Rameses (mascot)

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Coordinates: 35°54′27.49″N 79°2′58.25″W / 35.9076361°N 79.0495139°W / 35.9076361; -79.0495139

Rameses

Costumed Rameses at Carmichael Auditorium
University University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Conference ACC
Description Dorset Ram
Origin of name Jack ("The Battering Ram") Merritt
First seen 1924

Rameses is the ram mascot of the North Carolina Tar Heels. Two versions of Rameses appear at UNC sporting events. One is a member of the UNC cheerleading team in an anthropomorphic ram costume; the second is a live Horned Dorset Sheep named Rameses who attends Carolina football games with his horns painted Carolina Blue.[1]

Origin

The origin of a ram as North Carolina's mascot dates back to 1924. In 1922, the star fullback, Jack Merritt, was given the nickname "the battering ram" for his performance on the field, as well as for an initiation ritual he created for male freshman students. Vic Huggins, North Carolina's head cheerleader at the time, suggested the idea of a ram mascot to the athletic business manager, Charles T. Woollen, and had the idea approved. Charles gave Vic $25 to purchase a ram. Rameses the First was shipped from Texas, just in time for the pep rally.

The first appearance of Rameses was at a pep rally before the football game against Virginia Military Institute on November 8, 1924.[2][3][4] After the pep rally the ram was taken to Emerson Field. Through three quarters the game was scoreless. Late in the fourth quarter Bunn Hackney was called out to attempt a field goal. Before stepping out on the field he rubbed Rameses' head. Just a few seconds later Hackney kicked a 30-yard field goal that eventually won the game for the Tar Heels; the final score was 3-0. Rameses has been a fixture on the sidelines at UNC football games ever since. The current Rameses ram is under the care of the Hogan family of Chapel Hill.

The origin of the costumed version of Rameses is unknown. The costumed Rameses appears primarily at UNC football and basketball games.

Jason Ray

On March 23, 2007, Jason Ray, the cheerleader assigned to the Rameses costume, was struck by a vehicle outside the North Carolina cheerleaders' hotel on Route 4 in Fort Lee, New Jersey prior to the men's basketball team's Sweet Sixteen game with the University of Southern California. He died on March 26, 2007 at the Hackensack University Medical Center as a result of the injuries sustained in the accident.

Jason was an honors student and was due to graduate that May with a degree in business, and minor in religious studies. He was an Eagle Scout with Troop 38 in Concord, NC, had gone on three missionary trips (Haiti, Honduras, and Puerto Rico) to work with children, had visited the Sistine Chapel, run with the bulls in Spain, and spent a summer studying in Copenhagen, Denmark. Jason was also an active member of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, his church choir, and was lead singer in the band 9pm Traffic.[5][6]

The ESPN website published an E-ticket article on Jason Ray's life, and the lives of four people who were saved because he chose to become an organ donor.[7][8]

References

  1. ↑ Fuller, Adam; Gross, Jeremy; McCormack, Kevin. "Rameses: A mascot's life". UNC School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Retrieved 2007-03-26. 
  2. ↑ "Why a ram for a mascot?". Tar Heel Traditions. UNC. Archived from the original on 2007-03-14. Retrieved 2007-03-24. 
  3. ↑ "The ram as mascot". Traditions. UNC Athletics. Retrieved 2008-03-19. 
  4. ↑ Sykes, Laura. "Rameses to celebrate 76th anniversary at Tar Heel Town Saturday (Oct. 21)". UNC News Service. Retrieved 2000-10-07. 
  5. ↑ Lucas, Adam. "Tears for a ram". UNC Athletics. Retrieved 2007-03-24. 
  6. ↑ "Jason Ray, Tar Heel Mascot, succumbs to accident injuries". UNC Athletics. Retrieved 2007-03-26. 
  7. ↑ Drehs, Wayne. "E-ticket: Ray of hope". espn.com. Retrieved 2007-10-15. 
  8. ↑ "UNC mascot's decision to be an organ donor forever changed lives". espn.com. Retrieved 2007-10-12. 
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