UCF’s well known mascot, Knightro turns 30 years old today! As we celebrate the Knight in shining armor, here’s a bit of history on how Knightro came to be…
When UCF first started off as Florida Technical University, there was no mascot. That is until one was unveiled on the cover of UCF’s 1968-1969 Student Handbook. With the body of an orange and the head of an astronaut, Citronaut was born. And he was met with a large amount of criticism by students.
A replacement for Citronaut was Vincent the Vulture, inspired by the large amount of vultures on the campus’s new land. The conflict between the two mascots lasted for a year, until a new solution was reached.
FTU’s new athletics program was emerging, but there was no logo or team name. So the university placed selection boxes around campuses, where everyone could have a say in creating the team’s brand. In 1970, there was a vast variety of names, but none came close to the Knights of Pegasus.
IN 1978, Florida Technical University was renamed to the University of Central Florida. And two years later, the university wanted to highlight the new football program. Thus, Sir Wins-a-lot was born, designed as a happy, knight-themed mascot.
Sir Wins-a-lot was retired and replaced by Puff, and then Mack the Knight. These lasted about 10 years, before the idea of Knightro came to be.
In late 1994, cheerleader and SGA member started showing around UCF’s campus wearing a golden armor knight suit. With his continuous presence around the university, the gold mascot was officially named Knightro. A year later he was given a new design, along with creating the female version Glycerin, who lasted for about two years.
Back in 2005, his design was touched up to give him the look UCF students know today. As he continues to show up around campus and the Orlando area, UCF students are right behind him, charging on.
