William and Mary Looking for New Mascot

As a graduate of the second-oldest college in this country, I feel especially qualified to comment on the College of William and Mary's mascot search. Actually, I don't have a particularly nuanced view, even though I spent four(-plus!) years in Williamsburg, VA. Primarily because W & M wasn't exactly a hotbed of big-time college athletics. Mascots seem more important at places where football and basketball matter more than graduation rates and U.S. News and World Report rankings.

Whatever, the College has convened a Mascot Committee to, well, find a new mascot. Formerly known as the "Indians," and now called the "Tribe," the three-dimensional representative doesn't necessarily have to correspond to the school nickname. Which explains this Sports Illustrated headline: "Asparagus among nominations for William & Mary's new mascot."

But it gets better: athletic director Terry Driscoll will appear on ESPN's "First Take" tomorrow to "discuss the status of the search and the wide range of ideas submitted so far by alumni, students, faculty, staff and friends of the College."

Just a suggestion, but for the love of god, can we please move past "Phoenix." I mean, seriously, people want a flaming bird as the mascot? I'd prefer "Asparagus," frankly.

Via Deadspin