Tiger bobblehead.

February 20, 2012 at 1:06 pm
Filed under Basketball, Princeton

With no advance warning that I was aware of, Princeton held one of the all-time best giveaways at Jadwin Gym on Saturday night*.

Select fans with a "golden ticket" in their programs received a bobblehead of the Princeton Tiger wearing a Konrad Wysocki jersey courtesy Princeton Dining Services.

Speaking of the Tiger mascot, where has he/she/it been all season? Several people have asked me this question. Not at basketball games to the best of my knowledge. Perhaps they were accidentally abandoned in Tampa during the NCAA Tournament? This is the last sighting I can think of.

I've created a spot on the mantle for this lil' guy in-between my Willie The Wildcat football bobblehead and a special soda bottle brewed up to celebrate the improbable Ivy title for the 2000-01 Princeton men’s basketball team.

Ages ago I contacted Sacramento Kings GM Geoff Petrie about trying to have Pete Carril bobbleheads made but the lowest product run the manufacturer could quote was 5,000 units. Perhaps it is time to look into that idea again...

*How many "Growl Towels" can one man own?

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Coco said,

February 20, 2012 @ 1:54 pm

RE: The Tiger(s)

As many may recall, once upon a time there was only one (1) Tiger mascot, then in the 70s he was joined by a distaff representative. Until the mid-90s, the Tiger (singular or plural) was coordinated by a member of the recreation staff in Dillon who did her best to insure that the felines were in attendance. At some point after that, with a reorganization within Athletics, responsibility for the Tiger shifted and I'm not sure who currently "owns" the Tiger.

In the mid-90s, one group of alumni were so concerned about the irregular and ragged appearances, that they volunteered to create a Fund to Save the Tiger, with the understanding that with their financial support, someone would actually assume administrative responsibility to insure that he/she made regular appearances.

While I am never sure who does what re: basketball any more, do believe that somehow the folks in Jadwin (Athletic Communications? Cheerleader coordinator? Dining Services?) currently have that onus.

It is a shame: there are those who would welcome the opportunity to be the Tiger, but they don't even know who to ask. Or where the suit resides?

Yet another great Princeton tradition, falling by the wayside?

Jon Solomon said,

February 20, 2012 @ 2:01 pm

My neighbor Mei Mei was the "Little Tiger" for a few years in grade/high school. Not sure how she got that gig but she really enjoyed it.

There was certainly a slight Tiger costume redesign the past few years from this:

https://www.princetonbasketball.com/images/tiger3708.jpg

To this:

https://www.princetonbasketball.com/images/tigerband31711.jpg

Jon

Jon Solomon said,

February 20, 2012 @ 2:11 pm

I like to imagine the Tiger mascot is lost in the lower levels of Jadwin (not dissimilar to Cornell's coach after Saturday's game), wearing the missing Pete Carril banner as a cape.

Jon

Daniel Mark said,

February 20, 2012 @ 2:27 pm

Orlando??? I watched the game in Tampa Bay.

Jon Solomon said,

February 20, 2012 @ 2:28 pm

I knew the gym seemed empty for a reason! Fixed above. Orlando was three months previous.

Stuart Schulman said,

February 20, 2012 @ 3:13 pm

Are you sure that's not a Max Huc jersey?

Jon Solomon said,

February 20, 2012 @ 3:20 pm

Stuart, well played. If there was a "like" button I'd click it.

The next Princeton player to don #1 and suit up for all four seasons will be the first.

Jon

david bennet said,

February 20, 2012 @ 7:43 pm

It would be ashame to have the Tiger mascot go by the wayside. My late father, "Little" Jack Bennet (he was 5'-9", a class mate, also Jack Bennett [with two 't's] was 6'-5" and appropriatley named "Big" Jack Bennett) from the Great Class of 1930, was one of the original Tigers during the late '20s.

So much for tradition.

Coco said,

February 20, 2012 @ 8:12 pm

Tradition! Tradition! Tradition!
http://ptoniana.ealumni.com/tradition.asp

The Tiger
http://ptoniana.ealumni.com/tiger.asp

TigerHeel said,

February 20, 2012 @ 8:53 pm

Great promotion. I only wish that I had scored more golden tickets and that the University would do more promotions and, when they do, actually market them in advance.

Re: the Tiger costume, I know that in late '90s the athletic department had the costume and that anyone could volunteer to play the role on game-by-game basis. I donned the suit for the Penn game in March of 2000. That costume is hot, and it was difficult to see the game action through the Tiger's gaping mouth. Great fun, though.

Nuts that students still sport costumes at games (see gorilla and gumby on Sat night) but no longer does anyone play the Tiger.

Jon Solomon said,

February 20, 2012 @ 9:00 pm

Slightly off topic, but worth sharing: The gorilla and Gumby had pretty creative distractions when Cornell was attempting free throws. I saw them both play leapfrog and form a human wheelbarrow.

Also, kudos to [redacted] for starting a "LET'S GO TIGERS!" chant during the lonnnnnnnng silence after the mic failed prior to the national anthem.

While I would have preferred all in the stands sing along with the unamplified woman standing on the court, the band did an able job on zero notice.

Jon

Jon Solomon said,

February 21, 2012 @ 11:35 am

From Princeton's Athletic Department in response to this thread's comments:

"Our marketing director, Yariv Amir, is the Tiger's coordinator these days. The two kids who are the Tiger are track athletes, so when they have meets, there's no Tiger. If you or your readers know people who want to be the Tiger, have them contact Yariv at yamir@princeton.edu."

So...anyone want to be the Tiger?

Jon

Daniel Mark said,

February 23, 2012 @ 11:46 am

1) Jon, glad you made it to Tampa.
2) Thanks for the shout-out.
3) There is a new student group called Tiger Universe that is doing everything they can to promote student attendance and enthusiasm. They would be very happy to ensure the appearance of the Tiger mascot at all games. Frankly (and with good reason), they don't feel very supported by the athletic department--and sometimes quite the opposite. Yariv gets some leeway for now, having just started in his job recently. But it's really time for that office to step up.

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