Extreme Makeover: Blue II Edition

Just a quick post today to show off a little video that my good buddies at CMC Media Group put together of myself and P.I.C., Hink, at the ABC Extreme Makeover Home Edition video shoot held at Hinkle Fieldhouse on Wednesday.

Many thanks to the kind fellas at CMC Media Group for doing this! You guys are good in my book!

Anyway, the video is below. I think it will give you a bit of a glimpse of the atmosphere on Wednesday night in Hinkle, and set the scene a little bit better than my poor story telling and weak photography. Enjoy...



A quick mention of congratulations to Butler men's head basketball coach, Brad Stevens, who was deservedly awarded a contract extension this week. He's scheduled to be at Butler now until 2014-15. In his first two years as head coach of the Bulldogs, he boasts an impressive 56-10 record. To put that into perspective, only North Carolina's Bill Guthridge (58-14 from 1997-99), had more victories in his first two years. (The credit to David Woods of The Indianapolis Star for that stat.)

This weekend is the opening weekend of the IndyCar Series 2009 season with a race in St. Petersburg, Fla. Why does that concern me? Well, my dad is there for one, but also because fellow Bulldog and 2003 Butler grad Ed Carpenter will once again be in the field behind the wheel of the No. 20 Menards/Vision Racing machine. Check him out on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. (ET) on VERSUS!

As for me this weekend, I'll be heading back up to Wabash, Ind. with my mom to visit the grandparents. I'm seeing a four-wheeler or tractor ride in my future!

I hope you enjoy the spring weekend as well!

Blue II

Welcoming an 'Extreme Makeover' after Mourning the Loss of a Friend

If you live in Indianapolis, then surely by now that you’ve heard that ABC’s Extreme Makeover Home Edition is in town helping the McFarland family by partnering with Estridge to build them a new home and by constructing a community center on Indy’s east side.

Well, Butler University got involved with the project yesterday as we hosted the show’s design team, production crew and several adoring fans inside Hinkle Fieldhouse for a special video shoot to let the McFarland family know that not only do they get a new house, but their mortgage is paid in full!

Myself and my P.I.C. (partner-in-crime), Hink, were on hand to welcome the crowd, meet the designers and production crew and just have a good time. Here are some shots from the evening featuring me with designers Ty Pennington, Michael Moloney, Paige Hemmis and Paul DiMeo.

For the rest of the photos, check out http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=72132&id=23981937738&l=de697d51d2

The show airs weekly on Sundays on your local ABC affiliate at 8/7 central. This specific episode will air on May 17th, but don’t look for me as I don’t think that I actually made it into any of the filming.

The ABC Extreme Makeover Home Edition was a good distraction for me this week as I’ve been mourning the passing of my first canine friend, Gabe, an Golden Retriever.

Gabe was the childhood dog of my dad’s good buddy and colleague, Uncle Kyle. I came home as a puppy on May 20, 2004. That next weekend was the Indianapolis 500 and so, Gabe and his parents took me in for the day so my parents could go enjoy the race. I was just a pup at the time and Gabe was a season veteran. He showed me the ropes and we were buddies ever since.

Gabe experienced a pinched nerve on Monday and was unable to use his back legs after that. That meant he could get up, walk, or do anything that a normal dog could do, so after 13 great years, Gabe went to doggy heaven on Tuesday morning. Rest in peace, Gabe! I’ll miss you!

Blue II

Fall Break = No Break

As the afternoon grew long on Wednesday, it was as if tumbleweed began to blow through campus and the sound of crickets became deafening. It was even worse today as things were eerily quiet on campus and Friday may be even more solemn yet. Why? Fall break, of course. Upon the completion of the last classes on Wednesday, the students were on the road and heading to their respective homes to get a little of mom’s cooking, free laundry service and of course, a little rest and relaxation.

If you see a student on campus during fall break, then chances are he or she is a student athlete or holds down a campus job that requires their presence. Like the aforementioned, there’s no break in the action for this pooch either. In fact, since I last posted things have continued to stay quite busy, but I suppose that’s to be expected when your bulldog costume mascots come up missing and you’re all that’s left to carry the mascot duties.

More than anything else, it seems like I’ve been doing quite a few photo shoots lately. I had fall photo shoot to do for the university that is being used for some Thanksgiving cards. That one was a lot of fun because I got to run through the leaves, bite at the leaves and even eat some! Here are some pics from that shoot…

I also did a shoot this week for some students who are making a calendar to sell as a part of a “real business” class. I say good luck to them and hopefully they can use my image to do well.

Speaking of students, I got to mingle with some College of Education majors on Monday evening for a Global Opportunities event they were having on campus. They all got to find out about opportunities abroad and eat ethnic food while I got to walk around, get some free loving, beg for food and pose for pictures. Below is a picture of me with some of the COE majors who are also student athletes.

Oh, about those student athletes, in addition to a great season for our fall sports, our men’s basketball team is set to begin practice for the 2008-09 season in a matter of hours and they were one of the subjects in a athletic department fundraising dinner I attended last night at Hinkle Fieldhouse with keynote speakers Gene Keady and Brad Stevens.

That’s right, long-time Purdue University men’s basketball coach, Gene Keady, was in the house last night and gave a great talk about his years of coaching and how our Butler Bulldogs are fun to watch as well as a team to get behind because they do things the right way: the Butler Way.

Coach Keady said that former Michigan State coach, Jud Heathcoat always told him that he was perfect for Purdue because he looked like a “Boilermaker.” But, we think there may just be a little “Bulldog” in Gene as well. You decide…

I’m going to be real honest, after cocktail hour dinner was served, Coach Stevens and Coach Keady began their remarks and I studied the back of my eyelids. No disrespect gentlemen, but it was a long day for this old dog.

Tomorrow I’m filling in for our missing mascot, the costume version, and heading to the south side for an appearance at Clinton Young Elementary School. They are having an assembly for some of their students regarding a program they have to get students interested and excited about one day attending college. They’ve adopted Butler University since it is close and I’m going to serve as the special surprise portion of the event. Imagine how surprised all the kids will be when I come strolling in. I love that stuff!

The best part about being me is that more often than not, I put a smile on someone’s face. Whether it is a student, faculty or staff, a fan, or just somebody in the car next to me at a stoplight, I can usually evoke a smile or even a laugh from folks. Imagine having the ability to lift spirits like that…I think it’s one of the defining characteristics of the bulldog breed.

So if you want to really smile and laugh, make plans to come to campus on Saturday, Oct. 25th at 10 a.m. for the ninth annual Bulldog Beauty Contest. We’ve got 55 dogs signed up so far with the overwhelming majority of those dogs being bulldogs. So you can just imagine how much fun this event is going to be! My dad has been cooking up some good stuff for this year’s Bulldog Beauty Contest so I think I may do a special post on it next week to fill you in. Good stuff.

I wish everyone a great fall weekend this weekend and may the Bulldogs take down the Valpo Crusaders in the Hoosier Helmet Game!

Go Dawgs!

Blue II

Blue II Needs YOU...to find the missing mascot costumes!

I need your help, the costume is still missing!

Yesterday I searched campus high and low. Watch this video to check out my journey.
For more on the story, look at my previous blog post below.

A Tough Loss, Tomorrow's Leaders and the Former First Daughter

Unfortunately, the Butler University men’s basketball season came to a close yesterday afternoon as our Bulldogs were defeated in overtime by the University of Tennessee in the second round of the NCAA Tournament by a score of 76-71. It most assuredly wasn’t our best showing on the court this season, but one thing is for certain, like true Bulldogs, our team never gave up…they fought tooth and nail to the bitter end, an end that came all to quickly for this mascot.

In spite of the tough loss, the boys had an incredible season totaling a school-record 30-wins and only four losses, including a Great Alaska Shootout Title, Horizon League regular season and tournament championships and the team’s highest ever national ranking of 8th.

Thus, this team made me, Butler Blue II, the most decorated Butler mascot in school history with regard to men’s basketball. Not only did I witness our first 30-win season, but that added to my overall record of 92 and 39 since the 2004-05 season. Of the games that I've actually attended, I am 49-8 and in the NCAA Tournament I have a record of 3-2.

In appreciation of the team’s efforts, I was present at their arrival back to campus on Sunday night outside of Gate 1 at Hinkle Fieldhouse. It was a bit of a somber affair, but the students in attendance did their best to let the team know just how proud of them we were. Like so many of our teams in the last several years, they made us proud to be Bulldogs and they helped to put our school on the map.

For a video of their return, visit BlueTube at: www.YouTube.com/butlerblue2.

The hangover of defeat was heavy on the hearts of those on campus on Monday. There was just no way around the sadness so I retreated to my cage on Monday morning to sleep it off. I just wasn't ready to see the season end and I guess David Letterman wasn't either: http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2008/03/25/david-letterman-thinks-butler-deserves-another-chance-against-te/

Monday night was bath time as I had to get prepared for my big day today. I started off the morning with a trip to Pine Tree Elementary School in Avon, Ind. There my dad and I visited eight classes between kindergarten and third grade. We read books to over 250 kids and handed out my READ posters and bookmarks to the teachers and students.

Actually, I let my dad handle the book reading while I took care of the "looking good" part. We make a great team.

After that it was back to campus to rest up for my next big visit with former “First Daughter,” Chelsea Clinton and actor Sean Astin, better known as “Rudy, ” or "Mikey" from The Goonies or son of Patty Duke. Take your pick.

Both were on the campaign trail, stumping for Democratic Presidential hopeful, Hillary Clinton. Keep in mind, I don't do politics, so I could care less about their background, their beliefs, policies, experience, etc. I just ask that people register to vote and then do so on election day.

Sean was really excited to see me, saying something like "This dog is awesome!" But for as much as Sean was impressed, I'm not so sure Chelsea was all that awestruck. Perhaps she's still partial to Buddy, the former First Dog, God rest his soul.



We all posed for a quick photo-op before Sean introduced Chelsea in front of a packed Starbucks cafe in Atherton Union.



Tomorrow I get to visit with more of "tomorrow's leaders" only this time on Butler's campus as those young students participating in the College Mentors for Kids! program will be coming to campus.

Of course, Thursday is my fourth birthday and the Butler University Student Foundation is inviting all students, faculty, and staff to Starbucks from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. to celebrate my big day. There will be free cupcakes and treats, pin-the-tail-on-the-dawg, and other fun games and prizes.

I'm not sure all of that is necessary, but I'm happy to oblige.

I'll report back after the big birthday bash with a full commentary on the event and the day itself. Here's to hoping I get something good present or two!

Blue II

ESPN All Access - Butler Bulldogs

If you've yet to see ESPN's "All Access" footage of the Butler Bulldogs men's basketball team, check it out: http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/video/videopage?&brand=null&videoId=3287712&n8pe6c=2

Of course, I'm in it, so look for that too. My appearance is toward the beginning and Willie Veasly is petting me.

My dad wants to apologize for having an untucked shirt on in the background...we had just finished setting up the West Gym in Hinkle Fieldhouse for hospitality so he was a bit unkempt when I decided to break loose and run on the main floor during practice.

I also wanted to let everyone know they could vote for me again in the Bissell MVP Contest: http://www.bissell.com/redirect.asp?page_id=47128&Pet=1148

Thanks for the vote, enjoy the video and Go Dawgs!

Blue II

A New Friend, Sparky the Dragon, HL Tournament, and Bath Time

Well, how did my web cameras (read Blue2TV) affect your productivity on the job this past week? Add that to March Madness and by May you’ll be on the streets looking for work.

In addition to staring on my own lifecasting network this week, I also got to meet a new friend on Thursday. Her name is Reese, as in “Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups,” and she’s a 12-week old Daschund. She belongs to Jason and Betsy Weatherly of Nashville, Tenn.

I don’t think Reese knew what to think of me at first. After all, she’s so small that she was even scared of my toys, because like me, they are all bigger than her too!

When I first saw her, I thought she might be a new toy, but then I realized it was a real dog. I didn’t know they made them so small! I think I was bigger than her before I even had my eyes open as a newborn pup. (See pictures below.)


After a while she warmed up pretty well and we had a great time. While I like being the sole dog at home, it was kind of fun to have playmate around too.

I ended up having too much fun on Thursday night with Reese and staying up way past my bed time, so if you logged on to Blue2TV on Friday morning, you probably just saw me sleeping. I know, I know, that’s nothing new, but I was REALLY sleeping on Friday morning.

Once I woke up, it was time to head over to the West Gym in Hinkle Fieldhouse to setup the Bulldog Club/OBS hospitality area for Saturday’s Horizon League Men’s Basketball Tournament games.

Actually, I don’t do any setting up, I let my dad and his colleagues handle that. I just run around the wide-open space of the West Gym and wear myself out.

On Saturday, I got to sleep-in and then went to the HRC while my dad worked out. After that, it was a quick trip back home and then back to campus for the HL Tournament to watch the Bulldogs take on the UIC Flames for an opportunity to play in the finals on Tuesday.

That’s right, I said UIC Flames. When teams started picking the Earth’s natural elements as mascots, I’m not sure. Just think, instead of an English Bulldog writing this blog right now, maybe it could be the “wind,” “air,” or “water.” Seriously, “flames,” that’s the best you could do? I feel bad for the mascot costume maker that got that work order. No matter what you construct, you can’t win on that deal.

Oh well, I’m going to make fun of it anyway. Just look at this thing, they call “Sparky the Dragon.” It looks like said mascot costume maker scraped the whole flame idea and just went for a cartoonish pre-historic dinosaur that appears to be a reject from the Barney show. I get that a dragon breathes “flames,” but that’s stretching it, ya’ think?



Perhaps it’s just a left over costume from the Jim Henson’s HBO show, Fraggle Rock, sans the crazy hair.


Anyway, back on point, the Bulldogs braved the heat of the Flames to win convincingly by a score of 66-50. (That sentence was so cliché, but that’s what you get when your mascot is the “Flames.” You will always be written about in cliché fashion.)

A.J. Graves did not pet me before this match-up and went for 14 points in the game. It’s interesting…for his entire career, people have pleading for him to pet the dog during the announcement of starting lineups. He finally did on Senior Day and only scored two points. Now before games people are coming up to me and saying, “Don’t let Graves touch you!” Whatever people…just be careful what you wish for.

Up next are the Vikings of Cleveland State for the HL Tournament title which will air live on ESPN, Tuesday, March 11th at 9 p.m. from Hinkle Fieldhouse. The winner will not only take the title, but receive an automatic berth into the men’s NCAA tournament. I already can’t wait to have one last game at home this season.

Also, a special thanks to Joel Barnhill of the Horizon League for ordering promotional shirts to be thrown out during the games. I didn’t get a shirt, but I did get to destroy one of the boxes the shirts came in after the game over at the south Dawg Pound. The box was addressed to Joel so I figured he was the appropriate person to thank.

A congratulations is in order for the Lady Bulldogs of the women’s basketball program on getting their 20th win on the season Saturday as they took down Valparaiso. They will now prepare for their own Horizon League Tournament and a chance for post-season play. Well done!

Today, Sunday, I again got to sleep-in, followed by another trip to the HRC. After that it was more skateboard practice and some sun-bathing on the deck.

I then took a nap during the NASCAR race (because that’s what you do during those things) and after that it was bath time. I don’t dislike baths, but I don’t really get all pumped up for them either. I do enjoy that fresh clean feeling once it’s all over. Here is some video of the event:

I forgot to mention this last week, but when the Bulldogs took on the Wright State Raiders a couple Thursday’s ago, I had the opportunity to meet Indianapolis Colts’ Pro-Bowl center, Jeff Saturday who was in attendance at the game.

That really has no significance, other than Jeff is semi-famous and the fact that I wanted to record the event. Plus, he's a cool dude. End of story.

Finally, it’s spring break week at Butler University and while many members of the student body are somewhere south of the Mason-Dixon line, yours truly is staying put. That’s right, no spring break for me, so be sure to check out Blue2TV all week long to check in on my ever-exciting office life.

Friends in High Places

Retired General and former Secretary of State, Colin Powell once said, "Surround yourself with people who take their work seriously, but not themselves, those who work hard and play hard."

Sounds like a good plan to me, after all, as the old saying goes, "you are the comapny you keep."

So, I did just that, I spent my Monday with some pretty significant and successful people...the type "who take their work seriously, but not themselves."

Maybe you will recognize some of the people I spent my day with yesterday...

That's right, I got to spend the day with THE Colin Powell; Butler head men's basketball coach, Brad Stevens; 2003 Butler graduate and IndyCar Series driver for Vision Racing, Ed Carpenter; the entire Butler men's basketball team; and Indianapolis mayor, Greg Ballard. That's just how I roll!

It started out as a typical Monday...lots of sleeping in the cage that's in m dad's office, a lunch time appearance at the HRC, and more sleeping for the afternoon. Settling into the work week after a busy weekend has never been one of my strengths.

Then, come late afternoon things started to get interesting. My dad and I headed to the car and made our way to my favorite building, historic Hinkle Fieldhouse. Once there, we met up with Ed Carpenter and headed into the arena to watch the men's basketball practice.

You see, last May Ed gave A.J. Graves and the coaching staff a tour of the Vision Racing garages at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway when A.J. waved the green flag to start practice for the Indianapolis 500 . This time the Bulldogs returned the favor by inviting Ed to come watch practice, tour the locker room and basketball offices, etc. I was fortunate to get to tag along.

Here's a picture of Ed and Coach Stevens discussing the intricacies of Butler's motion offense and which Horizon League member institution has the best cafeteria food. No, not really, but those would be things I would like to talk about with the coach.

After that it was over to Clowes Memorial Hall where General Colin L. Powell, USA (Ret.) was scheduled to enjoy dinner with some VIPs and speak to a capacity crowd as a part of the Diversity Lecture Series.

That's where I ran into General Powell and Mayor Ballard, as well as some other Butler and community big whigs like university president, Dr. Bobby Fong, and the Butler Board of Trustees.

I even got to take a picture with General Powell! Unfortunately, I do not have the picture to post right now, but I will do so in a future blog. It was sweet. All of these important folks got to meet General Powell and get a picture with him. I'm pretty important, so yes, I got a picture with him as well.

When I arrived, he smiled, kneeled down, clapped his hands once and said, "come here boy!" So I quickly ran over (when a General calls, you come) and he proceeded to pet me and love on me a little. He then stayed in a kneeled position and we took a picture together. It was cool.

Here I am, just an English Bulldog from Indiana who ended up mascot of Butler University posing for a picture with the one-time military leader of the free world. Eat your heart out "Spike," the Drake University bulldog!

Yeah, we've got a big game against No. 16 Drake on Saturday at Hinkle, so I am starting to prepared for that. It airs on ESPN2 at 5 p.m. (EST) and has been billed the best ESPN "Bracketbuster" matchup ever...of course it is, after all, both teams are represented by the English Bulldog! By the way, the Bulldogs of Butler are ranked a school-high No. 8 this week in both polls. That's pretty impressive! Go Dawgs!

Today, wasn't quite as exciting, but that's not to say I didn't get to have a little more fun. Each semester, my dad's favorite professor while in school, Dr. Steven Vibbert, invites me to come visit his public relations classes. He usually asks me to come mid to late semester when the students are starting to get restless. So today I stopped by class, did my tricks, and got a little love from the students. Below is a picture of that...

Note that class size. That's a student to teacher ratio of 16:1. Nice. Gotta love a Butler eduation! Although, it's not quite as good as my puppy class, but still, it's pretty good.

Okay, my bed time is quickly approaching so I've got to get going. Thanks for reading and before you leave, please vote for me again this week for the Bissell MVP contest! You can vote here: http://www.bissell.com/redirect.asp?page_id=47088&Pet=7217.jpg

Blue II

Game Day Illustrated

The Butler Bulldogs took down Horizon League conference foe, Cleveland State, on Saturday afternoon by the score of 51-46. It appeared that a lot of you took my advice and came to Hinkle Fieldhouse for the game. There was a crowd of more than 8,000, which included those participating in Alumni Day, so thanks for coming out.

I thought I might provide a quick recap of the game via pictures and captions. Here it goes...

Pre-game nap with my squeaky cow

Packed house for Alumni Day

Coach Stevens speaks at Alumni Day

I ran into my buddy, Julian Phillips, son of my vet, Dr. Phillips, at Alumni Day too.

After my appearances in the West Gym for Alumni Day and Bulldog Club/OBS Donor Hospitality, I went ahead and made my way over to see the cheerleaders to give them a little pre-game pep talk.

After that, it was game time where I do my usual starting lineup routine, and stop by the Dawg Pound for the big bone. But you've all seen that before, so here's a shot during a break in the game...nothing better than a big crowd at Hinkle Fieldhouse on a Saturday afternoon with the sun shining through the rafters.

Best seat in the house!

A little post-game fun on the court with the kids

After all of that, it's back home to rest...and another day at the office is in the books for this dog.

Okay, so there's a lot of other stuff that goes on that wasn't captured, but these were the pics that my dad had time to snap, so they'll have to do. I hope you enjoyed it.

Blue II

P.S. Keep an eye on those NCAA men's basketball rankings on Monday. In the AP Poll, Butler is ranked 9th. On Saturday, No. 7 Stanford, No. 8 Georgetown and No. 10 Michigan State all went down in defeat. We could see a new highest ranking for the Butler men's basketball program...stay tuned!

Mail Bag: Girlfriends/Team Pics, Dogs Resembling Owners, & Calendars

I received some great questions via the comment feature over the weekend so I thought I would address those first thing this week.

Before I begin, how about that Super Bowl last night?! Wow! I was going crazy...barking, shaking my toys, and carrying on. Bulldogs root for underdogs and the underdogs got it done in a big way! That just got me all excited for March Madness!

Okay, on to the mail bag...

DogMommy writes, "Hey My Boyfriend Blue,What's this about you saying you really don't have a girlfreind and are looking???? I thought it was well established that you are MY boyfriend! I just want to know why the photographer forgot to take your picture with all the sports teams this year and what we can do about it? I think making multiple copies of you in "your pose" and pasting them to the front of the large sports photos in Hinkle will solve the problem.Only your true girlfriend would think of that!!!"

In the words of Billy Madison, "Lady, your scaring us!" Just kidding. Sort of.

Sorry if I gave you any impressions of being your boyfriend. Right now, I'm going to the prom stag, if you know what I mean.

With regard to your question about the team photographs flanking the hallowed halls of Hinkle Fieldhouse...I don't know what's up with that. Last year I think I was in as many of those pictures as I've ever been and if I do say so myself, I thought I looked pretty darn good.

I like your idea of just slapping me up there should the team have the picture taken without me. Maybe we should do that sometime as a little prank!

Actually, the decision to include me in the team picture is really just up to the coach of each sport. No hard feelings really. I'm happy, willing and available should they want me, but it's their call. I am in this year's very humid looking women's swimming picture. That was a fun shoot! My dad took his wallet and cell phone out of his pockets for that one in case I decided to go for a dip. I thought about it for a split second, but then remembered that I can't swim.

Thanks for the support and letting me have a little fun at your expense.

And now to our next question...

An anonymous reader wrote, "Dear Blue: Do you think that old adage that people resemble their pet dogs is really true? Have you ever thought that you and your dad might be a “classic example” of this theory? Are you comparable to your father it terms of body build or hairiness? How about personality? Is your dad as friendly as you are?"

This rebel rouser got our tail feathers ruffled on this one! Well played.

Let's be honest, it happens a lot...dogs and their owners have been known to resemble each other. Even IndyPaws.com recently held a contest to find the best dog/owner look-a-like.

Suggesting that my dad and I are a "classic example" of this might pouring it on a little thick, but, after we got to thinking about it, while our facial features might not resemble each other, there are a lot of similarities between us, especially given that my old man is a true bulldog at heart. I mean, just look at that picture!

If you take into account our similarities, you might think we were seperated at birth. After all, we are both handsome, cute, affable and have a great smile. We've both never met a stranger and love to make people happy.

Pysically we are a couple of broad shouldered guys with a significant chest to hind legs ratio.

However, we differ in more ways than I am able to count. For instance, my dad is a self-starter, whereas, I am a motivated sleeper. Plus, I've got some serious dental issues, pronounced wrinkles, and when my hair falls out, it grows back.

My dad and I think we make a great team. Whether we look alike or not is up for debate.

And finally...

Carrie asks, "What about the calendar Blue? I've gotta tell you, it was a big hit at my office, and everyone's been disappointed that you haven't put out a new one in awhile...you've certainly got enough great pictures!"

Carrie thank you for the compliment. The calendar was from 2005 and a fun project. It was a big hit and received quite a bit of positive feedback. However, we've yet to do one since...they take a lot of work! Perhaps we can talk the powers that be into creating a calendar for 2009. Maybe it will exclusively feature me again or maybe it could be a "Butler" themed calendar and I could just have a picture per quarter. We'll see. I'll get to working on that.

Perhaps my own online multimedia section would be good too...screen savers, wall papers, hero cards and other downloads would be cool. Get my agent on the line!

Thanks again to those who wrote in to share their thoughts, ask questions, etc. A big thanks as well goes out to those stoping by the site to read the blog. Have a great Monday!

Blue II

Chuck Norris Had a Son and His Name is A.J. Graves

"Section 20, Row AA, Seat 4" writes, "Dear Blue, Why doesn't A.J. Graves like you?"

Dear, Sec. 20, Row AA, Seat 4, I assume you are referring to the fact that A.J. doesn't pet me during the announcement of starting lineups before home games.

Well, for those who haven't been keeping score at home, I'll back up and set the scene.

Since I arrived as mascot in 2004, I've started a few traditions of my own. Before basketball games, I make my way out to the court to greet the starters when the starting lineups are announced over the public address system.

From there, the players took it upon themselves to give me a pat on the head, and after all of the starters are announced, I run back across the court to the north Dawg Pound where Jake Skierkowski and members of the "Pound" are waiting for me with an oversized rawhide bone.

For the last year or two, every starting member of the basketball team makes a point to give me a pat on the head as they are introduced. Even new freshman starter Matt Howard caught on quickly. But for whatever reason, senior gaurd A.J. Graves has never shown me any love.

While it has never really bothered me, it sure seems to have the Butler faithful up in arms. Every game I attend, fans go on and on about how if A.J. would pet me, they'd feel better, or his shooting slump would end, yadda, yadda, yadda.

I guess people think I'm good luck. And I supposeI can't argue with them. Afterall, I was the one lucky English Bulldog in the world selected to be Butler University's mascot. I'd say that's pretty lucky.

I've had students tell me that giving me a pat before an exam brought them good results, and plenty of fans at the game say that their visit to Hinkle Fieldhouse isn't complete without seeing me.

In fact, there's one guy that swears by a game day good luck rub for me. His name is Arni Sribhen and while he's a Texas Tech grad, Arni is now a converted Bulldog fan and season ticket holder. Arni works with my dad in the IndyCar Series and if you follow viral internet campaigns, you may remember seeing Arni last summer in his role as the "Indy Insider." He's a pretty funny guy. You can watch his video blogs here: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=indycars

Anyway, Arni says, "Butler is 13-0 when I get to play with Blue at halftime. They are 16-1 when I’m in the house… (No halftime pet vs. Notre Dame, Indiana and Purdue at Conseco and SIU at Hinkle). "

Maybe the entire Bulldog squad is feeding off of my perceived "luck." Since my first season on the job in 2004-05 and on through January 12, 2008, in games that I have been in attendance the men's basketball team record is 41-7. Overall the men's basketball team is 78-36 since I first started.

Okay, I digress, back to Mr. Graves. Last year I was with my dad and we ran into graduated Bulldogs, Brandon Crone, Brian Ligon and A.J., at the HRC. Brandon and Brian gave me a warm welcome and some attention, but A.J. just kind of hung back.

Then, Brandon and Brian started to give A.J. a hard time about it, but he just played it cool and just said something like "it's not that I don't like Blue, I just don't really do dogs." That or said he just didn't want to pet me. I can't remember exactly anymore, but regardless, it doesn't matter. I respect that.

How can I not? I mean, after all A.J. has done to lead our team to victory, he could tease me with Milk Bones and I wouldn't care. We're talking about the same A.J. Graves that has a laundry list of achievements that makes the Mitchell Report look like a children's book.

If he doesn't want to pet me, then I'm not mad at it. Just keep doing what you're doing, A.J.! In the meantime, I think A.J.'s getting covered up enough by all of those double team defensive schemes from our foes in the Horizon League, so let's lay off of him a bit. Shall we?

And with all of that said, I'll leave you with this, courtesy of http://www.ajgravesfacts.com/...

"If A.J. Graves can't find a basketball he just dribbles a cow until it turns into a leather ball. "