Peruna Handlers Stuart Campbell (left) and Bryan Shnider run with Peruna before the start of the SMU vs. UTEP game. (John Schreiber)
The stadium lights are shining. The fans are cheering in the stands. Sweat drips down his brow as he waits with anticipation. The ball is thrown and caught. Touchdown! Jonathan Dobin races down the field, a 395-pound beast running beside him.
Dobin isn’t a football player, but he plays an equally important part representing the school during the games.
“The history of Peruna is the history of tradition at SMU,” says Dobin, the co-captain of the Peruna Handlers.
Football season is a time for watching America’s favorite sport, tailgating and showing pride for your favorite team. At SMU, cheerleaders aren’t the only group that stands as a symbol of school spirit; the Peruna handlers do as well.
According to the SMU Web site, Peruna is one of the oldest traditions at SMU. After the pony was donated, he was named, and in the same year a group of students were chosen to watch over him. Currently these chosen students are responsible for cleaning the mascot pony, keeping him well groomed, and transporting him to and from his secret ranch.
“The handlers serve as the caretakers for Peruna. We share a strong bond with him,” said Dobin, a senior journalism and psychology major.
There are five handlers who serve until they graduate. Any SMU student can become a handler, and the handlers hold open tryouts in the spring. They say they look for spirited men and women with a strong desire to represent the school. Dobin and Chris Christensen, a fellow handler, both agree that the key to being a good handler is to be dedicated and to have good chemistry with Peruna.
Not only do they care for Peruna during the season, but they also visit him at his ranch all year long. Only the handlers, the spirit coordinator and the SMU president know the location of the ranch. Dobin says the location is kept secret to prevent people from trying to harm or steal Peruna.
“Our main responsibility is to keep Peruna safe and happy,” Dobin says.
It’s been 90 years since SMU received its first live mascot. Peruna, a donation from SMU alumnus C.W. “Cully” Cullwell (owner of the Culwell and Son clothing store), was named after a medicinal stimulant known for its “kick.”
The handlers have a great deal of responsibility and work hard to keep SMU spirit alive and active at the games. SMU defensive end Josh Geldert says they are a huge asset to the football team because they keep spirits up.
“They get the crowd going and it’s encouraging to us when we’re on the field,” he said.
The handlers run Peruna down the field after every quarter and every touchdown. During the remainder of the game, they stand on the sideline with Peruna to keep him calm.
Christensen, a senior Peruna handler, says he has a great deal of school spirit, and that’s one of the main reasons he wanted to be a handler. He says another reason is he wanted to get to spend time with Peruna. According to Christensen, Peruna has a big personality.
“He’s one feisty little pony and he has a lot of spirit for SMU,” Christensen, a computer engineering and math major, said.
Peruna has so much spirit that he becomes disappointed when SMU is losing. Christensen described a time when SMU was down by more than 20 points and Peruna fell asleep on the field. He says Peruna swayed back and forth to show his discontent with the game. As soon as SMU scored, however, he perked back up and was ready to run.
Prior to the games, the handlers are responsible for strutting Peruna around on Bishop Boulevard and leading the parade of fans into the stadium. Interacting with the people on the Boulevard, Dobin says, is one of his favorite parts about being a handler. He says their common bond is they love Peruna. One of his best memories as a handler is when an elderly woman approached him and said she comes to the Boulevard year after year just to see Peruna.
Peruna and the handlers keep the traditions of SMU football and SMU culture alive. Sara Bedford, an SMU cheerleader, says the handlers are an integral part of the spirit organization. She said that the cheerleaders are spirit oriented while the handlers are tradition oriented.
“Peruna is one of the core aspects of our traditions, and those traditions can’t be perpetuated without people to keep guard of him, in effect, keeping guard of the SMU traditions,” said Bedford, a junior finance major.
Although Peruna’s history has been one of pride and tradition, there have been some unfortunate incidents along the way. Peruna is the only mascot to have killed another live mascot when he kicked a ram, the mascot of Fordham University. He has also dragged two handlers across the field. Dobin says it can be hard to run with Peruna because his stance is much longer than a human’s, so it’s easy to trip.
A statue on the southeast side of Ford Stadium commemorates each of the seven ponies that have died before the current Peruna, Peruna VIII. The most notorious of these deaths occurred in 1919 when a car hit Peruna I after he escaped from his handlers and ran onto Mockingbird Lane. Now multiple handlers run with him to ensure that no similar accidents occur.
“Everyone loves Peruna,” Dobin says. “It’s the best feeling when you walk by people on the Boulevard and they yell ‘Hey there’s Peruna’ and want to take pictures with him…he is the kick in our spirit.”
