The time a lion lived down the street

Leo II in 1998

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter
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In the wake of the recent death of LSU's tiger mascot, Mike, I'm reflecting on my time living in Alabama and a real-life lion lived near my neighborhood. It was 1997 and my wife and I had just been married a few months when I got my first reporter/anchor job in Florence, Alabama.

Florence is home to the University of North Alabama. The mascot for the university is the lion. Leo II was an adult lion who lived on campus in a cage. When we first moved to town and learned more about the area, everyone was sure to let us know about Leo. UNA claims to be the only university in the country to house live lion mascots.

Leo II was named the second best mascot by Sports Illustrated in 1997 and lived on campus from 1988 until his death in 2000. The original Leo was on campus from 1974 until his death in 1988. Leo III and Una replaced Leo II and remain on the Florence campus.

Visiting Leo II on a chilly day

My wife and I would walk up to campus and visit Leo from time to time. Our dog at the time was just as fascinated by the big cat as we were. Whenever we had out of town visitors, a trip to the UNA campus and Leo's cage was always a part of the day. He'd get our attention by letting out a roar that could be heard from our apartment which was nearly a mile from his cage.

Leo III & Una
Courtesy: UNA

I recently discovered Leo III and UNA have a much bigger enclosure and the campus has set up a live camera to keep tabs on the siblings. It's a great memory and I'm happy to be able to reconnect with a region where I started my career in journalism nearly 20 years ago.

Drop the Puck

By Chad Smart
@chadsmart & @my123cents on Twitter

Tonight is the official kick off to the 2014-2015 NHL season. Tonight will set in motion several stories to follow over the next eight months. Will the Los Angeles Kings be the first team since the 1998 Detroit Red Wings to win back-to-back Stanley Cups? Will the Chicago Blackhawks live up to preseason hype? Will a name change help the Arizona Coyotes gain a bigger fan base? Will I learn enough about hockey to actually write sensible, informative hockey blogs? 

The plan for tonight is to watch the Montreal Canadians vs. Toronto Maple Leafs game followed by the LA Kings banner raising game against the team who came in 2nd in my “which team do I cheer for” decision, the San Jose Sharks. While I won’t be there in person, it should still be a good game and I’m hoping the Sharks get some revenge on the Kings’ for their improbable playoff series victory. 

Right now the first live game on the calendar looks to be a trip to Anaheim to watch the Ducks battle the St. Louis Blues on October 19. Last year when I saw the Blues play, TJ Oshie scored the first hat trick of his career. Will Oshie turn in a similar outstanding performance? Will new Defense addition, Clayton Stoner add depth to the Ducks roster? Is it obvious with that last sentence, I shouldn’t actually talk about the specifics of hockey? 

2014 Stanley Cup

In addition to some Kings and Ducks game, I’ll once again hit the road with @mikedekalb to visit potentially 10 different venues this season. From Florida to Canada and states in between, hopefully my frequent flier club membership becomes beneficial. Also hoping to work in a handful of minor league hockey games as well.

People following the blog over the past few weeks should be aware that before the season started, I was in search of an official team to cheer for this season. I laid out my top ten choices and have come to a decision. I thought the decision would be tough but really there was very little doubt. I’m naming the San Jose Sharks as my west coast team. With time zones being what they are, I figured why not have a team that I can watch live given my work schedule. Out of the teams in the Pacific Division, the Sharks are my favorite. Not to mention, the Sharks play the Kings in an outdoor game at Levi’s Stadium. Since Kevin and I won’t be going to Wrestlemania next year, this would be a good excuse to see the stadium outside of football season. 

Iceburgh

While the Sharks are my “mistress” team as my friend calls it, my full support will go to the Pittsburgh Penguins. I’ve liked the Penguins since the early ‘90s so it makes sense to stick with them. Plus, the Penguins actually responded to my blog regarding choosing a team. I figure if they’ll reach out to me then they may be a team that actually cares about their fans. 

Right now, if I have my date correct, the plan is be in Pittsburgh on January 18 for a game against the Rangers. If anyone from the Penguin organization is reading this and wants to be awesome and offer a tour of the arena or a guaranteed photo op with Iceburgh, or any other gifts that would be awesome. I will most likely also try to attend the Penguins games against the Sharks, Kings and Ducks in March. That would be a good hat trick road trip. 

The champs

Last season was an exciting season for a hockey fan. After a wild playoff series and exciting Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals, I’m hoping there’s no hockey hangover for my second season of fandom. Now, drop the puck and start the season.

Way Back WhensDay: Spuds MacKenzie

Spuds!

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

In the 80's there was a party animal, and his name was Spuds MacKenzie.  The Bull Terrier became a part of the marketing of Bud Light.  Anheuser-Busch introduced the world to Spuds during the SuperBowl in 1987.

I still have my stuffed Spuds

Depending on your perspective, I guess you could say the dog was being used to market alcohol to kids.  After all, there was a line of plush toys and tshirts in children's size saturating the market.  I should know, I bought a stuffed Spuds on a trip to Busch Gardens back in December 1987.  I was a teenager at the time, and had no interest in drinking the beer the pooch was selling.  I just liked the character.  I never once felt compelled to buy or even try alcohol, just as Camel Joe never inspired me to smoke, but that's a subject for another day.

My wardrobe that year was composed of several Spuds MacKenzie tshirts too.  My grandfather worked for AB and although retired from the company, still received a discount on merchandise.  When a seasonal catalog was released, I'd take the opportunity to add a tee to my collection.  I also had a variety of neon colored sun glasses, the AB swim suit and matching flip flops.  Hard to believe I didn't have a girlfriend back then, right?

Who had a shirt?

Eventually the public pressure to end the ad campaign got to AB and Spuds was sent into retirement.  It didn't stop me from continuing to sport my tshirts with the famous dog surfing, skateboarding, or just hanging out with a bevy of beauties.  I think my school issued a ban on the shirts if they said anything about drinking.  I remember wearing some of the shirts, but not all in my collection and I think that was the reason behind it.

By the way, if you didn't know Spuds was portrayed as a male dog, but was in fact a female.  She died a few years after her retirement from kidney failure at the age of 10 (70 in dog years).  Thanks for the great memories Spuds.