Sacramento State students have probably seen the school’s mascot Herky the Hornet at Sac State sporting events, but not many people may realize what the person, or people inside the Herky costume, must go through.

The mascot here at Sac State is the backbone of Hornet athletics. Herky can be seen at the majority of Sac State sporting events on campus.

With a muscular figure and an aggressive appearance, Herky has not always looked this way. The mascot has gone through many different makeovers, facelifts and dramatic changes to get the image that Herky now has today.

The mascot could be seen on campus beginning on Dec. 5, 1949. Herky the Hornet started out with a completely different look and the costume has changed a lot, but Herky’s colors and overenthusiastic spirit have never changed.

The athletic program does not like to talk about where the name Herky originates from, but the name Herky is short for Hercules.

This year there are three students who dress up as Herky at Sac State sporting events.

One of the students who dresses up as Herky feels the mascot’s image is now at its full potential. The student said the Herky costume is a strong aggressive image that sends off the spiritual message every mascot should carry.

Herky stays active by getting involved with as many events as possible. He attends most sporting events on campus, pep rallies and advertises when available. Herky is also a student and must deal with all the rigors of being a college student on top of being the Hornets’ mascot.

Adam Primas, Director of Marketing and Promotions for Intercollegiate Athletics, said that being Herky is more than just dressing up in a hornet costume for a couple hours.

“It’s great because it gets to represent both athletics and the school,” he said. “It’s fun to have Hornet football players, women’s basketball players and all the teams respect you and know that you are supporting them at each game.”

With a student body of roughly 28,000, it would seem that someone must know who the person is inside the Herky costume with its beedy eyes and oversized antennas.

Even though it can get difficult at times to not reveal Herky’s identity, Herky and his handlers do a great job of keeping the mascot’s identity hidden.

One of the students who dresses up as Herky said it is difficult at times to keep the identity a secret.

“It’s really hard sometimes to keep it a secret,” Herky said. “Sometimes I just want to tell someone the truth just to impress them, but for the most part I’ve done a pretty good job of keeping it a secret so far.”

Herky said when off the field, it is essential to be very alert and cautious to other people invading the mascot’s privacy.

Herky keeps a low profile and does not like taking a chance to jeopardize revealing the mascot’s identity.

Fall and winter are the busiest times of the year for Herky because there are multiple sports going on at once.

The mascot goes from week to week basically “on-call” with its mascot job duties. Herky said with being the mascot, one never really knows what to expect.

Herky said being the school’s mascot is fun but it is also a very time-consuming job and takes a lot of dedication.

“There is a lot of time commitment. Depending on a weekly basis it varies how much time is put in every week,” Herky said. “I attend some cheer practices or a dance practice and sponsored events, but I also spend time practicing routines and such on my own.”

Herky has done a lot of work in the community and he has worked with the Sacramento River Cats’ mascot, Dinger. One of the students who dresses up as Herky is not really sure about what the future holds, but the student has considered trying out for a mascot position with a professional sports team.

Even though school is their first priority, they continue to keep an open mind about playing as a mascot somewhere else if any doors would open up for them.

“I thought about it. If it came up, I might look into it but it’s not my main goal. It would be pretty cool if it ended up happening though,” said one of the students who dresses as Herky.

Ashley O’Con can be reached at [email protected]