Who is goldy gopher

Including a full schedule of games plus other functions, Goldy Gopher appears at over outings and events each year. Constructed out of bronze, as well as maroon granite, and sculpted by U of M alum Nicholas Legeros, the Goldy statue became an instant favorite of students, fans, and visitors. Close search area. Search input text area Search.

It all started in with a satirical drawing depicting Minnesota politicians as rodents following the introductions of legislature created to build railroads in Minnesota. In , George Grooms was hired to draw an official mascot, and Goldy Gopher was born. Goldy received yet another redesign in when Lou Holtz became the teams coach.

Groldy took on a more buff physique in the drawing, but the drawing only stuck for one year. The university then tweaked the design a bit, giving him a more friendly design. His inspiration for the drawing came when he and his wife were stopped at a Minnesota rest stop and a small creature ran past his wife. The sketch was that of a rodent, with buck teeth, big ears, a bushy tail and stripes. However, what Grooms did not realize is that he did not model the mascot after the native pocket gopher, but instead a chipmunk.

This explains the stripes, as gophers do not have stripes, but ground squirrels and chipmunks do! This means that Minnesota has been living a lie since Gophers mostly live alone, while ground squirrels live in family groups.

Goldy wears pants in public unlike Bucky. Goldy obtained unobtainium. Goldy made it to the last book of Game of Thrones. Chuck Norris makes Goldy Gopher jokes. Morgan Freeman's life is narrated by Goldy. Bierman chose the gold color because the football blended in with the uniforms.

The embodiment of the Gopher mascot came to life in when assistant bandmaster Jerome Glass bought a fuzzy wool suit and asked technology junior Jim Anderson climb into it. Each person who through the years was allowed the joy of being the Gopher developed an individual personality, a unique way of relating to the crowd. And the mystique of Goldy Gopher became a tradition that absolutely prohibited removal of the head while in public, maintaining an illusion for the younger children that maybe, just maybe, the Gopher is a real live huggable animal.

The gopher suit and image of Goldy has changed though the years, sometimes by chance, sometimes by design. Until the early 's the had was narrow and pointy-nosed, reminiscent of the real animal. Then in , Goldy suddenly grew chubby cheeks and a wider, forward-looking face, almost cherubic in appearance.

For a brief period in , a fierce-looking 'mega-rodent' appeared, with barrel chest, clown feet and sinister eyes. This look didn't last long, and Goldy soon again became a lovable, friendly character.