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| USC's Mascot Was All Hollywood |
USC: TRAVELER
Thanks to the tremendous play that his show once received on the Nickelodeon Network, Mr. Ed, the
talking horse may be the first horse with Southern California ties that comes to mind. However, USC also
has a famous horse that serves the school as it’s mascot.
Traveler, a beautiful white horse that appears at all USC home football games is regarded as one of the
most recognizable school symbols in the country. With a Trojan warrior as his mount, USC’s current
mascot, Traveler IV, continues the tradition of whipping Trojan fans into a frenzy after a score. While the
Cardinal and Gold faithful are cheering, Traveler IV dashes around the Coliseum as the band strokes the
magical moment with the USC fight song, “Fight on.”
Former USC All-American defensive back and assistant coach Nate Shaw has seen the dramatic effect
Traveler can have on the game’s excitement on both ends.
“It definitely got the adrenaline going when I was playing, and I still think it has an effect on the players,”
the former Trojan said. When I was coaching against USC (at Oregon State)
we hated to see that horse come down the tunnel because it got USC a little more pumped up.”
The line of Traveler mascots first rode into Trojan athletic traditions in the early 1960s. Traveler I was
half-Arabian, half-Tennessee Walker and served the USC program through the 1966 season. He also
appeared in the movies with the late actor Leo Carillo (The Cisco Kid) and was the brother of the Lone
Ranger’s Silver. USC’s first horse died in 1975 at the age of 33.
Traveler II, a Tennessee Walker served as the mascot for nearly 10 years before he was forced into
retirement in the mid-1970s with a leg injury. The next horse out of the USC stables was Traveler III, a
151/2 hand high Arabian that was a professional show horse.
The original rider of the Trojan horses was Richard Saukko, whose career spanned from 1961-88. The
first time that Saukko appeared on Traveler, he was in the costume that Charlton Heston wore in the
movie “Ben Hur.” However the costume exited stage left when it was deemed too bulky. Saukko crafted
his own leather costume that he patterned after the Tommy Trojan statue on USC’s campus. He did
continue to wear Heston’s helmet sometimes.
When Traveler I made his initial gallop around the Coliseum, it wasn’t the first time that USC sports
officials had developed horse sense. The original horse sighting at a USC game was as early as 1927. A
brief equine appearance on behalf of the Trojans was made in the 1940s and Bob Caswell and his white
horse, Rockazar performed some in the 1950s.
USC even went to the dogs in the 1940s. A mutt named George Tirebiter I, first barked
for the Trojans in 1940. The unofficial school mascot who loved to chomp on car tires while they were
moving, survived a dog napping in 1947 at the hands of UCLA fans. George was unscathed by the incident
except for the UCLA letters that had been shaved in his hair. A USC blanket helped disguise George’s
shame. The dog’s life ended tragically in 1950, when George Tirebiter apparently bit off more than he
could chew, and was run over by a car. The canine was followed by three more Georges, before the last
Trojan bark faded away.
USC NICKNAME: TROJANS
The Trojan nickname took its first steps when Warren Bovard, director of athletics and son of university
president Dr. George Bovard, asked Los Angles Times sports editor Owen Bird to choose a more suitable
nickname. Bird was later quoted by USC sports officials on how he selected Trojans to symbolize the
school.
“At this time, the athletes and coaches of the university were under terrific handicaps,” explained Bird.
“They were facing teams that were bigger and better-equipped, yet they had splendid fighting spirit. The
name ‘Trojans’ fitted them.” “I came out with an article prior to a showdown between USC and Stanford
in which I called attention to the fighting spirit of USC athletes and named them ‘Trojans.’ From then on,
we used the term ‘Trojan’ all the time and it stuck.”
Nicknames & More |