The Carleton Ravens football team successfully protected Pedro the Panda on Oct. 1 at the Panda Game when they defeated the University of Ottawa (U of O) Gee-Gees by a score of 43-23.

After the game, the Ravens were presented with the Pedro trophy, which is actually the third version of the trophy since the Panda Game began.

The original Pedro was created in 1955. Bryan McNulty, a U of O student, asked a local jeweller to donate a stuffed panda to the school. It was to be used as the Carleton versus Ottawa mascot and act as a promotional aspect for the game itself.

The decision had an immediate and profound impact. Not only did Pedro help make the game wildly successful, but the mascot took on a life of it’s own, running for president of Carleton’s Student Council and travelling to multiple campuses across Canada, according to the Carleton Archives and Research Collections.

At the age of 24, plush Pedro was retired and replaced with a copper trophy. Plush Pedro was then sent to the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in Hamilton.

However, a series of “Panda-nappings,” most notably by Queen’s University, left the whereabouts of original Pedro in question.

That was until Sept. 28, when Josh Lemoine of apt613.ca published an article that uncovered the mystery of the plush Panda.

Lemoine obtained a picture of Pedro, and confirmed that he was in the hands of an old friend of a prominent Gee-Gees alum.

“I was able to get confirmation that the bear is in Ottawa,” Lemoine said. “I don’t actually know who the keeper of the bear is . . . but my contact is a close personal friend to this person—a prominent former Gee-Gee.”

How or why it ended up with this person is unknown. There were rumours that it had been at the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in Hamilton, or in one of the university’s archives—both of which proved to be false.

“I believe he was inducted [to the Hall of Fame] but was never in their possession,” Lemoine said.

Carleton’s director of recreation and athletics, Jennifer Brenning, said she believes that the owner should return it to Hamilton for display in the Hall of Fame.

“I hope that eventually he would donate it,” Brenning said. “It’s just such a historic symbol, not only for Ottawa, but for football in Canada.”

The importance of the plush bear prize for winning an extremely violent game of football has been well-documented.

“It’s a very important plush animal,” Lemoine said.

Wherever Pedro may be residing, the revival of the game in 2013 has been a resounding success.

“There’s just something about the rivalry and football in the fall,” Brenning said. “The whole thing is a tremendous show of school spirit and school pride . . . the response from students and alumni has definitely brought a sense of community back.”

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR