With the Solon High School (SHS) football season over, there’s one question that remains: where’s our Comet mascot?

We’re the Solon Comets (SC), so why is there never a Comet on the field?

Well, it’s not for lack of trying. SHS Principal Erin Short revealed that she’s had students inquire about getting an SHS mascot.

“We have had kids come forward before and say ‘Hey, can we create a comet costume, and somebody be a mascot?’” Short said. “And [we’ve said] ‘sure,’ and then nothing comes to fruition, so we are not saying no one can do it.”

She added that in her 20 years working at SHS there has never been a mascot, and it may have something to do with the effort needed to institute one.

“I think [the costume] would have to be designed, it would have to be school appropriate and that person would need to work in conjunction with our cheerleaders, so it’s not like somebody could just come down and say ‘Hey, I wanna be the mascot tonight at Medina for the football game,’” Short said. “It’s a process, so I’m guessing… one of the reasons it always fell apart is that people didn’t… take the time to follow the process.”

If someone chooses to design the mascot and arranges for tryouts, Cheerleading Coach Ashley Mivsek said she’s be happy to train them, but she understands that in addition to procuring a mascot, the time commitment and personality required are obstacles.

“The person, or in most cases, multiple people chosen to be the mascot have to have the right traits and outgoing personality to meet the role,” Mivsek said. “It is also a big time commitment because mascots do not just attend sporting events, but also school and community events.”

Still, Mivsek said she can see many potential uses for a mascot beyond performing at sports games.

“A mascot would serve in many different roles…” Mivsek said. “At community and other school events a mascot would be expected to make appearances, take photos and mingle with people. He/She would be present at pep rallies and have some performances as well.”

As far as the mascot’s on-the-field persona, Varsity Football Coach James McQuaide said he’d be fine with having a mascot.

“Anything that’s gonna bring [the players and crowd] together,” McQuaide said. “We always say in ‘SC” the ‘S’ and the ‘C’ are connected, they’re not two separate letters, so anything that would bring us together, we would be open to trying.”

Junior and cheerleader Alexa Hayes also sees having a mascot as beneficial.

“Having a mascot would help increase school spirit and bring more people to sports games,” Hayes said.

The next step to getting a mascot is finding a dedicated student, or group of students, willing to put in the aforementioned work. Short said she doesn’t think the student body has motivation to acquire a mascot, or we’d have one by now.

“I’m not opposed to it, it’s just not been something that’s been a priority,” Short said. “I’m out there supporting our Comets all the time, cheering for our kids at athletic events, but it’s not been something that our student body has, I think, really felt is that important, because I know that when our kids feel something is important, they don’t have a problem having a petition…”

Now, a petition is not necessary for a SHS mascot, but if you are passionate about getting one, it’s certainly a possibility. All you need to do is make your intentions clear, plan thoroughly and follow through, then who knows, maybe you can be the Comet we’ve been waiting for.