BRITTANY PERRY
Special to The Leader
You’ve seen him at various sporting events and bust a move at the 2012 flash mob, but how well do you really know Fred Blue Devil?
Fred comes from Blazes, N.Y., but considers himself a true Fredonian. He migrated east to attend college at Fredonia, where he earned a degree in education and minored in theatre. Fred claims that the top-notch education, affordable tuition and great atmosphere made him realize that Fredonia was home.
Not long after his arrival at Fredonia did Fred find his calling in being a mascot.
“I was chosen to be the mascot at Fredonia State following a tryout. The scouts had followed my progress through the high school ranks. I wanted to focus on academics, turning down a few athletic scholarships and choosing a Division III school — Fredonia,” Fred said. “I was invited to a mascot tryout in Steele Hall. It was pretty competitive — the San Diego Chicken, Philly Phanatic — all the big names were there. But since I was born blue and had oversized, cartoon-like features, and the school nickname was the Blue Devils, I was a slam dunk for the job — pun intended.”
Fred represents 17 varsity teams and tries to enhance the fans’ experience in any way he can. When Fred isn’t promoting school spirit, he enjoys singing, songwriting and spending time with his younger brother, the Duke Blue Devil, and his cousin, the Demon Deacon, at Wake Forest.
Our Blue Devil has recently experienced a great change in his life: a new name.
Fred was formerly known as “Mike” in March, during the second annual SUNY Mascot Madness, a SUNY-wide competition to see which school had the best mascot.
This was Fredonia’s first year participating in Mascot Madness. At the time, “Mike” made it to the Elite Eight before losing to SUNY New Paltz’s Hugo the Hawk.
“The amount of voting and support that took place from the campus and athletic department was amazing,” said Matthew Palisin, the head baseball coach. “Hopefully, we’ll see Fred at more home games and active at different events. I hope that we can get more awareness out about Fred so we can advance further in Mascot Madness, if SUNY decides to do it again.”
Fred was chosen as the official name of the Blue Devil after Mascot Madness via an online poll.
“He’s a hard worker and does the best he can. Despite the fact that he’s named a Devil, he really is an angel,” Palisin said.