Sammy Seminole was the first mascot of the Florida State University Seminoles. He was introduced in 1958 and was retired in 1972 in an effort to find a less insensitive mascot.
Sammy Seminole was the first mascot of the Florida State University Seminoles. He was introduced in 1958 and was retired in 1972 in an effort to find a less insensitive mascot.
Sammy Seminole debuted at the 1958 FSU Pow Wow homecoming event. [1] For the first several years he was portrayed by white students from FSU's gymnastics program wearing faux-Native American garb. The character led the Seminoles football team onto the field at the start of the game, and then led the crowd by performing cheers and acrobatic stunts. The gymnastics program ceased sponsoring Sammy Seminole in 1968, though the character was soon re-introduced. In the late 1960s Sammy Seminole was joined by the even more stereotyped "Chief Fullabull", who served as the mascot for the basketball team. [2] [3]
Both Sammy Seminole and the basketball mascot were eventually retired by the school in order to find a more respectful school mascot. In 1977 they were replaced by Chief Osceola and Renegade. Chief Osceola has been officially supported by the Seminole Tribe of Florida. [2] [3]
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, sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fictional, representative spokespeople for consumer products.
Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on Florida's oldest continuous site of higher education.
Osceola, named Billy Powell at birth in Alabama, became an influential leader of the Seminole people in Florida. His mother was Muscogee, and his great-grandfather was a Scotsman, James McQueen. He was reared by his mother in the Creek (Muscogee) tradition. When he was a child, they migrated to Florida with other Red Stick refugees, led by a relative, Peter McQueen, after their group's defeat in 1814 in the Creek Wars. There they became part of what was known as the Seminole people.
The Florida State Seminoles are the athletic teams representing Florida State University located in Tallahassee, Florida. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level, primarily competing in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) for all sports since the 1991–92 season; within the Atlantic Division in any sports split into a divisional format since the 2005–06 season.
Doak S. Campbell Stadium, popularly known as "Doak", is a football stadium on the campus of Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. It is the home field of the Florida State Seminoles football team of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).
Osceola and Renegade are the official symbols of the Florida State University Seminoles. Osceola, representing the historical Seminole leader Osceola, and his Appaloosa horse Renegade introduce home football games by riding to midfield with a burning spear and planting it in the turf.
Hugh Nelson Durham is a retired American basketball coach. He was head coach at Florida State, Georgia, and Jacksonville. He is the only head coach to have led two different programs to their first Final Four appearances.
Florida State University School (FSUS) is a laboratory school located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is sponsored by Florida State University and works in close collaboration with the Florida State University College of Education. The school is often referred to as Florida High School, or "Florida High", though it actually serves grades kindergarten through 12th.
The Florida State Seminoles football team represents Florida State University in the sport of American football. The Seminoles compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). The Seminoles previously competed as part of the ACC Atlantic Division. The team is known for its storied history, distinctive helmet, fight song, colors, and many other traditions associated with the school.
A Florida Western can be used to describe a small number of films and literary works set in the 19th century, particularly around the time of the Second Seminole War. Not a significant number of these films have been made, as most Hollywood and other genre westerns are usually located in other regions of the United States, particularly the former frontier territories of "the West".
The Florida–Florida State football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the teams of the two oldest public universities of the U.S. state of Florida: the University of Florida (UF) Gators and Florida State University (FSU) Seminoles. Both universities participate in a range of intercollegiate sports, and for the last several years, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has sponsored a "Sunshine Showdown" promotion that tallies the total number of wins for each school in head-to-head sports competition. However, the annual football game between the Gators and Seminoles has consistently been the most intense and notable competition between the in-state rivals.
Gary Pajcic, was a high school and college athlete, lawyer, and philanthropist in his hometown of Jacksonville, Florida. He earned his undergraduate degree from FSU in 1969 and his law degree from FSU in 1972.
The Florida State Seminoles men's basketball team represents Florida State University in the intercollegiate sport of basketball. The Seminoles compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I and the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).
The Seminole Tribe of Florida is a federally recognized Seminole tribe based in the U.S. state of Florida. Together with the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma and the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, it is one of three federally recognized Seminole entities. It received that status in 1957. Today, it has six Indian reservations in Florida.
The Florida State–Miami football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Florida State Seminoles football team of Florida State University and Miami Hurricanes football team of the University of Miami. Since the late 1980s, one or both squads have been highly ranked entering the game, adding national championship implications to an already heated rivalry. Kicks have played an important role in the series with many wide right, wide left, blocks and other mistakes occurring with the game in the balance. Miami leads the series 35-32 through the 2022 season.
David Narcomey is a member of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma and an activist who was the regional director of the North Florida chapter of the American Indian Movement or AIM.
Seminole is a 1953 American Western film directed by Budd Boetticher and starring Rock Hudson, Barbara Hale, Anthony Quinn and Richard Carlson. Much of the film was shot in the Everglades National Park, Florida. The film depicts the Second Seminole War (1835-1842).
The 1989 Florida State Seminoles football team represented Florida State University in the 1989 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was coached by Bobby Bowden and played their home games at Doak Campbell Stadium.
In 2005 the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) distributed a "self evaluation" to its member institutions for teams to examine the use of potentially offensive imagery with their mascot choice. This examination was done in accordance with NCAA policy that requires each member institution to maintain an "atmosphere of respect for and sensitivity to the dignity of every person." Fourteen schools either removed all references to Native American culture or were deemed not to have references to Native American culture as part of their athletics programs. Subsequently, 19 teams were cited as having potentially "hostile or abusive" names, mascots, or images, that would be banned from displaying them during post-season play, and prohibited from hosting tournaments.
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