.

  6. one00_proof 04/19/2010 at 10:30 AM #

    I’m a sucker for dogs and I’d love to see more pics that people took with the “Wolf”. Regardless of all the talk about “it’s still a fake wolf”, the fanbase seems to have embraced the idea behind it.

  7. Plz2BStateFan 04/19/2010 at 10:33 AM #

    http://www.thewolfweb.com/message_topic.aspx?topic=592951

    This thread has almost every picture taken. Has the cheerleaders and the players.

    Oh, and if you want to print that shirt, make sure you use an ink jet printer only. You can run it through the printer more than once to make the colors and blacks stand out. Its impressive that it will print almost exactly on top of itself.

  8. WolftownVA81 04/19/2010 at 11:41 AM #

    Nice post. I was skeptical at first but now think it might be a good idea. Perhaps the new AD can initiate the new tradition when he/she gets here. Wish I could have been at the game.

  9. ruffles31 04/19/2010 at 12:09 PM #

    Very cool. Without a doubt, the best part of the picture is the Lunatic Fringe t-shirt.

  10. foz 04/19/2010 at 1:06 PM #

    OK, not having any luck posting the picture, but the story is that my uncle in Alaska traps animals (legally) and sells the furs. Here is an example of a real wolf. BTW, these things are HUGE. much bigger than your average dog.
    http://lh4.ggpht.com/_oqO0TCwJuBs/S8xYb6mYJVI/AAAAAAAAAIU/Ke8aDYxjENA/s640/IMG_0647.JPG

  11. ThunderWolf 04/19/2010 at 2:02 PM #

    Foz, are you saying your uncle traps wolves and that photo is one of a dead wolf?

  12. foz 04/19/2010 at 2:19 PM #

    Yes, that is the “tanned” hide.

    He actually advises the State of Alaska as to when wolfs in his area (Native Alaskan Village) need to be trapped to keep the population under control.

  13. gopack968 04/19/2010 at 2:48 PM #

    Actually, the Vet School advisory board currently researching this very issue. Specific breeds have been discussed – and a timeline for implementation is under consideration. If I can find out more info I’ll post it.

  14. foz 04/19/2010 at 4:09 PM #

    See my post above, re: wolf trapping. My uncle also has beaver traps. Despite my best efforts, he would not let me bring one back to use in NC 🙂

  15. whitefang 04/19/2010 at 8:35 PM #

    Definitely a live “wolf dog” would be a good addition.
    Great story

  16. packalum44 04/19/2010 at 10:25 PM #

    The better question is why don’t we already have one?

  17. packforestry 04/20/2010 at 1:01 PM #

    I took my nine year old son to the game. We were sitting there before the game and he said he saw a wolf down by the field where the players come out. I told him he was crazy but I guess not. I’ll have to let him know when he gets home from school.

  18. packfan31 04/20/2010 at 7:49 PM #

    I am glad everyone has shown an interest in the living mascot idea. The administration and a few students are currently working on potentially adding a living mascot. I would like to discourage others from doing this in the future since we are currently working to gain support from athletics and sneaking a dog into carter-finley may not help with this.

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