Western Illinois’ first mascot made its first appearance on Oct. 10, 1959 at the Homecoming football game. One day earlier, the English bulldog, which was purchased by the Student Government Association at the suggestion of Student Personnel Services Dean Dr. John Henderson, was officially named “Colonel Rock” at the Homecoming bonfire. The nickname was chosen from more than 200 entries submitted in a campus-wide contest. The winning entry was submitted by Richard Stevenson, a junior from Nauvoo, Ill., who chose the name to honor former coach and athletics director Ray “Rock” Hanson.
Hanson, a former colonel, was responsible for bringing the Leathernecks nickname and the Marine tradition to Western Illinois. The English bulldog, which is the traditional mascot of the U.S. Marine Corps, was cared for by the John Storey family in Macomb.
After Colonel Rock passed away in February 1966 during his second cancer operation, Captain Dale A. Luster, a recruiter from the Marine Corps League of Chicago, was instrumental in assisting the Corps’ purchase of Colonel Rock II, a.k.a. “Rocky.” Two years later, on September 26, Luster was killed in action over North Vietnam.
In 1973, with the retirement of Rocky, a costumed version took over for the live dog, but English bulldogs have frequented Western Illinois football games since. Rocky continues to cheer his team, ignite the crowd, joust opponents’ mascots, plead with officials and bring smiles to the faces of many fans. He has received three “groomings” since his first appearance, the most recent on Feb. 15, 1997 when his new look was unveiled at a Leatherneck basketball game. The “new” Rocky still holds the same grudges against Western Illinois opponents, as well as the cool temperament to high-paw a Leatherneck fan.
Rocky was immortalized in the form of a 900-pound cement statue which was unveiled on Oct. 6, 1971 behind the University Union. A gift from Country Schools Restaurants, Inc., the statute was created by sculptor Herman Morrill. To this day, the statue is painted several times a week by student groups as a sign of school spirit between the many student organizations on campus. Rocky was moved as part of the redesign to the entrance of Hanson Field in 2001, where he sits today greeting fans and players as they enter the gates.
