PETER, THE ANTEATER

History of the Mascot (Zot)

• It hung from banners down the sides of buildings
• It appeared on buttons, bumper stickers and decals
• It was etched in a hillside overlooking the campus...

Rising from the middle of the green fields that once sustained the buffalo herds of James Irvine was UCI, a campus soon to become distinctive for its high quality of programs, faculty and academics.

But something was missing: The new school lacked a mascot. The Administration decided to let the students choose the animal that would represent UCI. Students were to submit their candidates, and the favorites would be voted on in a campus-wide election.

A student named Schuyler Hadley Basset III was concerned with the choice of the mascot. He wasn't too thrilled with the proposed Roadrunner, Unicorn, or Golden Bison.

Schuyler and his buddies desired something unique, nontraditional... something slightly radical. Then someone mentioned the *** anteater ***. It was perfect! Inspired by the Johnny Hart comic strip, "B.C.," the Anteater had all the makings of an ideal mascot for the infant university. It was original and slightly irreverent.

Schuyler got on the ball. In a one-man political campaign, Basset employed all his promotional skills in a crusade to elect the Anteater. He blitzed the campus with pro-anteater literature and created the anteater logo (seen above) that is still seen today on anteater souvenirs to this day.

A water polo game against San Luis Obispo took place just before the mascot election. The first athletic event on the campus, 900 of the 1,500 students attended. The anteater-inspired water polo players brought their own cheerleaders, who passed roll-out party favors to the crowd and yelled "Give `em a tongue!" Shortly thereafter, students voted 56 percent to adopt the anteater.

Santa Ana Register, September 5, 1977