CINCINNATI, Ohio (AP) — It turns out that the birthplace of the Oregon Ducks’ mascot is, of all places, Ohio.
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A Cincinnati company designed and created the costume worn by the Ducks mascot three decades ago after being contacted by the University of Oregon.
Randy Kent has been in the mascot making business since the 1970s. He says the Duck costume evolved during the design and that he had to make its head bigger.
His company called Stagecraft has created mascots for hundreds of schools across the country including North Carolina, Duke, Louisville, LSU and UConn.
He tells WKRC-TV that it’s the person inside the costume who really gives life to the mascot.
The Ducks will take on Ohio State’s Buckeyes in college football’s championship game tonight (8:30 p.m./ESPN).
Ohio native, Buckeyes fan and Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James is making sure that Ohio State’s players are getting an earful at the national championship game.
James helped each of the Buckeyes get a pair of Beats By Dre headphones.
A message was posted on Ohio State coach Urban Meyer’s Twitter account on Saturday thanking James for the headphones, which were pictured.
Special thanks to @KingJames @beatsbydre for their support to the Buckeyes! pic.twitter.com/ccAUo4pvaB
— Urban Meyer (@CoachUrbanMeyer) January 10, 2015
Ohio State officials say that the gift was not a violation of improper benefits to athletes, and that the value of the headphones will be subtracted from the total permissible gift allowance offered to players in the game.
A team spokesman said James, who represents the product, “facilitated” the players receiving the headphones.