South Carolina’s announcement that it wanted to construct a statue of its mascot, Cocky, was not enough to garner news on its own. But the proposed price tag certainly was.
The school hopes to raise between $75,000 and $100,000 to construct the bronze statue, which will be built on the Columbia campus’ Gibbes Green. Yes, you read that correct. That’s a $100,000 price tag for a statue of a school mascot.
As expected, while some students supported the measure, others questioned the allocation of so much money to a statue of a mascot when issues pertaining to scarce parking, aging dorms and rising tuition remain unresolved.
“It just sends a terrible signal,” said Alex Imgrund, a 2006 graduate of South Carolina’s School of Law. “Who does a statue of Cocky benefit?”
“I could see if it was a major figure at USC, like (football coach Steve) Spurrier down the line, but it’s a mascot,” said senior Chelsey Allen.
Here’s hoping that common sense takes hold and the school reduces the amount of money allocated for the project or just nixes it entirely.
Photo: Frankie Creel/US Presswire
