For years, the tiger mascot has been a tradition here at Fleetwood, but rarely are people exposed to the thoughts of those who serve as the school’s mascot. Ryan Cortazzo, who recently acted as the school’s mascot during the fall pep rally, describes his time in the costume as “fun.”
“Being the Fleetwood Tiger, in my opinion, is a great honor,” says Cortazzo. “Having this responsibility is very important to me, and it was a great experience. I like being able to just run around and act ridiculous for a bit without worrying what people say.”
And who could blame him? Being concealed by the mascot gives the wearer the freedom to entertain as he or she pleases.
Andy Moran, who recently wore the tiger suit at the winter pep rally, described his experience as something a bit less than pleasant.
“It is the most uncomfortable outfit I’ve ever been in,” said Moran, “but it was still a lot of fun.”
Other schools are not nearly as fortunate.
“I like that Fleetwood has a consistently used mascot. At my old school, they never had the mascot at games, which I thought was kind of stupid,” says Acacia Gerhard.
Hopefully, the mascot tradition will remain alive here at Fleetwood. Students always seem to enjoy his various shenanigans, his spirit, and his liveliness, no matter who is in the suit. Many believe that the school will change its name before it changes the mascot tradition.
The Tiger Times 
Posted on February 1, 2011 by thetigertimes
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