McFogg: the legend

For many years SFU’s mascot was a temperamental gorilla named Joe, a rowdy ape whose King Kong style rallied the crowds at many athletic events. In 1996, Joe felt it was time to retire, and returned to the Congo where he is now running a Gorilla re-education centre. Anticipating his eventual retirement, Joe had carefully considered who would replace him in the all-important role of SFU mascot. For years he had been training a Scottish Terrier, one he nicknamed McFogg, in master mascot skills and philosophy.

McFogg showed great promise, and Joe believed he was ready to take on the privilege of the mascot role.  McFogg exemplified the SFU spirit – feisty, tartan-clad, proud and scrappy. He was much beloved by SFUers and quickly surpassed Joe as the most popular and skilled mascot in SFU’s history.

In 2003, however, McFogg hit unexpected hard times.  At a football game against UBC, McFogg took a tumble and badly injured his tail. This injury left McFogg questioning his purpose in life. In comparison to the flashy, expensively groomed feathers of the UBC Thunderbird, McFogg felt tired, frumpy and out of shape.  These feelings of defeat and self-doubt were compounded by his recent break-up with his chihuahua girlfriend, Lulu, and McFogg began to wonder if his days as a mascot were past their prime.  Looking for a fresh start, McFogg set out on a soul-searching journey across the globe.

From Vietnam to Costa Rica, Kazakhstan to Tanzania, McFogg traversed the continents, reflecting on his core values and wrestling with the tension between fate and self-determinism.  He sought counsel from the Maharishi Mahesh in India, basked in the Mediterranean sun on the shores of Sicily, danced the bossa nova in Brazil and drank whiskey with Canadian expats in Prague. 

Eventually, McFogg’s travels took him to his ancestral home – Scotland.  He had left Scotland at a young age, sent by his now deceased parents to the mascot training school run by Joe. It was his first time back to Scotland as a fully grown dog. One evening, as he was enjoying his dessert of oatcakes and fried Mars Bar, McFogg had a serendipitous encounter with Angus McFarland, an old bull dog who had known McFogg’s parents. As they chatted, McFogg discovered the origin of his nickname.  His great uncle Ross had been the faithful companion of SFU’s first president, Patrick McTaggart-Cowan. During World War II, McTaggart-Cowan served as a meteorologist in charge of determining whether or not the weather would allow Allied aircraft to fly missions. During an extended period of poor weather, McTaggart-Cowan was reportedly given the nickname "McFog" by many of the Allied aviators.

Ross was killed tragically in a tainted dog food scandal. However, his spirit lived on in his great-nephew, affectionately named McFogg, in honour of both Ross and McTaggart-Cowan.

With a greater understanding of his heritage, a heart full of pride and the sudden realization that SFU was his clan, his community, his source of identity, McFogg vowed to return to the top of Burnaby mountain better than ever and reclaim his rightful place as a mascot champion. Standing proudly on the edge of the Loch Fraser, nestled in the highlands, McFogg shouted into the mist “THE DOG IS BACK!”

After training intensively for the past 5 months, McFogg is in the best shape of his life. Embracing his true calling, McFogg has returned to Burnaby mountain, ready to represent SFU and put his bark where his bite is.