The Duke Dog is the official
mascot
A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fic ...
for the
James Madison University
James Madison University (JMU, Madison, or James Madison) is a public research university in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Founded in 1908 as the State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Harrisonburg, the institution was renamed Madison Coll ...
Dukes. "Dukes" was made the official nickname in 1947, and was named after the University's president from 1919 to 1949, Samuel Page Duke. However, the
bulldog
The Bulldog is a British breed of dog of mastiff type. It may also be known as the English Bulldog or British Bulldog. It is of medium size, a muscular, hefty dog with a wrinkled face and a distinctive pushed-in nose.[Virginia Military Institute
la, Consilio et Animis (on seal)
, mottoeng = "In peace a glorious asset, In war a tower of strength""By courage and wisdom" (on seal)
, established =
, type = Public senior military college
, accreditation = SACS
, endowment = $696.8 mill ...]
.
In 2004, Duke Dog was named a finalist for the
Capital One
Capital One Financial Corporation is an American bank holding company specializing in credit cards, auto loans, banking, and savings accounts, headquartered in McLean, Virginia with operations primarily in the United States. It is on the ...
Mascot Bowl. After eleven weeks of voting, Duke Dog won its matchup each week to finish a perfect 11-0. The next closest mascot finished with a record of 6-5. Although Duke Dog overwhelmingly won in polling, the contest was based also on scores from a panel of judges, and Monte from the
University of Montana
The University of Montana (UM) is a public research university in Missoula, Montana. UM is a flagship institution of the Montana University System and its second largest campus. UM reported 10,962 undergraduate and graduate students in the fal ...
ended up winning the contest overall (ironically, JMU had just defeated Montana in
the I-AA football championship less than a month prior). Since this incident, Capital One has changed the contest so that the popular vote is the sole determinant of the winner of the Mascot Bowl.
On September 22, 2007, Duke Dog was tackled by Chanticleer, a chicken mascot from
Coastal Carolina University
Coastal Carolina University (CCU or Coastal) is a public university in Conway, South Carolina. Founded in 1954 as Coastal Carolina Junior College, and later joining the University of South Carolina System as USC Coastal Carolina, it became an in ...
. A fight between the mascots ensued, and the Duke Dog inadvertently struck one of the police officers who was trying to end the confrontation.
[ "Chicken cheapshots our beloved Duke Dog", https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQY3xH6FNNY]
The Duke Dog has established a long tradition of barking during JMU's fight song. After the lines "The fighting Dukes of JMU" and "We are the Dukes of JMU" of the JMU fight song, all students and alumni give 3 loud woofs.
James Madison University Fight Song lyrics:
Madison, James Madison,
We are the Dukes of JMU.
Madison, James Madison,
The fighting Dukes of JMU.
Fight for Glory -- Honors Won,
Brighten the Lights of Madison.
Madison, James Madison,
Show your Colors
Proud and True.
We are the Dukes of JMU!
References
External links
Duke Dog PoundingWHSV-TV
James Madison Dukes
Sun Belt Conference mascots
{{mascot-stub