Will the Hawkeye Still Stand Tall?

We have a tradition in our household.  We have been collecting the stuffed mascots of Penn State's opposing teams since we joined the Big Ten in 1993.

In fact, the first Big Ten mascot we ever acquired was Herky the Iowa Hawkeye.

We line up all our mascots on our fireplace mantle each season.  Although I must confess that I never acquired a Youngstown State Penguin.  So I'm using a stuffed Opus penguin - close enough of a substitute for our purpose here!

At the beginning of the season, all the mascots stand.  Then as we play the game, we reflect wins and losses.  If the mascot's team loses, the mascot lies down.  If the mascot's team wins, they continue to stand.

So for now our mantlepiece looks like this:

 The Penguin, the Golden Flash, and the Owl are lying down.  Big Al the Elephant is standing.
So is Herky the Hawkeye, for now.  As are the rest of the mascots on our Big Ten schedule.


Frankly it's been a bit tiresome having Herky the Hawkeye standing all season during the last couple of years.  Nothing would give us more pleasure than to see him join the Owl on his back!