Since 2006, South Carolina’s football team has had a live mascot. The program’s live bird is known as Sir Big Spur.
Well, the future of Sir Big Spur is up in the air due to a dispute over its appearance.
According to The Post and Courier, the old owners of Sir Big Spur would clip off the comb and wattle of the bird. The new owners, however, want to keep the comb.
“They’re each part of the birds’ heat regulation systems because, in an outstanding piece of trivia, chickens cannot sweat,” the report from The Post and Courier states. “The comb and wattle act as a sort of ‘air conditioner’ in the birds’ circulatory system — hence the red — and the cooler blood then passes back through the rest of the bird’s body.”
If the new owners keep the comb over the bird, it’ll break a tradition that has been going on for two decades.
On the other hand, it’s important to note that the comb helps the bird deal with the heat.
“We raised these gamecocks to be mascots. The mascot needs to be, I feel, branded with the university,” Van Clark said. “We also want the birds to be as healthy as possible. When the combs are off, they can’t handle heat as well. These birds are raised to be mascots, and at many games, the heat is nearly unbearable. We want to keep the mascot healthy. That’s our job now.”
With the college football season just a few weeks away, South Carolina is running out of time to figure out this situation.
Leave a Reply