It costs a lot of money to advertise on the Sphere in Las Vegas, but Western Kentucky University has an idea. The Hilltoppers lobbied for the funniest and most handsome mascot in college sports to takeover the world’s most viral entertainment venue.
There would be no better collaboration on the planet!
The Sphere, located at the Venetian Resort, asked a hypothetical question about what its fans might want to see projected on its exosphere in 2024. Western Kentucky responded with a rendering of the only correct answer — Big Red.
What is Big Red? That’s a good question. Nobody really knows. It’s a myster.
This is Big Red, the official on-field mascot for the Hilltoppers:
There are a lot of theories as to what Big Red might be. Actual answers are minimal.
It’s better that way!
Here is what WKU says about the mystery of Big Red:
Big Red, Western Kentucky University’s athletic mascot, was born in the fall of 1979 and celebrates its birthday on December 1st. Big Red can be best described as the Spirit of Western!
The huge, furry, lovable creature was originally designed and built by WKU student Ralph Carey, (’80 WKU graduate), of Cincinnati, and made its’ debut during the Hilltoppers’ 1979-80 basketball season. Big Red has become a big hit with fans of all ages throughout the state and the nation. Big Red’s signature moves are the belly slide and belly shake.
— Western Kentucky University
The true origin story, detailed by the Bowling Green Daily News, dates back more than 40 years.
It couldn’t be an animal, and [creator Ralph] Carey said he wanted to stray as far away from a hillbilly stereotype as possible.
The answer would be found somewhere in between.
Soon, Carey had dreamed up a sketch of the future of Hilltopper athletics – a large, fuzzy, red blob he scribbled on a piece of paper while meeting with future school president Gary Ransdell, who was then working in the office of alumni relations.
“It started, actually, there was a drawing at one point in time, and I have it, of a bear in a sweater with a big ‘W’ on the front of it,” he laughed. “I got through with that drawing and said, ‘This is not where this thing needs to go.’
“I had some experience with some other characters in terms of their abilities to be animated by the wearer. That was also a key element because I was going to end up wearing this thing. I said, ‘How about this?’ and scribbled a Big Red.
“(The committee) kind of looked sideways at it and said, ‘Why don’t you work on that one?'”
Carey returned to the drawing board, refined the character while a deadline approached for its debut.
— Chad Bishop of The Bowling Green Daily News
So then what is Big Red? Well, it’s Big Red!
According to the school, the mascot does not have a gender and cannot talk. It must always be red. It must always be shown with WKU on the front.
While there are a lot of unknowns about Big Red, one thing is for certain! Its birthday is Dec. 1.
Everything about The Sphere is awesome. Various brands and companies continue to purchase ad space on the exosphere in an effort to one-up each other. None of the campaigns thus far would come close to a takeover by Big Red!
The only problem would be trying to keep men and women alike from passing out on the streets of Las Vegas. It is already hot enough in the desert, adding the most handsome mascot in sports to the equation would be too much to handle.