ETSU has had numerous mascots in its lifetime. All of them have enriched our athletic experiences and our appreciation for school spirit. They range from live animals to pirates and parrots. ETSU's mascot tradition started back when ETSU was actually the state teacher's college. In the beginning our athletic teams were called "The Teachers," but in 1935 the team name became "The Buccaneers."
One might expect our first mascot to be some variation on the pirate theme, but it was actually a goat named Captain Kidd. He began his reign in 1950 and was replaced with Captain Kidd II in 1957.
After Captain Kidd, our school enjoyed various incarnations of Bucky the pirate. Each of them wore full pirate garb sometimes with swords in their holsters and megaphones in their hands.
At the Homecoming game in 1980, a new era of mascot history was hatched. His name was Pepper the Parrot. He was one of the most notable and beloved of ETSU mascots. According to lore, Pepper's beginning went something like this:
Once upon a time, on one of the deserted Canary Islands, there lived a giant parrot named Pepper. Like most parrots, he had aspirations of playing in the NBA or perhaps having his own line of breakfast cereals. The big bird had one problem, however. He wanted to make people happy, but there were no people where he lived.
So Pepper packed his suitcase and left his island home. As he flew across the ocean, he was swept up in a hurricane. Pepper, being a strong parrot, fought the storm. He became exhausted and was forced to land. He fell asleep on a sandy beach. When he awoke, he saw a rainbow in the sky. He followed the rainbow to its end at ETSU's blue and gold Memorial Center. Since that fateful day, Buccaneer fans have laughed and cheered with Pepper, making him a very happy bird. - Adapted from Cliff Cristy 1992 yearbook
In 1991, Pepper had to learn to share the stage with our newest mascot, Bucky. Although we have had many versions of Bucky in the past, this one was certainly a formidable foe. Bucky tended to play up the tough guy approach whereas Pepper stuck mainly to the light-hearted and comical side.
Bucky was the kind of guy with whom you would like to party or at least have by your side in case a fight broke out. He wielded a sword and, for a short time, guns.
During the late '90s, Pepper was phased out as ETSU's mascot, and Bucky became the sole mascot. In recent years, Bucky has had a couple of costume changes. Our most recent Bucky has an interesting history, including why our school is called the Buccaneers:
Bucky's background begins with the story of the East Tennessee State University nickname -- the Buccaneers. A brief history begins with a buccaneer, who once roamed a vast area which stretched from the Florida Keys northward. Johnson City, home of ETSU, is located among the mountains of eastern Tennessee and is a great distance from the ocean.
For this reason, one might wonder why ETSU would select a Buccaneer as their mascot. The answer is not that simple. Apparently, geologists and archaeologists teamed up and discovered an underground river near the university several years ago. Named Pirate Creek, it winds its way through many subterranean tunnels. It is thought that these caverns at one time channeled all the way to the Atlantic Ocean. Soon after this discovery, the legend of buccaneer, Jean Paul LeBucque was found in history books. LeBucque was a nuisance and a terror. He was looking for a place to hide his great store of gold and treasure, and to find safety for himself. He sailed north in search of a new home and began to look inland.
Legend states that he discovered the underground river near Johnson City and decided to call Pirate Creek his home. Geologists think that the upheaval of the earth's crust, which now blocks the channel, possibly killed LeBucque. This legend is widely accepted and explains why an inland school would choose a pirate nickname.