Big Ten lands top 2 costumed mascots in college football, per ESPN analyst

Big Ten football is home to plenty of impressive and iconic mascots, and ESPN’s Ryan McGee recently paid homage to a pair of costumed heroes.

In his latest piece ahead of the 2025 season, McGee took stock of the wide-ranging lineup of on-field mascots across the country. His piece divided the array of mascots into categories based on costume, mechanization, human and live animal.

Ultimately, the Big Ten landed the top 2 costumed mascots in the nation: Brutus the Buckeye of Ohio State and the Duck mascot for Oregon. While it is Brutus who was hailed as one of the pioneers of costumed mascots, the No. 1 overall spot went to the Duck.

Here’s what McGee had to say about Oregon’s feathered mascot:

We promise we’re not just doing this because Walt Disney helped Oregon devise its mascot (and ESPN is a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Co.). We’re doing it because as much as Brutus showed the sideline way, the Duck has written the book on how to be a feathered friend to one’s fan base in the modern era, from holding signs over Lee Corso’s shoulder on “College GameDay” to the stadium entrance GIF that every human with a smartphone has either seen or used.

The Duck would have an aviary argument to be in this spot simply based on his surprise photo bomb tour of the stadiums of the Big Ten prior to Oregon joining the league one year ago. Just this week the Duck has ducked down to Australia and, of course, taken all photos in Southern Hemisphere form.

Not only are Brutus and the Duck 2 of the marquee mascots in the country, but their programs have also provided some memorable head-to-head meetings, including 2 last season. The mascots help make those meetings even more special, and we’ll see if they face off again at some point in 2025.

Paul Harvey

Paul is a lifelong fan and student of all things college football. He has been covering college football since 2017 and the B1G since 2018.