This Thursday, James Sheep (junior-broadcast journalism) will be standing at the women's basketball game beneath a blanket of faux fur. An airy mask will conceal his hours of intense preparation, but he wouldn't have it any other way.
"Last year was the first year they announced the identity of the Nittany Lion in the paper," Sheep said. "It used to be a secret, and I wish it stayed that way. With this, nobody knows me, but I myself know that I did this."
Sheep was selected this week to replace Dave Johnson as the infamous fuzzy feline -- a goal he fell short of during his first tryout freshman year. After that, he was offered a cheerleading position, watching the mascot with an admiring eye. This Thursday will mark Sheep's first appearance as the Lion.
For Sheep, this year's tryout brought with it the smell of success.
"The suit actually didn't smell bad," Sheep said. "I think that during the tryouts someone had sprayed it with cologne. Usually, it is soaked with sweat."
Performing his original ElimiDate spoof for the tryout, Sheep competed with Purdue Pete and the Fighting Irishman to win a date with Rosie Bowl while his mother watched anxiously from the stands.
"I remember when he got accepted to Penn State I sort of kiddingly suggested that he should try out," Diane Sheep, his mother, said. "I didn't think he actually would."
With seven students, including a few freshmen, who made it through the interview process, Curtis White, Penn State cheerleading coach, said the skits were competitive but that Sheep looked the most comfortable in the suit.
"The skits were really good this year," Johnson, who served as a judge, said. "One student did a tribute to Steve Irwin and beat the crap out of an inflatable alligator. One kid dressed up like the Burger King and was throwing burgers. He had legitimate food he was throwing out."
Now, Sheep will continue a difficult workout regimen that surpasses the 50 one-armed pushups, 30-second improv act and waving of the Penn State colors that his tryout required.
"Any given football day, they may be doing 200 pushups," Lou Ann Kloss, assistant cheerleading coach, said.
Enjoying his fully paid tuition, Sheep said he is anticipating the 300-plus events he will attend per year -- especially the ones with children.
"They latch onto you," he said. "It's kind of awkward, but sometimes they will look inside and see a human and they actually start crying because they think that a lion has eaten a human. One kid sat on my lap and said, 'Mommy, what's in there?' "
A littler taller and 30 pounds heavier than Johnson, Sheep said he was apprehensive about his ability to crowd surf, but White said it shouldn't be a problem.
Only a few rules will limit Sheep's ability to entertain.
"No talking," Kloss said. "Never take the head off in public. Never walk around partially dressed. Those are probably the two biggest things."
White said the next thing Sheep will have to do is improve his backflip with the help of his new mentor, Johnson.
Johnson called Sheep a "crazy guy" and said he is looking forward to preparing him for next football season. "While we were delayed in the airport in Wisconsin, he did this parody of the milk and cereal music video with his one roommate," Johnson said. "He had us crying, we were all laughing so hard."
Though eagerly anticipating his upcoming mascot career, Sheep said he doesn't expect his furry-suit-wearing days to reach beyond Penn State.
"I know the Phillie Phanatic gets paid $100,000 a year," he said. "But that's not the kind of job you want to tell your kids that you have."
