When I first read the proposal to replace Peruna with a full-size mustang, I tried to envision how it would work. I really did. I thought, “Let’s set aside tradition for a moment and think about the practical pros and cons of this.” But then I realized that the point is that you can’t just set aside tradition without a really good reason to do so. Therefore, I’ll return to the practical considerations in a moment, but let’s start with the issue of tradition.

I have no doubt that an informal straw poll of your average, uninvolved SMU students and alumni will find support for replacing Peruna with a full-size mustang. This is a symptom of a problem that has troubled me since I became a student at SMU in 1990: the failure of the university and its students to take the time and energy to teach, learn, understand, respect, embrace and defend its traditions.

How many times have we heard some student or alumnus complain that SMU doesn’t have any “cool” traditions like XYZ university? Or that we should start some new tradition because our mascot, fight song, colors, band, whatever is stupid?

The thing is, the reason why certain traditions at XYZ university seem “cool” is because the students and everyone associated with the university (a) know about them, and (b) participate in them. Most traditions may seem silly or stupid to an outsider (or an uninformed insider), but when even the seemingly silliest tradition (Aggie yell practice, Stanford’s tree mascot, Woo Pig Sooie are just some examples) becomes “what WE do,” not only do people associated within the university support that tradition, but outsiders start to admire the tradition because so many are committed to and participate in it. If you want a “cool” tradition, start participating in the many traditions we already have.

And so it goes with Peruna. If SMU students were taught the history of Peruna, they might just embrace the tradition of the small, feisty and accessible mascot. In some ways, a small yet spirited horse is a much better symbol of a small, private university because it is more often the underdog than a full-sized Mustang. And even if that weren’t the case, just as a soft fluffy collie is Texas A&M’s mascot and a goat is Navy’s mascot, Peruna is MY mascot. That is what makes him special – he’s MINE and he’s YOURS. What we have here is just another case of tradition-envy (“theirs is bigger than mine”) thinly veiled by laudable goals of environmental and historical consciousness.

Now to the practical part. This proposal suggests that the new and “improved” mustang will never have a rider, and rightly so. As we all recognize, once you put a rider on a horse, it’s a Texas Tech Red Raider, a Traveler, or somebody else’s mascot, but it’s not a mustang,. Without a rider, the new mustang will not be able to run across the field. Period.

No handler can run with a full-size horse, and no conference in the world is going to let us have a horse run across the field on its own. So where does that leave us? With a heavily sedated large animal standing on the sidelines tied to a post or in a pen. Ooooh, sounds inspiring. That really reflects the spirit of the wild mustang, doesn’t it?

Plus, a full-size riderless mustang also eliminates the important ambassador role that Peruna serves on the Boulevard and at other local appearances. Peruna is mobile, approachable and accessible to kids and adults alike. A full-size mustang simply cannot perform this function.

Finally, endowing the SMU mascot is an excellent idea. It costs money to feed, care for, and transport the mascot (more for a full-size horse than for Peruna), and more funding is always better. But why do we have to discard a 75-year-old tradition to start a Peruna endowment? Let’s support the traditions we already have, both financially and emotionally.

I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it again: Peruna is MY mascot.

About the writer:

Jennifer L. Henry received his B.A. from SMU in 1994. He can be reached at [email protected].