Berea College is one of six institutions of higher learning in the United States that uses the Mountaineer as their mascot. The history of how Berea became known as the Mountaineers is limited; however, given the school's location and founding, it is easy to see how the Mountaineer was adopted as the official mascot. References to Berea College athletes as "Mountaineers" appear prior to 1920. (Tom Chase, B for Berea – Volume One: Triumph and Toil)
Over time, there have been several different visual depictions of the Mountaineer, the most commonly used one being an image of a uniformed player dribbling a basketball while wearing a Berea jersey and a coonskin cap. The mascot has inspired several Berea songs, including this one written by professors Julian Hartt, Gordon Ross, George Becct and Bob King, which has been adopted as the Berea pep song:
While the Athletic Department still currently recognizes the Mountaineer as the official mascot of Berea College Athletics, the college's Graphics Style Guide limits logo usage to the interlocking BC.
Introduced in 2022, Blue the Bear is the Berea College mascot, a personification of the College's identity and an ambassador of school spirit. Blue is responsible for engaging students, alumni, faculty, and staff and bringing all of them together. Blue is an outgoing and fun character that enjoys dancing, interacting with people, giving hugs, blowing kisses, and being silly.
To request Blue for your upcoming event, please click here.
