Judge and Bruiser (mascots)

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Judge and Bruiser are the mascots of Baylor University in Waco, Texas. "Judge" is the live mascot, a North American black bear, and "Bruiser" is the anthropomorphized bear mascot.

The tradition of bears being the mascots of Baylor goes back to 1914, when Baylor president Samuel Palmer Brooks sponsored a competition to find a mascot for the athletics teams, which had been playing since the 1890s. There were over two dozen options given, including antelopes, frogs, buffalo, and ferrets, but Bears was selected. The first live bear was named "Ted," who came from the 107th Engineers at nearby Camp MacArthur in 1917 for the Baylor-Texas A&M game. After the unit was shipped out to see service in World War I, Ted stayed with the school's athletic department, and there have been bears on campus ever since.

In 1974, the student body voted to give all future bears the first name of "Judge" followed by a surname to differentiate between them. "Judge" was chosen to honor Judge R.E.B. Baylor, the school founder. The current bears are Judge Joy, named for the wife of school president emeritus Herbert H. Reynolds, and Judge Lady, named for the wife of president Robert Sloan. Both bears are housed at the Steve Hudson Memorial Bear Plaza, located at the center of campus and sometimes nicknamed "The Pit." The plaza was built in 1976 and is considered a Class 'C' Exhibitor Zoo, licensed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Texas Parks and Wildlife.

In recent years, "Bruiser" has also become a fixture on campus, as the costumed mascot of the team. He is usually seen wearing a variation of a team uniform. There is also another "Judge" which occasionally appears, a balloon suit mascot which wears a green shirt and gold shorts.

[edit] References

The Bear Nickname and Mascot - BaylorBears.com
"Bruiser" - Baylor Campus Recreation