The 13th annual SUNY Mascot Madness competition is officially underway. This statewide competition allows for SUNY students, faculty and mascot fans to vote on who is the best mascot in the SUNY system.
Read more to learn more about the competition, and how to vote.
How does Mascot Madness work?
The SUNY Mascot Madness tournament is organized like a March Madness-style bracket, where every mascot is set to face-off. The winner of each individual match advances to the next round, until there are only two mascots left in the final round. The tournament spans five rounds, lasting until the beginning of April.
What mascots have won in the past?
Only seven mascots have won SUNY Mascot Madness in the competition’s history. The University at Albany’s Damien the Great Dane is Mascot Madness’ reigning champion. Before that, Brockport’s very own Ellsworth Eagle won the competition in 2024.
Binghamton University’s Baxter Bearcat, Stony Brook University’s Wolfie Seawolf and SUNY Geneseo’s Victor E. Knight are tied for having the most Mascot Madness wins, each with two wins respectively.
Here is the full list of Mascot Madness winners:
- 2013: Hugo Hawk (SUNY New Paltz)
- 2014: Baxter Bearcat (Binghamton University)
- 2015: Baxter Bearcat (Binghamton University)
- 2016: Victor E. Knight (SUNY Geneseo)
- 2017: Oakie the Acorn (SUNY ESF)
- 2018: Victor E. Knight (SUNY Geneseo)
- 2019: Rip Van Winkle (Columbia-Greene Community College)
- 2021: Red (SUNY Oneonta)
- 2022: Wolfie Seawolf (Stony Brook University)
- 2023: Wolfie Seawolf (Stony Brook University)
- 2024: Ellsworth Eagle (SUNY Brockport)
- 2025: Damien the Great Dane (University at Albany)
Fans interested in learning more about each competitor can look through each mascot’s profile.
How does voting for Mascot Madness work?
The mascots can only advance to each round by receiving the most votes. Fans of the mascots can vote by visiting suny.edu/mascotmadness/. Participants can vote once every 12 hours per device for each individual match. Voters need to verify their vote with an active email or through the website’s captcha for their vote to count.
The voting schedule goes as follows:
- Round 1: March 10 (12 p.m.) – March 12 (3 p.m.)
- Round 2: March 16 (12 p.m.) – March 18 (3 p.m.)
- Round 3: March 20 (12 p.m.) – March 23 (3 p.m.)
- Semifinals/Final Four: March 25 (12 p.m.) – March 27 (3 p.m.)
- Finals: March 31 (12 p.m.) – April 2 (3 p.m.)
Fans interested in keeping up with SUNY Mascot Madness can follow along with the action on SUNY’s Facebook and Instagram pages, as well as check for updates on the Mascot Madness website.
