Five candidates audition to be ACC's first mascot

The winners of the recent audition to be Austin Community College's new mascot, the Riverbat, will be chosen soon. More than one candidate will be chosen to allow for schedule flexibility. Mascot tryouts, which were open to current students only, were held this past Saturday at the Riverside Campus.

Although more than thirty people signed up online, only five candidates, including this reporter, showed up at 9:00 a.m. to vie for the chance to dress up as a giant, bridge-dwelling bat and spread ACC school spirit. Snacks, drinks, and an assortment of animal costumes were provided.

The judges were on the lookout for high-energy performers.

The contestants were as varied as ACC's own student body. Among the contestants was Jennifer Sheperd, a commercial music management major, and Dallas Diaz, a science major. Clayton Adams is a current ACC student and a former mascot for UT.

"I think this is a really exciting venture to get in on the ground floor of. I mean, imagine what it was like to be the first Bevo," Adams said to the judges during his interview.

The tryouts were held in a small lecture hall in the 8000 building of the Riverside campus. The judges were arrayed American Idol-style, facing the contestants as they performed at the front of the classroom. Each contestant dressed up in one of the provided costumes, performed a short routine, improvised a skit, and submitted to an interview by the judges.

Brette Lea, ACC's Executive Director of Public Information & College Marketing, briefed the contestants before they performed in front of the panel of judges.

"You'll be representing ACC at functions and high schools in the area," said Lea. "The Riverbat will be a great new way for people to identify with ACC."

Wearing the batsuit will be a paid position at $13 an hour. ACC has big plans for its winged spokesperson. In lieu of actual sporting events, the Riverbat will be ACC's costumed envoy at local events and educational outreach at local high schools.

The Riverbat costume is in the design stages and ACC is due to reveal the final design in November. The college is working with a professional design company. Students can look forward to functional wings and a lot of purple.

Be sure to pick up the next issue of the Accent newspaper on Oct. 4 for staff writer Odin Amador's in-depth, first-person account of the mascot tryouts. 

Edited 09/30/2010