The Syracuse University’s men’s basketball team may have been knocked out of March Madness, but the team is in good company.

The State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry’s mascot, Oakie the Acorn, lost in the second round of the 2014 Mascot Madness competition. SUNY-ESF competed against 43 other SUNY schools, but lost to SUNY New Paltz’s mascot, Hugo the Hawk, after voting for the second round closed on Sunday at 4 p.m.

The competition began last year, said Karen Moore, SUNY-ESF’s special projects coordinator. The competition uses a bracket system and the seeds are based on how many athletic teams each school had. The competition involves several rounds and will end in April, she said.

Students can vote for their favorite mascot online, she said, adding that if they go onto the website, they can vote once every eight hours from any electronic device.

The competition attempts to raise awareness for the SUNY athletic programs in a fun way, Moore said.

“It also raises awareness that ESF has sports programs now, which many people are not aware of,” she added.

Moore said ESF promoted its mascot Oakie by posting updates on his Facebook and Twitter account, such as a video of him training for the competition. There is also a story on the SUNY-ESF webpage and several emails have been sent out about it, she added.

Kerri Yandrich, a senior environmental studies major, said SUNY-ESF lost to the SUNY in her hometown, SUNY Farmingdale, last year, adding that it was “a very close competition and very exciting.” She said she voted twice for this year’s competition.

“I’m really excited that more people are aware of the contest this year,” she said. “It’s a friendly competition and it’s fun to vote alongside friends at other SUNY schools.”

Some students have shown more apathy for the competition. Zach Belis, a senior environmental studies major, said he saw a post about it on social media but didn’t vote.

“I don’t really care,” he said. “It doesn’t have to do with anything. It doesn’t add or take away from my experience at SUNY-ESF. It’s just an online popularity contest and whatever school has the highest student population will probably win.”

David Bullis, a graduate student studying ecology, admitted that he didn’t know much about the competition, except that it involves a bracket system.

“I’m not a fan of Oakie,” he said. “I don’t feel like this competition will benefit ESF at all.”

Others really wanted to see Oakie win. Emma Putman, a senior bioprocess engineering major, said that she has been voting from her phone and different computers several times a day.

Putman is also a member of the cross-country team and said Oakie cheers the team on at races and supports athletes.

“He encourages spirit in the spectators and fans and I really want(ed) to see him win,” she said.

Chris Esworthy, a junior studying biochemistry, said he was very excited when ESF beat Erie Community College and SUNY Delhi in the previous round.

“I think it’s important that we get ESF’s name out as much as possible,” he said. “It’s a small school and doesn’t get as much exposure as I think it should. This is one little way to get ESF’s name out there.”

Published on March 24, 2014 at 2:08 am