Contest will determine ENMU mascot names

Will the new ENMU live mascots next season be Loyal and True or will it be Vic-Tory whenever the greyhounds make an appearance?

The public will decide as Eastern New Mexico University is staging a mascot-naming contest through Nov. 24.

Five sets of names for the male and female hounds are the finalists: Loyal and True, Roscoe and Ruby, Emerald and Silver, Thunder and Bolt or Vic and Tory. The champion set of names will be determined through the amount of donations each garners.

Voting jars have been set up in the Campus Union Building and Greyhound Arena, among other sites around campus.

As is the case for determining the ultimate winner, the finalists were also picked based upon the amount of votes they received.

Of the five survivors, the Roscoe-Ruby combination in particular needs some explanation as far as relevance.

It turns out those names were the brainchild of ENMU band director Dustin Seifert and his musician students heavily supported the choice.

“He just wanted to keep it lined up with the current mascot, the stuffed guy Ralph, so he went with Roscoe and Ruby,” said Kathi Fraze, music department secretary at Eastern. “If it has any support, it’s just because all the band students like Mr. Seifert.”

They’ll have to put their money where their mouth is in the next round. The winning combination will be selected through donations of $1 per vote, and the contest is being sponsored by the Associated Students of ENMU.

“We’re doing a fundraiser, and all of that money will go to the ongoing care of the dogs,” said Janice Morrow, director of publications at the university. “The most dollars wins.”

The greyhounds are being adopted from the New Mexico Greyhound Connection, based in Albuquerque. Along with the naming contest, Eastern is accepting applications for foster families and student “Hound Handlers” for the games.

Morrow said those are temporary care situations for the would-be mascots and the job of finding a more-or-less permanent home for the hounds is continuing.

“The dogs are being adopted by the university. As far as the family or nighttime situation, we haven’t made an absolute decision,” Morrow said.