Feb. 10, 2009
SEATTLE - The University of Washington announced today the introduction of "Dubs," the 11th Alaskan Malamute that will serve as the school's mascot. He replaces Whitepaw's Arlut Spirit of Gold Dust ("Spirit"), which served as the school's mascot since 1999.
Dubs will lead the team out of the tunnel before every home football game and wander the sidelines during each contest. The mascot also makes various appearances on behalf of the university and serves as a lasting image of the UW throughout the Northwest and the nation. Each game Dubs will have several students who will handle him as he leads the football team onto the field and participates in other game day activities. These students will work with Dubs behind the scenes and at each mascot appearance representing the University. Current University of Washington students with previous experience with dogs will be selected to serve as Mascot Handlers. Washington also announced the formation of a special fund - called "Dollars For Dubs" - established to assist in the care, training and handling of Dubs. Supporters of the mascot program may contribute to the fund, which is administered through the UW Foundation. In late September, the school announced an initiative to search for an appropriate name for its live mascot that would remain an ongoing UW tradition. A contest was launched on GoHuskies.com and fans were asked to submit their favorite name for the live Husky dog, which has been the school's mascot since 1922. More than 1,400 different nominations were received and a committee that consisted of campus and community representatives narrowed the field to a reasonable list of finalists, including: Admiral, Dubs, King, Koda, Legend, Reign, Spirit and Sundodger. More than 20,000 votes were received in two rounds of online voting via GoHuskies.com. Whitepaw's Arlut Spirit of Gold Dust ("Spirit") previously served as the Husky mascot. Last spring, the school began making plans for Spirit's retirement at the conclusion of the 2008 football season. Prior to the Sept. 6 home football game against BYU, Spirit suffered a shoulder injury and, since that time, was unable to attend UW games. |
