Scrappy: History of school spirit

What is the result of crossing a train, a mockingbird, and the determination of a legendary football coach? Scrappy, UTC's beloved mascot and team cheerleader.

Adopted in 1996, the mascot combines many aspects of Chattanooga and Tennessee traditions, according to vice chancellor of student development Dean Richard MacDougall, who has been with UTC for 33 years.

However, UTC's mascot has gone through some dramatic changes before becoming the picture perfect image he is now.

A snake was the first image used by the university in the 1920s to represent the water moccasins found in the area's waterways.

In later decades the snake was dropped and a new image was conceived by a local man who was a huge moccasin fan and Native American enthusiast.

Chief Chattamoc, as he was called, wore a traditional headdress, feathers, and squaw as he cheered and danced at games and served as UTC's mascot.

A shoe named Little Moc briefly became the UTC symbol during the 1980s before the university returned to the Native American mascot.

Chief Moccanooga was the new version of Chief Chattamoc, but many local Native American groups were unhappy with the mascot.

They found it offensive and disrespectful.

One group in particular called the Chattanooga InterTribal Association criticized UTC for using the mascot, because they believed Native Americans were portrayed in an unfavorable manner.

The university assembled a 17-panel committee to discuss the issue and come to a decision.

"If we offended a large number of people, then we decided it would be best not to keep it," said Dean MacDougall.

Chuck Cantrell, assistant vice chancellor of university relations, was part of the committee that addressed the mascot issue.

"It was something being done at many universities across the nation, and we were one of them," Cantrell said.

"Both sides had a very open discussion about the issue," Cantrell said. "We even spoke with many groups and students on campus, including the SGA, about what should be done."

A New York firm called SME Design was hired to work with a student/faculty administration group to come up with a new design.

After six months of debate, the current mascot Scrappy was chosen. In the spring of 1997, he was finally introduced to the public.

Scrappy was a combination of the university's football history, Tennessee's state bird, and Chattanooga's railroad industry.

Even though Scrappy was not directly named after the legendary football Coach A.C. "Scrappy" Moore, the namesake follows the title given to Scrappy Field in honor of Coach Moore.

Moore was one of the most successful coaches in UTC football history.

During his 41 years as head coach, he led the Mocs to 171 wins, which included a much remembered victory against the Tennessee Volunteers in 1958.

The mockingbird was adopted as the state bird in 1933, so the name Moccasins was shortened to simply "Mocs" and the image for Scrappy was born.

Scrappy's conductor uniform also came from Chattanooga's rich railroad history in the area.

"Wherever in the world you are, when you name the city of Chattanooga, people will say "choo choo," Cantrell said.

"At the time we were hoping to promote a new look for the university's athletic program," said Cantrell. "Scrappy was part of a package that included a new logo and new image."

Happy with the new mascot, Tom Losh, Assistant Dean of Students and part of the committee, was quoted in a 1997 issue of the Echo newspaper as saying, "It's a bird with an attitude."

Seven years later Scrappy is cheering on the team with more spirit than ever at every game.

Just like the meaning of the name, Scrappy is a real fighter and is always determined no matter the odds.