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The Cutest Live College MascotsAnimals have long been a part of college sports. And it's no surprise that the most enduring – and adorable – of these fan-friendly, fun-loving furballs are dogs
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Smokey IX, the University of Tennessee's bluetick coonhound
In 1953, the Tennessee pep club held a contest to select a coonhound, the native breed of the state, as the school's first live mascot. "He must be a 'Houn' Dog' in the best sense of the word," read the announcement trumpeting the event. When Blue Smokey was presented at halftime of the Vols' first game in 1953, he howled a loud, lusty "hello" and the crowd went wild. Since then, a coonhound has led the Tennessee football team through the "Power T" before each game and then patrolled the sidelines of Neyland Stadium. And Smokey has certainly proved himself worthy of the "Houn' Dog" title; he has survived both being stolen by Kentucky students in 1955 and an altercation with Baylor's bear mascot, Judge, at the 1957 Sugar Bowl.
