Working like a Dog; Loyal like a Dog

Given my schedule during the Final Four, it's pretty safe to say that I was one of the most sought after Butler figures during the that week. It's like I've said before, if Brad Stevens and the players were recognized for their efforts as the leading role, then I should receive the honor of best supporting actor.

I had so much fun doing so many media and community appearances that week. It was certainly a first in a lifetime experience for me. And, if you've kept up with my life on Twitter, then you know that the fun has yet to end as I continue to get several requests from both the Butler community and the community at-large for additional appearances.

People have been asking me just how many media interviews and appearances I did during the Final Four and since. So, my pops and I sat down and took a tally. To give you an idea of just how much I was "in demand" during the Final Four run, here's a bit of info for you to chew on...

Between March 27 and April 5 (10 days), I participated in approx. 30 local radio, tv and print interviews. These included several interviews with the Indianapolis Star, an interview with Pet Pals TV, multiple interviews with the local TV affiliates, and a good dose of the local FM and AM radio stations.

Regionally, I granted at least two interviews with newspapers from Pittsburgh and Detroit and I think I did more than that, I just can't remember them all.

Nationally, I was interviewed by Yahoo Sports, the Bob and Tom Show (clip below), CBS Sports, the CBS Early Show, Sports Illustrated.com and the Associated Press. Thanks to the AP love, my mug appeared in national print including the USA Today, New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Indianapolis Business Journal and the NCAA Tournament Commemorative piece created by the USA Today.



Now since that March 27th date, I've been busy with more than just the aforementioned media tour. Since that day I've also completed, or have scheduled myself to appear at approximately 35 community events, including grand marshal of a pet parade in Zionsville, Ind., host of the American Cancer Society’s Bark for Life in Carmel, Ind., and two Indiana Pacers games. Not to mention, there are approximately 20 additional appearance requests sitting on my dad's desk that we've still yet to deal with!

Since the Final Four I've also done an interview for Indianapolis Monthly and their pet issue which will come out later in the year. And, I did another interview with Pet Pals TV where they came to my house, MTV Cribs style, and I did an interview with PETBOOK of Indianapolis as well.

If if that wasn't enough, the noteriety has allowed me to close another sponsorship deal (Good Dog Hotel & Spa) and have led to talks with a couple of other potential sponsors and partners. I've got another sponsor announcement coming soon!

Plus, you dog and bulldog owners will be happy to know that I'm working with another partner to not just make more Butler licensed dog accessories available to the general public, but I'm also investigating my own line of bulldog and large dog breed clothing as well.

But wait, there's more! Discussions for the Blue II 2011 Calendar have begun! The goal is to have it available and for sale in August 2010.

So the Final Four has made me a household name and business is certainly booming. I'm a very blessed bulldog. But that's not the moral of the story here. No, the moral is to stick to the guiding principles that got me, us, to this point; The Butler Way.

In other words, I'm trying not to let all of this go to my head and neither should any of us Butler Bulldogs. The success has been great and we should certainly celebrate and enjoy it. But along with all of this comes the perfect opportunity to show the world exactly what it is that got us here.

The Butler Way demands commitment, denies selfishness, accepts reality yet seeks improvement everyday while putting the team above self.

That basically means that there's no resting on accolades, so we might as well "ctrl+alt+del" our lives in the wake of our Final Four success and get focused on being the Butler Bulldogs we always were.

That's not to say we shouldn't acknowledge the extra feather in our cap and all that comes with it, but at the same time, we have a new task at hand...a new task that requires the old instructions.

So look for more of me working like a dog in the weeks and months to come. It's my hope that you'll see me being loyal like a dog to the Butler Way.

Yep, when you see me out working, I hope you see the same Blue II that you knew before I ever set paw on the court at Lucas Oil Stadium or wagged my tongue on national TV. True Blue.

Go Dawgs!

Blue II

When a Moral Victory Becomes the Greatest Victory

I don’t know about you, but I’m still hung-over from the week that I just had and that NCAA National Championship game. It was the best week I’ve ever had and the worst week that I ever had.

You can’t have joy without sorrow/pain (a wise soul told me that). So be it, but it’s how you handle it that determines your character, your legacy. Butler University head coach Brad Stevens and our magnificent men’s basketball team taught us that, if nothing else, over the past few days.

But before I get ahead of myself with all of that deep reflection let me just speak briefly about the week itself and the schedule I kept. I cannot even begin to exhaustively list all of my experiences and media appearances. Just know that they were extensive and plentiful, highlighted by…

-Sitting on the court following the Butler/MSU semi-final, just owning it, while CBS concluded its coverage of that game. (see: www.flickr.com/butlerblue2)

-Sitting on the lap of CBS Sports analyst, Seth Davis, during their semi-final pre-game coverage alongside Greg Gumbel and Greg Anthony. (see: www.flickr.com/butlerblue2)

-Appearing on the Bob & Tom Show and licking the Miller High Life guy’s face.

-Meeting Peyton Manning at the National Championship game. (see: www.flickr.com/butlerblue2)

-Having my mug in The Indianapolis Star, USA Today, and the Wall Street Journal, among countless other newspapers, all in one day.

-Tearing up a Michigan State Spartans hat on the CBS Early Show.

-Appearing in CBS’ “One Shining Moment” following the National Championship game.

-Being on the court during player introductions for both the semi-final and championship games; just like back at Hinkle Fieldhouse.

-My spa treatment at Good Dog Hotel & Spa in Broad Ripple.

-Staying at a hotel.

-A police escort.

-Watching members of the media act like normal fans while waiting in line to get their picture taken with me. (see: www.flickr.com/butlerblue2)

-Representing Butler on the biggest stage ever in the school’s 155-year history. I will always be THE Bulldog to have represented Butler in its first-ever Final Four and National Championship game.

There was just so much more than the baker’s dozen listed above which reminds me, if you aren’t following me on Twitter or at least checking in on my Twitter feed on a daily basis, you’re missing out! You can find that here: www.Twitter.com/ButlerBlue2.

What is amazing is that before the NCAA Tournament started I probably had a little over 1,000 Twitter followers. Today I have north of 1,700!

You might also want to check out my Flickr photostream at www.Flickr.com/ButlerBlue2 which chronicles my adventures from the week or so. The interesting fact there is that my Flickr photostream has garnered more than 9,000 views on each of the last two days. Staggering.

But it’s not all about me, no, credit goes to the men’s basketball team and their coaching staff for making it all possible. Without them, I’m just another English Bulldog who happens to be a mascot. Today, I’m Butler Blue II, the cute bulldog mascot of Butler University.

My face and my name aren’t just recognized these days, but they are now synonymous with “Butler University.” That was always the goal, but America finally got the message loud and clear over the last few days. Coach Stevens, his staff, and his team delivered that message. Thank you, gentlemen!

You know, I’m just a dog, but again, I was heart-broken over that loss. With around 13 seconds to go, I thought victory was ours. My Bulldogs had found a way to win all season. I had no reason to believe that they wouldn’t this time either.

When Gordon Hayward’s last shot didn’t go in, I was whisked off of the court and taken behind the scenes and out of harms way. My dad tried to get a rise out of me. I wasn’t talking. I was tired, I was hurt, and I was mad. As a dog, I felt the collective hopes, dreams, and positive energy being sucked out of Lucas Oil Stadium faster than a Shelvin Mack scoring run.

As my dad described it to Luke Winn of Sports Illustrated, I was “stone cold.”

I’m a dog and most things just roll right off my back. There’s not much a treat and a new toy won’t fix, but this one stung.

My biggest question at that moment, “What am I supposed to learn from this?” I mean, I already knew that life wasn’t fair, but this just seemed offensive.

So in the last 24-48 hours I’ve been looking for answers. I realize they all won’t come immediately, but there is something that is becoming very clear as I remove the layers of Butler insulation and begin seeing the world through fresh canine eyes.

In my doggy wisdom, it's becoming evident to me that in the championship game, Duke won the contest to score as many points as possible in 40 minutes. They got a nice trophy for that. But it was Butler that actually won the overall affair.

I mean, the President of the United States of America never calls the losing team and nor does the losing coach get interviews on the Late Show with David Letterman. Those things just don’t happen.

Outside of a small pocket of folks in North Carolina and the Duke alumni across the world, I don’t think anyone else even cares that Duke won that game. The media coverage since the final buzzer sounded confirms that notion.

I almost feel kind of bad for Duke, but not really. Congrats to those guys. That’s a great program, with great talent and they certainly earned the title, but I guess I’m not sorry that they never got the spotlight that is typically reserved for champions. No, that light is shining bright on Butler’s campus these days.

Watch out, I’m going to get real metaphoric on you now, but, I think that beam shining on campus is merely a reflection of the light our team used to illuminate the sort of ideals and actions we’ve come to know as “The Butler Way.”

Gordon Hayward’s last-second half-court shot didn’t need to go in for our team and our university to be considered champions. By that point, that goal had already been accomplished and it almost had nothing to do with basketball at that time.

When there were just about 13 seconds to go in the game, I really did think victory was ours. Little did I know, it already was.

Go Dawgs!

Blue II