Rodney the Ram unmasked

Ever wonder who Rodney the Ram is? Well, lucky for you The CT was able to track him down and have a conversation with him.

Virtually, everyone who has been to any basketball, football or baseball game has seen a mascot. The mascot is responsible for keeping the crowd pumped up and entertained during the breaks in the action.

At VCU basketball games, Rodney the Ram has that responsibility. And while many people don’t know it, sophomore Elijah Hedrick plays the part of Rodney the Ram. Hedrick landed the gig because of a conversation he had with a family member.

“I kind of joked about it with my cousin about two years ago. I had no intentions of actually doing it, but an ex-girlfriend works at the Siegel Center and she remembered me joking about it. She called me and I told her that I would come and do it,” Hedrick said.

Hedrick has been Rodney the Ram since the beginning of the basketball season and enjoys being the mascot.

“I just have a lot of fun doing it because I am a basketball fan,” Hedrick said.

But the life of a mascot isn’t easy, Hedrick said.

“You can only look through one eye at a time and you can look down through the mouth, but that’s about it. You have no other vision. I try not to walk up too many steps because people like to stick their feet out,” Hedrick said.

The temperature inside the suit isn’t always easy to deal with, either.

“The first couple of games it wasn’t that hot because they have an ice vest for you, so it’s not that bad. The only thing that gets really hot is your hands and your head, but the last two games, the Northeastern game and the Mason game, I have been dying,” Hedrick said.

Hedrick, who had no previous mascot experience, said being Rodney the Ram has its perks.

“The best thing about being the mascot is I can get out all my flirting without technically cheating on my girlfriend. I get to walk around and take pictures with a whole bunch of girls and the cheerleaders and after the game. I feel completely fine because it’s not me,” Hedrick said.

Hedrick also said there would be no cheating if every man in America was a mascot.

Hedrick said he had the most fun at the Mason game earlier this season because of the intensity but there is potentially another game that could be the most fun.

“If we could go to the (NCAA) tournament that would take its place because I would get to go to that,” Hedrick said.

When asked how long he would continue to be Rodney the Ram, Hedrick gave a couple of answers.

“I will do it until I have better obligations out here like a family or something or until they kick me out. If they let me do it, I will do it next year,” Hedrick said.