Raider Red
{{Short description|Mascot of Texas Tech University}}
{{Infobox College Mascot
| name = Raider Red
| image = Raider Red Guns.jpg
| image_size =
| caption = Raider Red giving the Guns Up gesture
| university = Texas Tech University
| conference = Big 12 Conference
| conference_short = Big 12
| description = Costume
| name_origin = Variation of team name, Red Raiders
| first_seen = 1971
| related_mascots = The Masked Rider
| official_website = {{URL|http://www.ttu.edu/traditions/raiderred.php}}
| hall_of_fame =
}}
Raider Red is one of the mascots of Texas Tech University. The university's primary mascot is The Masked Rider who rides a live horse. Raider Red is used at events where The Masked Rider is not allowed or would not be appropriate.
History
Raider Red is a Wild West character with an oversized cowboy hat. He carries two guns which he fires into the air after Texas Tech scores.{{cite news |last=Davis |first=Brian |date=November 1, 2002 |title=Baylor at Texas Tech |work=The Dallas Morning News}} Jim Gaspard, a member of the Texas Tech Saddle Tramps student spirit organization, created the original design for the Raider Red costume based on a character created by Lubbock, Texas, cartoonist and former mayor Dirk West.{{cite news |first=Leslie |last=Garcia |work=The Dallas Morning News |url=http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/yahoolatestnews/stories/DN-mascot_1108gd.State.Edition1.10e3f0d.html?npc |title=Creator of Texas Tech's mascot tells the story behind Raider Red |date=November 7, 2008}} Gaspard used papier-mache and chicken wire to mold the first Raider Red head and it took him three to four weeks to complete.{{Cite web |last=MEDIA |first=A.-J. |title=Raider Red tradition endures |url=https://www.amarillo.com/story/news/local/2011/11/25/raider-red-tradition-endures/13142289007/ |access-date=2023-11-06 |website=Amarillo Globe-News |language=en-US}} Raider Red was first seen publicly on September 10, 1971.
The student serving as Raider Red is a member of the Saddle Tramps or High Riders.{{cite news |work=The Austin American-Statesman |title=Cotton Bowl fracas leaves Raider Red disappointed |date=January 10, 1995 |first=John |last=Kelso |page=B6}} Although The Masked Rider's identity is public knowledge, Raider Red's identity is normally kept secret until the end of his or her tenure as mascot.{{Cite web |title=Passing of Traditions: Texas Tech names new Masked Rider, new Raider Red receives his guns |url=https://www.lubbockonline.com/story/news/local/2023/04/22/texas-tech-names-new-masked-rider-honors-outgoing-raider-reds/70140830007/ |access-date=2023-11-06 |website=Lubbock Avalanche-Journal |language=en-US}} The first Saddle Tramp to become Red Raider after Jim Gaspard was Stan Alcott from 1971 to 1973. The identity of Red Raider was known and Stan would wear the costume to the game.
Around the 1971 football season, the Southwest Conference created a rule forbidding the bringing of live animal mascots to away games unless the host school permitted it.{{cite web |title=History & Traditions - Raider Red |url=http://www.ttu.edu/traditions/raiderred.php |access-date=November 23, 2008 |publisher=Texas Tech University - Campus Information}} Since the Masked Rider's horse might have been prohibited from attending some games under this rule, Raider Red was created as an alternate mascot. Texas Tech now plays in the Big 12 Conference, but the tradition of having both mascots continues.
On March 15, 2007, it was revealed that, for the first time, two different people (one man and one woman) served as Raider Red during the same period of time.{{cite web |url=http://www.kcbd.com/Global/story.asp?S=6372849&nav=3w6y |title=Raider Red's True Identity Revealed |publisher=KCBD News Channel 11 |location=Lubbock, Texas |date=April 15, 2007 |access-date=April 16, 2007 |archive-date=September 27, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927011309/http://www.kcbd.com/Global/story.asp?S=6372849&nav=3w6y |url-status=dead }}
In 2012, Raider Red won the Capital One Mascot Challenge, beating the University of South Carolina's Cocky in the final.{{cite news|work=Lubbock Avalanche-Journal|title=Raider Red wins national Mascot of the Year|date=January 1, 2013}} He is known to his loyal fans as Jeffrey, thanks to the popular podcaster Dan "Big Cat" Katz.
In 2021 Raider Red took the National Cheerleading Associations Mascot Championships stage in Daytona, Florida for the first time in his 50 year lifespan. Raider Red won his first NCA Mascot National Championship that year with a score of 94.28.{{Cite web |title=Raider Red takes top honors in national mascot competition |url=https://www.lubbockonline.com/story/news/2021/04/10/raider-red-takes-top-honors-national-mascot-competition/7179462002/ |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Lubbock Avalanche-Journal |language=en-US}} Competing again in 2022, Raider Red went back to back winning his second NCA Mascot National Championship with a score of 93.28.{{Cite web |title=Raider Red Wins National Championship for Second Consecutive Year {{!}} TTU |url=https://today.ttu.edu/posts/2022/04/Stories/Raider-Red-Wins-National-Championship-for-Second-Consecutive-Year |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=today.ttu.edu}}
Notes and references
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.ttu.edu/traditions/raiderred.php Raider Red at Texas Tech Traditions]
- [https://www.depts.ttu.edu/centerforcampuslife/spiritsquads/raider_red.php Raider Red at Texas Tech]
{{Texas Tech Red Raiders athletics}}
{{Texas Tech Red Raiders football navbox}}
{{Texas Tech Red Raiders basketball navbox}}
{{Texas Tech University|show=yes}}
{{Mascots of the Big 12 Conference}}
Category:Texas Tech Red Raiders
Category:Big 12 Conference mascots
Category:1971 establishments in Texas