A UMaine fraternity is coming to the defense of the school’s hockey mascot’s panned debut performance.
Bananas T. Bear, aka the mascot, skated to center ice for a recent game, but critics say that calling what he did skating is a stretch.
Bananas not only had trouble skating but he fell down on the ice during his performance.
“It’s time to wrestle control of Bananas away from fraternity Alpha Delta,” one Facebook critic wrote. “They are poor stewards of the brand and mascot.”
The frat for has been supplying the personnel who don the mascot’s garb and work up the crowd for the home team.
The usual guy who plays the role of Bananas was away on school break so the frat named a temporary replacement.
Unfortunately the “stand-in” – he actually even had trouble standing up on skates – had been on blades for less than a month.
A fraternity spokesman apologized for Bananas but realizes that hockey fans are fanatics for skill on ice.
“It was a rough game,” said Will Barry, president of Alpha Delta.
Bananas has a history of controversy, one might say.
In 2016, a student scheduled to perform the role was relieved of his duties by school police after a friend driving him to the arena was arrested for operating while under the influence.
The school for years – 1914 to 1966 – used live bears to mascot its sports teams.
But that tradition ended when the state outlawed live animal mascots.
What do you get when you put a fake bear on skates?
Nothing but trouble.
