Short for Cyclones, this is Cy, who for some reason is a cardinal. What University first started rallying around the mascot Cy after a homecoming party in 1954?

Iowa State's official team name is the cyclones, which admittedly is hard to represent. So in 1954, someone created a cardinal costume and the rest is history. Cy is large - you need to be 5’11” to 6’2” and weigh 175 to 210 pounds to fill his big wings. Currently somewhere between 4 to 6 students play the role of the cardinal mascot.

Asked by Tom Cohen · Last updated 5 years ago · 4.3K views