In an ideal world, Oregon cheerleading coach Laraine Raish would have Daisy and Donald Duck roaming the sidelines at Oregon sporting events next year.
Instead, Raish selected three male students — joining two male veterans — to wear the Donald Duck suit, Oregon’s traditional Disney mascot, to continue entertaining crowds at Autzen Stadium and McArthur Court.
“I have not had a girl Duck for so long, and I’d like to have one,” Raish said after Thursday’s mascot auditions at Mac Court. “But when (she’s) out there, it’s obvious that she’s a girl.”
And being a girl often doesn’t fly in the Duck suit — especially with the physical differences (height in particular) that distinguish the students who wear the mascot suit.
“The guys just have the Duck walk,” Raish said. “What I’m looking for are people who can eventually conform to what the other Ducks look like because we prefer that they all look similar.”
Four students, including one female, auditioned for the role of being the Duck next year, a position that requires four students plus one alternate. After short personal interviews with four panelists, including Raish, the contestants performed a musical skit with the Duck suit on and then participated in an improv routine with various props.
“The hard thing is I like them all,” Raish said.
Although she doesn’t like to choose who will be the Duck based on physical characteristics, Raish said, “It would be nice if they were about the same height.” The physical similarities are needed at games or events that require two people to share the Duck duties, such as football and basketball games, where each person wears the suit for one half.
Raish and the three other judges discussed their evaluations of the candidates Thursday evening, where the three male students were rated the best in the five categories, which included personality and time commitment. Raish announced the winners Friday morning.
“I was really surprised,” said one of the winners, a sophomore pre-education major. “I really didn’t know what to expect.”
The judges, however, expect a great future from the new mascots.
“The future is good for the Duck and for the University of Oregon,” said Karl Ludeman, a former Oregon cheerleader who served on the panel of judges. “It always seems like we have good seasons when the crowd gets into it; the crowd gets into with the Duck. So when you have a good Duck, the crowd gets into it.
“It looks like it will be a good year for the Ducks.”
Despite having just four applicants, the panelists said this year’s group was the best to ever try out to be the Duck.
“This is the best audition I’ve ever seen,” said one of the veteran Ducks, who helped facilitate the tryout. “The overall turnout was great in terms of talent.”
Ironically, despite standing in front of thousands of fans during football and basketball games, the men behind the Duck mask remain anonymous.
“When you’re a Duck, people don’t know who you are, but they like what you do,” Raish said. “You don’t get credit for it.”