Brutus Buckeye, according to his page on Ohio State's athletics website, was born in 1967, hates all things related to That State Up North and enjoys banging his head with his fists. These things might all be common knowledge for a fan who knows his/her Ohio State history, but what about the lesser known facts surrounding Brutus' humble beginnings?
Everyone's favorite college mascot has a history that extends far back, and, frankly, there were some dark times in its past. And by "dark times," I of course mean terrifying costumes.
Brutus was the brainchild of two students at the school in 1965 — Ray Bourhis and Sally Huber — who decided that a Buckeye should be the school's mascot as it was the official tree of Ohio. The two had the opportunity to have a buck (see: male deer or similar antlered animal) be the school's mascot but bucked the tradition at the time of having live animals, and instead, made a papier-mâché head costume for a student to wear.
And with it came nightmares.
The Ohio State University Archives (Photo by Jim Baer)
For anyone who has ever made something out of papier-mâché, you might think that while this seems large it doesn't seem too particularly difficult to do. The costume essentially devoured its wearer and the person inside was less an anthropomorphic nut-human hybrid and more a giant buckeye with legs.
This creation was first used in action in October 1965, but its usage was short-lived and replaced with fiberglass just a month later, which was a bit lighter and easier for the student inside to haul around.
The Ohio State University Archives.
We aren't quite through the creepy iterations of Brutus yet, as the fiberglass version just looks like the original papier-mâché Brutus found a really good skincare routine or even just started washing its face regularly. The eyes were also made to be much less eerie.
Another thing you'll notice with the second attempt at Brutus is that the mouth looks like it could come off of the fiberglass, and you would be correct in thinking that! In fact, this Brutus, which served from 1965 to 1975, could detach its mouth and flip it upside down into a frown if the team wasn't performing well.
The Ohio State University Archives.
However, the giant ball of Brutus lasted only for about a decade, despite being well-received by students and fans. In that decade, though, Brutus was able to attend the 1974 Rose Bowl. I wonder how often this Brutus pounded his head while the Bucks doubled up USC in that game.
In 1975, the school decided to move in a different direction.
"Different," here, is a nice way of saying terrifying.
The 1975 Brutus arguably looks the least like an actual Buckeye and more like an amorphous brown blob. Or perhaps a weird, corrupted version of a very specific emoji. Either way, this very infamous Brutus was debuted at Michigan State on Sept. 13, 1975 and at home in The Shoe against Penn State on Sept. 20. Shield your eyes and/or look sparingly at the following image.
The Ohio State University Archives.
It may be hard to believe, but there were people (I'm not entirely sure who exactly) that thought this was a good idea for the mascot parading around the sidelines during football games. Luckily for fans and viewers everywhere, though, this Brutus lasted only a single season before the fiberglass Brutus ball made its return for the 1976 season.
The Ohio State University Archives.
The fiberglass Brutus ball returned with overgrown eyebrows, but was just as lovable as ever. However, it seems that whoever was coming up with ideas for Brutus' new looks didn't quite learn their lesson and a new nightmare emerged as the 1976 season came to a close.
In 1977, Brutus got a slight makeover that made him a bit shorter and look like he was unsure of anything. The facial expression on the 1977-1980 suit looked like it lost all its determination and confidence.
The Ohio State University Archives.
Maybe it's just the quality of the picture and the cameras from around this time period, but this picture totally reminds me of one of those throwback photos you see of when Halloween costumes were really something to be afraid of. Also, are those googly eyes? And the person inside is wearing flip-flops? So many unanswered questions.
In 1980, though, the giant ball of Brutus saw its reign of terror come to a conclusion as what resembles today's Brutus first began his tenure as the school's mascot and resident head banger.
The Ohio State University Archives.
This Brutus corrected the mistake of having an unknowing and confused facial expression, but replaced it with a bit of a mean streak. At least, I think that's what this is. While the 1977 Brutus didn't seem to be confident about anything, this one seems like he knows something no one else does. You'll also notice that Brutus hadn't yet adopted his striped shirt and track pants (in fact, those look like khakis... hmm...) but instead wore a No. 36 jersey and clown shoes.
For those familiar with Ohio State's history, No. 36 has been worn by some very good Buckeye players, perhaps none more accomplished than Chris Spielman, but that wasn't until 1987. Before 1980, Galen Cisco, Bruce Elia and Tom Cousineau all wore the number, which might have been some inspiration for Brutus to wear the storied jersey.
In 1982, though, Brutus underwent his final drastic change. This is where he adopted his striped shirt and finally put all of the nightmarish costumes behind him. Good riddance.
The Ohio State University Archives.
Fans of facial hair rejoice for this Brutus, as grew a goatee in 1982 and rocked it, presumably, until his next big update in 2001.
The Ohio State University Archives.
Ah, what a breath of fresh air from all the previous costumes. Brutus finally looked like the energetic, head banging, break dancing, fake singing mascot we all know and love. And good timing too, as this costume came to fruition just a year before the 2002 national championship season.
Note: Brutus went through updates all throughout the '90s and early 2000s before this costume became set in 2001. The costumes probably looked similar up until this time when it became set.
And with the new costume, it seems that Ohio State fans were no longer the only ones paying attention to Brutus. In 2007, Brutus Buckeye, Ohio State's very own, was inducted into the Mascot Hall of Fame.
However, one of Brutus' most shining moments came after his induction, and many may remember his scuffle with Rufus the Bobcat, Ohio University's mascot, before the game between the two schools in 2010.
While running onto the field with the team before the game, Rufus charged toward Brutus and attempted to tackle him. On first attempt, though, Brutus showed why he was the superior mascot and shrugged him off with little issue.
Afterwards, though, Rufus continued to chase and brought Brutus down in the end zone. Brandon Hanning, the guy inside the Rufus costume, had to be asked to stop by security, was essentially fired from his job as a mascot and was no longer allowed to attend home athletic events at Ohio University.
Rufus is now listed in the Rivals & Enemies section on Brutus' athletics page, alongside Goldy the Gopher, Bucky the Badger, Sparty and "All things M*ch*gan."
The Ohio State University Archives.
Having enjoyed nearly two straight decades of success (and more importantly, wins over Michigan) under Jim Tressel and Urban Meyer, Brutus might be enjoying the best time of his long life on the sidelines today. This year marked Brutus' 50th since being born in 1967. (Although the first Brutus was first seen in 1965, he was somehow born in 1967. I'm not sure how this works, maybe the first one was an impostor.)
And for those clamoring for a possible Brutus Tryout piece, those hopes will have to be put on hold. Brutus' height is listed as taller than six feet tall (between 6-foot and 6-foot-9, to be exact), which takes me out of the running before I even get started.
In all, the giant nut has witnessed half of Ohio State's eight national championships, won the 2015 UCA mascot national championship, has a pet squirrel named Eleanor and even appeared in a "This Is Sportscenter" commercial alongside Richard Simmons, Brian Kenny and Stuart Scott.
As for the coming years, Brutus remains an enigma seeing as he cannot speak. Yet, there are many questions to be answered, including how he has been Ohio State's push-up champion for 50 years despite not having arms for almost 20 of those and if his goal of having legislation passed prohibiting the eating of nuts will happen. Maybe he'll even take a page from Stanford's book and become a tree one day. I certainly hope not, but anything is possible with Brutus.
