The Complete and True History of T-Roy, Part 2
One of the most enduring memories for many fans of sports teams is the mascot that roams the stands and sidelines during gameday. Whether high school, college, or professional, the mascot is an interactive symbol for the team.
While earlier examples exist, the modern push for college mascots started in the 1980s, with many universities making the mascot a part of the cheerleading squad. It is in this period that one of America’s greatest mascots was created—T-Roy.
We’ve established how a college without an identity found it, and in doing so found a sideline representative. You can read about that here.
20 years after T-Roy took the field, he was given a facelift… and he wasn’t the only one.
It’s Time for a Change: A New T-Roy
2004 was the final year of Troy State University and the new mascot was going to further that change by leaving T-Roy in the State past. This new mascot would debut almost 20 years after the introduction of his predecessor at the Idaho game on October 30, 2004.
The new mascot was designed to be a more people-friendly mascot—a 3D version of the Trojan Man in the new logo.
According to the Palladium, students and alumni “expressed concern and dislike for the new look…that the new look was too cartoonish and didn’t reflect the image of this university.” The bigger concern, however, wasn’t what he looked like, but rather what he was to be called.
For the past 20 years, T-Roy had been the name of the face of the University. Now it would be
That’s right. Hector, Prince of Troy and the great warrior of the Troad.
This proved to be a bridge too far for most Trojans.
Changing the name of the University? Not fine, but okay.
Changing the mascot costume? Okay.
Changing the name of the mascot? You’ve gone too far!
It was too much change too quickly. Almost no one ever called this version of the mascot Hector. He was always just T-Roy, like his forefathers.
The name of Hector did not die out however. Most of Trojan Nation refers lovingly to the Trojan Warrior statue and the center of the Quad (and overlooking The Vet from the south endzone) as Hector.
The biggest addition to the new T-Roy was the inclusion of a cardinal cape clasped by a T button in 2007-08.
The 2007-08 Palladium was momentous in T-Roy’s history as this was one of the first times he ever made a statement. The typically silent mascot talked about his job as a mascot and what representing Troy means to him.
“I feel that it’s my purpose to stand for the university more than anything else,” he said. “Not just for sports, but for other activities as well.
“The best thing about the job would be the enjoyment I see the kids have when I am doing something with them or when a child has a smile because of me.”
T-Roy’s antics are always a welcome sight at any Troy game and he went into his process for how he decides what he will do during a game.
“Normally, I don’t prepare unless it’s a big skit or something,” he said. “normally just go to Wal-Mart or Dollar General an hour or so before I have to do anything and whatever pops into my head at the time.
“I will buy something to involve the crowd or to spice up my personality.”
This version of T-Roy didn’t really change up his look very much from his introduction until 2008-09. A pep rally in 2008-09 saw T-Roy bring out the T-Roy’s Troop shirt and gym shorts for the occasion.
For Homecoming that same year, T-Roy showed up in a cheerleader uniform for the first time in the new design.
And those weren’t his only looks. T-Roy went very causal with a black shirt over his skirt as a drum major, super formal with another suit as a sideline reporter and in a special New Orleans Bowl look, he brought back the jersey (#00) over black pants as the ultimate hypemascot.
In 2008-09, T-Roy was played by two students, Tae Madden and the perfectly named Troy Taylor.
“The most rewarding part about [being] T-Roy is being able to put a smile on some kid’s face or when I volunteer to help someone with something,” Madden said of his time as T-Roy. “The best and most memorable time was the Special Olympics. I have never cried inside the suit until then.”
A Change in the Air
In 2009-10, the SGA and Alumni Association fundraised and purchased a new costume for T-Roy. As you can see, T-Roy definitely came back a new mascot after the summer.
Or at least that’s ONE version of what happened.
The dates don’t match up well, but in a story published in 2011, Troy announced that the T-Roy costume had been stolen after one of the T-Roy actors took the costume home when he was finished performing at the Special Olympics. A city-wide search began and missing posters were created.
Correction: It has been confirmed to us by one of the T-Roys at this time that the costume was indeed stolen. It was kept at the home of a T-Roy as they did not have access to the Athletics facilities. Between the baseball game and the Special Olympics appearance, it was discovered that the suit had been stolen and it was reported to the police.
Between the article and the poster, we learn VERY interesting information about T-Roy. First, you might think the mascot of the Trojans would be Trojan, but you’d be wrong. His race is listed as T-Royian.
Second, the article mentions that the costume itself cost $5,500, which is the first mention that I have been able to find for how much a mascot costume sells for.
I have typically referred to this new costume as Buff T-Roy. You can see why.
Tae Madden opened up about what made the new costume so important for the performers.
“The new suit has allowed us to perform the way we have wanted these last few years,” he said. “There is a chin strap inside the head to make it stay on whenever we do something that involves the head… In the old suit, we would have to hold the head steady with our own hands almost every time we wanted to perform. With this new costume. we have more freedom.”
Overall, the look of the suit is probably the best one Troy had used up to that point. However, the face on this one was not my favorite. From afar it was okay, but up close was another story.
For the first time I can find, T-Roy was embodied by three people. Tae Madden continued in his four years as The Wiregrass’ most lovable mascot.
Troy Taylor continued his work from the previous year. Newcomer Brett Lewis joined the others for games and parades.
For the first time I can find, T-Roy also had a new mode of transportation. For residing in a city formerly named Deer Stand Hill, a four-wheeler was a pretty great choice.
During the 2009-10 Sun Belt Conference basketball tournament, T-Roy competed in a dance-off with the other mascots in the conference at halftime of each game. He was undefeated in the tournament and the three performers credited the new costume with the victory.
An exclusive tidbit of information from that year’s Palladium gave Trojans more insight into the heart and mind of the mascot. He stated that he enjoyed dancing, eating, playing jokes on people, and cheering on Troy.
2010-11 didn’t bring much changes to the costume, except that the cape seemed to be more optional than previous years.
The 2010 New Orleans Bowl brought out the craziest look ever donned by T-Roy.
Pom-pom pants.
I’m not sure what led to this, but would love to know more if anyone can provide info. It was solidly one of the most unique looks T-Roy has even donned.
Author’s Note: Former T-Roy Tripp Wilson reached out after the article to give us insight into the Pom-Pom Pants. Wilson was at the center of the creation of the pants, drawing inspiration from some SEC mascots who had done the same thing. However, Wilson’s idea was originally so much more. He envisioned a Pom-Pom SUIT.
The night before the New Orleans Bowl activities began, Tripp and a few others began their ambitious project. Using duct tape and acquired SGA pom-poms, They began to attach the pom-poms to a pair of wind pants they had brought with them. Though they had an entire box of shakers, it only gave them enough pom-poms for the pants.
They worked in secret for a few hours to complete the pants, not telling anyone of the plan. The larger plan for the pants was to wear them for part of the bowl game, then use them more extensively during basketball season. They donned the pants in the second half of the game and unfortunately, after about 30 minutes, the pants were completely destroyed. Sadly, they were never able to be used again.
In 2011-12, T-Roy was recruited by a very important person to help him with a big project. At what appears to be a pep rally, Santa T-Roy made a grand appearance.
Complete with a Santa jacket, wool-lined boots and a beard as white as snow, T-Roy brought Christmas joy to the whole campus.
The men behind the mascot in 2011-12 were Charlie McAlpine and Tripp Wilson.
In 2011, T-Roy finished 2nd in the NCA Mascot Nationals in Daytona and 10th in 2012. Sadly, T-Roy hasn’t qualified for Nationals since that 10th Place finish.
I am sure they were introduced earlier, but this is the first picture reference to T-Roy’s sword and shield that I have found. These would become a much bigger part of T-Roy’s character and be used in different instances from pregame to special appearances.
New Face, Same Spirit
The final documented appearance of Buff T-Roy came during Troy Night on May 18, 2017 at a Montgomery Biscuits game.
By the time the Trojan Tour 17 started in Troy on May 31, T-Roy reappeared in a much newer, leaner form, though the eyebrows definitely needed some work.
Since the major motivation behind the creation of mascots are to appeal to children, this T-Roy succeeds mightily in that regard. Current T-Roy essentially finetunes the costume from the previous two versions.
The biggest change is the headpiece. The more cartoony aspects of T-Roy’s looks are reduced, making for the most humanlike version of the mascot to date.
From his strong chin and jawline to a proper fitting helmet, this mascot looks the part of a modern FBS mascot, and one that could be used for much longer than a 5-7 year stint.
In the seven years since his introduction, this version of T-Roy hasn’t changed much at all. Really the only real change has been updated football jerseys in 2023.
Current T-Roy has defintely experimented with different looks and costumes much more than the previous versions. From basketball jerseys to Larry the Cable Guy formal to imitating Director of Creative Video Jack Martin, T-Roy loves to have fun any time he can.
He’s even willing to play soccer and even hockey if we had a team!
One of the only failings of the newest costume I’ve found was Santa T-Roy. It was great to see him return, but he’s too much of a babyface to even pull off a fake beard.
Thanks to Trojan Threads, T-Roy can now even rock overalls as he is performing for fans.
Return of the Beard
January 12, 1992 was a seminal day in Troy history, the day Troy State set the all-time scoring record against DeVry. Bearded T-Roy oversaw and celebrated with the team as the Trojans carved their names into the record books.
When the time came to celebrate the 30th anniversary of this momentous occasion, of course a certain character was called out of retirement.
For the first time, Modern T-Roy and Bearded T-Roy took the court at the same time… along with a T-Roy made of the (seemingly flattened) 2017 head and 2004 body suit.
The history of T-Roy has been intertwined with Troy Athletics history, and in one game the two were celebrated together.
No matter which era of T-Roy is your favorite, Troy University fans have been blessed to have a wonderful and endearing mascot to represent them. For the past 40 years, T-Roy has been a constant presence throughout all Troy related activities.
Here’s to 40 more!
Click here to read Part 1.
Pingback: The Complete and True History of T-Roy, Part 1 – The Trojan Wall