Goldy the Gopher is the mascot for the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities campus and the associated sports teams, known as the Golden Gophers.
During the year, Goldy makes over 1000 appearances and is at virtually all home games for University Teams, and this year was nominated and made the 2004 Capital One All-American Mascot Team .
In a comparison between Goldy and several other kinds of rodent, the gopher was judges to look least like Goldy- the results judged that his appearance was closest to a chipmunk or squirrel. Another animal Goldy is claimed to look like is the beaver, due to the buck teeth and tail. These inaccuracies are due to the fact that when the gopher was declared the mascot of the University, the artist hired to create the mascot did not know what a gopher looked like. As a replacement, he drew some furry animals he saw at a rest stop, which were actually chipmunks. There was no offical decision until 1977, when the decision to make an official mascot was made. The original mascot decided on was more agressive looking, but was revamped in 1986 when the athletics department was trying to change it's image. However, Goldy still retained most of the characteristics of a chipmunk.
Goldy Gopher has also been ejected from several sporting events, usually for conflicts with referees or officals, typically involving vulgarities or suggestions that officals have been bribed by the other team.
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