Photo courtesy of the Moravian Archives.

The greyhound has sprinted into the hearts of Moravian University students and alumni for nearly a century. Recently, the community was faced with the passing of one of our beloved greyhounds, Mo. His departure marked the end of an era, but his legacy lives on with Benny and the history of past mascots.

OGO I: The First Live Mascot

The greyhound was officially adopted as the mascot for Moravian University, then College, in the mid-20th century. In 1933, a vote led by the student body led to the name “Greyhounds.”

This change was pivotal to the school’s identity. Before the greyhound, the athletics teams were referred to as the “Blue and Grey.” The official transition to “The Greyhounds” was solidified during the 1936-37 athletic season. Dr. Karl Hahn, the college and team doctor at the time, suggested the name.

Choosing the greyhound was symbolic. This breed, known for its speed, grace, and gentle demeanor, embodied the values of athleticism and camaraderie that the school wanted to promote. 

On Saturday, Nov. 13, 1937, President William N. Schwarze was presented with a greyhound named “OGO I” by the alumni of the beta chapter of the Omicron Gamma Omega fraternity. The acceptance took place during a Moravian Homecoming football game against  The City College of New York (CCNY). His original racing name was “Blonde Hazard,” sparking the origin of the greyhound races before each football game.

OGO I was quickly admired by the campus community but his reign was short-lived. After ten years of loyalty to the Moravian community, OGO I passed away in 1946. 

The Legacy Continues: OGO II and Beyond

In December of 1949, President Haupert accepted OGO II at the Ursinus-Moravian basketball game, welcoming the hound into the Moravian community. OGO II was acquired through the efforts of History Department Chair, Dr. J. Richard Jones. 

He debuted in 1950 and came to be very popular, meeting Steverino, also known as Lady Greyhound, the U.S. Greyhound Lines bus company mascot and star of Steve Allen’s television show. 

Steverino was on campus for two days in November of 1958 and received an honorary degree, “Bachelor of Canines.” She attended the Moravian-Mulhenburg football game and had a meet and greet with the campus and OGO II. 

OGO II’s death on January 7th, 1960, passed the tradition to OGO III. 

After OGO IV, who may have served as the mascot between 1969-71, the school stopped the use of a live mascot. According to John R. Weinlick, Dean of the Theological Seminary until 1971, the live mascot tradition was discontinued “due to care and handling being too much of a burden for the fraternity to continue.”

A New Era: The Costumed Mascot and the Return of the Live Greyhounds

In 1979, Moravian College introduced its first costumed mascot, “Amos.”  Costuming the school mascot was a way to boost school spirit after not having a mascot for several years. The first costumed mascot, while lacking resemblance to an actual greyhound, brought a new dimension to the school’s spirit.

Although the mascot position was filled, a student, Celeste Deininger ‘83, donated the use of her pet whippet as a temporary school mascot. A whippet, similar in appearance, is not the same as a greyhound but it was close enough to satisfy the student body for a while. In conjunction with the honorary mascot, Lori Ann Vargo ‘82 wore the Amos costume with pride. 

The two mascots made their debuts in 1979 in a season-opener football game against Widener.

There was a period of time when no live mascot was on record, but in 2003, Shiloh and Lightfoot were adopted by Linda Davis-Wallen ‘75. Both dogs came from Linda Ann’s Greyhound Rescue and were chosen based on their temperament and appearance.

Davis-Wallen was approached by Anthony “Monk” Morelli ‘59, who said that Lightfoot looked almost identical to one of the past mascots.

In 2005, they became official mascots. Shiloh (racing name “Payday Laura”) and Lightfoot (racing name “Foot Trail”) continued the tradition of racing across the field. 

Head track and field coach Doug Pollard became very affectionate of the hounds. He would visit all of the home games and make sure the mascots were comfortable. If it was hot out, he would show up to games with wet towels to keep them cool. 

When Coach Pollard passed away in 2007, Davis-Wallen’s family received a message asking for the dogs to attend his funeral. 

Lightfoot and Shiloh remained the mascots until 2009. When they ran across the field during the last home football game that year, Kiowa was introduced as the next live mascot for the college. 

Kiowa (racing name “Kiowa Crunchtime”) was adopted in October of 2009 from Pocono Greyhound Adoption into the Davis-Wallen family. 

President Bryon Grigsby began his term in 2013. During his first years as President, The Pocono Rescue Group would bring greyhounds and other dogs to games that were available for adoption.

Mo was adopted on July 29th, 2013 into the Grigsby family. 

Mo (racing name “Kiowa June Lazy”), who retired from racing on April 24th, 2013 because of a fractured toe, would occasionally race with Kiowa on the field. According to Mrs. Lea Grigsby, before his retirement, Mo had competed in 46 races.

Benny would occasionally run on the field, but he never raced officially. His back legs are two different lengths, one being deemed “too straight.” Greyhounds don’t slow down when they go into turns, so according to Mrs. Grigsby, his straight leg isn’t flexible enough to maintain speed.

“As Mo got older and started to not have as much enthusiasm, like when he ran out about 30 yards and just stopped, or decided to run over to the other team’s cheerleaders, we thought we might not include him as he was getting older and had a history of spine problems,” Mrs. Grigsby said.

Two big events coincided that influenced the stop of the greyhound racing on the field. Several greyhound rescue groups closed after the state of Florida voted to ban wagering on dog races, which closed all greyhound racing. The other factor was the pandemic. Although the school continued to play sports, no spectators were allowed, which meant there wasn’t a need to continue the racing.

Now that Benny is eight years old, and Mo has passed on, it is up in the air whether or not the racing will make a comeback.

Mo and Benny and their predecessors have left a legacy that will continue to grow and influence the Moravian University community.