Big Al (mascot)

Big Al
Big Al at Bryant Denny Stadium
University	University of Alabama
Conference	SEC
Description	Anthropomorphic elephant
Origin of name	University of Alabama
First seen	1980

Big Al is the costumed mascot of the University of Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

The origin of the mascot dates back to 1930. On October 8, a sportswriter wrote about the previous weekend's Alabama-Ole Miss football game. The writer, using the flair for the dramatic common in sportswriting at the time, wrote that an anonymous fan yelled out "Hold your horses, the elephants are coming!" upon hearing the rumble of the first team coming on the field. The name stuck throughout what became a national championship season and beyond.

Melford Espey, Jr., then a student, was the first to wear an elephant head costume to portray the Crimson Tide's mascot in the early 1960s. Espey later became a university administrator and Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant asked him to take responsibility when student groups asked to resurrect the costumed mascot in the late 1970s.^[1]

The "Big Al" mascot officially debuted at the 1980 Sugar Bowl, when the 1979 Alabama Crimson Tide football team beat the Arkansas Razorbacks. Student Hugh Dye earned the honor to bring "Big Al" back to life in New Orleans , followed by Kent Howard and Maury Smith to kickoff the inaugural 1980 season and roam the sidelines. "Big Al" celebrated his first year with Bear Bryant's 300th win against Kentucky and a win against Baylor in the 1981 Cotton Bowl. Since then, the mascot has been a fan favorite for the Tide fans. As the Crimson Tide does not have a logo on their helmets or uniforms, Big Al's likeness appears on much of the merchandise.

Big Al was named by student vote.

References

↑ "Espey was one of UA’s most loyal alumni". Tuscaloosa News. March 12, 2010.

External links

Big Al on Alabama Crimson Tide website

The University of Alabama

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People

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Programs	Football Men's basketball Baseball Golf Gymnastics Softball Volleyball Women's basketball Cross country Rowing Soccer Swimming & diving Tennis Track & field

Current coaches	Kristy Curry (Women's basketball) Dana Duckworth (Gymnastics) Mitch Gaspard (Baseball) Avery Johnson (Men's basketball) Patrick Murphy (Softball) Nick Saban (Football)

Facilities	Alabama Soccer Stadium Bryant–Denny Stadium Coleman Coliseum Foster Auditorium Rhoads Stadium Sewell–Thomas Stadium

History

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Other

Endowment: $515.2 million
Students: 30,252
Faculty: 1,622

Alabama Crimson Tide football

Venues	University of Alabama Quad (1893–1914) Denny Field (1915–1928) Bryant–Denny Stadium (1929–present) Rickwood Field (alternate, 1912–1927) Cramton Bowl (alternate, 1922–1954) Ernest F. Ladd Stadium (alternate, 1948–1968) Legion Field (alternate, 1927–2003)

Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Auburn: Iron Bowl (James E. Foy, V-ODK Sportsmanship Trophy) LSU Mississippi State Ole Miss Penn State Tennessee: Third Saturday in October

Culture & lore	Series records Saban era Traditions Big Al "Yea Alabama" A-Day Million Dollar Band Walk of Fame Paul W. Bryant Museum The Bear The Bear Bryant Show 1922 Alabama vs. Penn football game

People	Head coaches All-Americans College Football Hall of Fame inductees NFL draftees Starting quarterbacks Statistical leaders

Seasons	1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

National championship seasons in bold

Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball

Venues	Little Hall (1915–1939) Foster Auditorium (1939–1968) Coleman Coliseum (1968–present)

Rivalries	Auburn

Culture & lore	History Traditions Big Al Mark's Madness / Crimson Chaos

People	Head coaches Statistical leaders

Seasons	1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16

Mascots of the Southeastern Conference

Eastern Division	Albert and Alberta (Florida) Hairy Dawg and Uga (Georgia) The Wildcat, Scratch, and Blue (Kentucky) Truman the Tiger (Missouri) Cocky and Sir Big Spur (South Carolina) Smokey (Tennessee) Mr. C (Vanderbilt)

Western Division	Big Al (Alabama) Big Red, Sue E. Pig, Pork Chop, Boss Hog, and Tusk (Arkansas) Aubie (Auburn) Mike the Tiger (LSU) Bully (Mississippi State) Rebel Black Bear (Ole Miss) Reveille (Texas A&M)