Denver Boone - Boone's Official Retirement

Boone's Official Retirement

In 1998, the Department of Athletics and Recreation began an effort to return all of DU's athletic teams to Division-I competition, coupled with the opening of a new $75 million athletic facility. With that move came an effort to rebrand and update Denver's athletic image, and the administration at that time saw an opportunity to replace Denver Boone, for three primary reasons:

First, Boone was seen as presiding over the old NCAA Division II era of Denver sports. Secondly, Boone was seen as not representative of Denver's emerging female athletes. And finally, Native Americans on campus expressed concerns that Boone was a representative of the western extinction of Native American culture. Accordingly, the University retained the Pioneer nickname, but elected to create a red-tailed hawk mascot and logo to replace Boone, citing that "red-tailed hawks were present when the Pioneers settled Colorado." At the time, public reaction was lukewarm. Several costumed versions of the Red Tailed Hawk, now named "Ruckus" were created, but few understood the connection between the Hawk and the Pioneers. Reaction were muted largely because Denver had a new sports complex, and the University of Denver administration at the time was popular due to the massive investment in the campus. Over time, opposition to the Hawk began to come forward.