NCAA Tournament 2012: Power Ranking the Mascots of the Sweet 16

One of the best things about the NCAA tournament is the mascots.

Sure, the basketball is the greatest of it all, but for those who like for there to be more to the game, the mascots provide that.

A little over a week ago, I power ranked all the mascots in the tournament. For that article, I mainly went on what they were representing and not who the mascots actually were.

For this article, I'd like to do a little something different.

I'm going to actually look at the mascots and their history, and come up with a ranking best on that.

So, without further ado, here are the mascots ranked from worst to best that are in the Sweet 16.

16. Indiana Hoosiers

This one is obvious since Indiana doesn't have an official mascot.

So, nothing else really.

15. Syracuse Orangemen

Having been Syracuse's mascot since 1995, Otto the Orange can be seen on the sidelines of most Syracuse sporting events.

The team was originally nicknamed the Saltine Warriors, due to Syracuse being named the Salt City.

In 1978, Native American students successfully petitioned the school to quit using the nickname due to its stereotypical portrayal of Native Americans.

For 17 years, Syracuse was mascot-less, until the students showed their support for Otto in 1995.

Still, he's an orange.

14. Ohio State Buckeyes

Brutus Buckeye has been the official mascot of Ohio State since 1965.

Originally, an idea was considered that OSU use an actual buck deer as their mascot. After that was figured out as impossible, the students went with the buckeye, which is the state tree of Ohio.

Not sure how Brutus looks like a tree, but to each their own.

13. Kansas Jayhawks

The term jayhawk was coined around 1848.

According to the University of Kansas, "the name combines two birds--the blue jay, a noisy, quarrelsome thing known to rob other nests, and the sparrow hawk, a stealthy hunter."

Since this mascot is a made-up animal based off two different animals, it gets ranked this low. Had it been something real, then it might have been ranked a little higher.

12. Louisville Cardinals

The Cardinal Bird was chosen as the mascot in 1913 mainly because the bird is the state animal of Kentucky.

Not much other information is provided on this mascot.

Still, it's a bird, and it's hard to rank a bird ahead of some of the other mascots.

11. Wisconsin Badgers

Buckingham U. Badger started appearing with Wisconsin in the 1930s.

An actual badger was used in 1949, but due to the fact that it couldn't be controlled, a switch was made.

When looking at the badger, it's hard to really take it seriously. Although it is a real animal, I just don't see it being that fierce...well, at least compared to the next mascot.

10. Florida Gators

Albert Gator, the live version, first appeared with Florida in 1957, before a costumed version took over in 1970.

Albert got company in 1984, when the female version (Alberta) became a part of Florida.

The ferociousness of an alligator speaks for itself, but this is where my bias plays a small role—I just can't rank a gator high.

9. North Carolina Tar Heels

The origin of Rameses started in 1924, although the origin of the costumed version is unknown.

Still, the fact that North Carolina has a ram gets it ranked a little higher than many others.

Although Rameses has nothing to do with Tar Heels, it's still a pretty cool mascot to have.

8. Kentucky Wildcats

The Wildcat mascot originated in 1976.

One of the few universities with two mascots that attend basketball games, the Wildcats are a favorite by Kentucky students.

Scratch, who joined the team in a few years after the original mascot, is more kid friendly and caters to that crowd during games.

7. Xavier Musketeers

D'Artagnan has served as Xavier's official mascot for many years.

The reason the school went with a musketeer as a mascot is they wanted to show the strong ties with French origin and culture.

All for one and one for all.

I know you've all read the story or seen the movie.

Some of the first soldiers armed with muskets in Europe, musketeers were masters on many weapons, kinda like Xavier on the court.

While I wouldn't say they've mastered a lot of things, they're still very good at many things.

6. Cincinnati Bearcats

The best thing about this mascot is that it was arrested for disorderly conduct for throwing snowballs at Pittsburgh fans during a football game.

According to the university, there are four reasons why the nickname came about in 1914:

• an opposing team nicknamed the "Wildcats."
• a star UC player named Baehr.
• a creative cheerleader.
• a talented cartoonist.

Combine those together and that's how you got the Bearcats.

5. Baylor Bears

There's really no history behind Bruiser.

Baylor has been happy to use a live mascot at many of its sporting events, so just having a guy in a costume to entertain is about all Bruiser is good for.

With that said, a team that relies almost solely on a live mascot gets it put higher in the rankings. Now, that can really instill fear in a team.

You think they put Judge by opponent's locker rooms, like LSU does with their live mascot at football games?

4. Ohio Bobcats

Just look at this link.

Any mascot that will attack another mascot, especially Ohio State, earns points in my book.

3. North Carolina State Wolfpack

A wolf is one of the fiercest animals around.

Add a few more to them to make a pack, and now you're talking.

When you put them in a group, they're one of the toughest around and that's why they are put this high in the rankings.

2. Michigan State Spartans

This is Sparta!

No doubt one of the greatest lines in any movie in history, Spartans were known to be strong warriors who did what they wanted, when they wanted.

As seen in the movie 300, they have the ability to take an enemy's strength and turn it into a weakness.

Known to be some of the first professional soldiers, Spartans are and always will be known as some of the most dynamic warriors in history.

1. Marquette Golden Eagles

Being former military, I've come to known the eagle as a symbol of our country. It's a symbol of everything that's great about this country.

When someone asks me what I would be if I could be any animal, I always say an eagle because not only are eagles a symbol, but being a bird, they can go as high as they want to go.

Just like in life, we can go as high as we want to go, if we're willing to put in the work.

Life doesn't come easy, but if you work at it, you'll be able to achieve all your dreams.

Call me crazy, but I think this is no contest as the best mascot in the Sweet 16.