No more changes for Rebel mascot


The mustachioed mascot at Hays High School looks like he’s hopping mad.

col jack hays rebel mascot
Illustration by Hays Free Press

If so, he’s got his reasons. First, “Colonel Jack” lost his belt buckle bearing the Stars and Bars. Then the carpetbaggers commandeered his pistols, replacing
them with a couple of harmless flags.

At least no one’s tried to strip him of his uniform. Might there be a pair of long johns beneath those Confederate grays?

In the past few weeks, a rebel yell has been raised to protect Colonel Jack from any further insult. Hays High School alumni and athletic supporters are coming together to save their mascot from the dustbin of history, much like the fate of actual Rebels who fought during the Civil War.

“Don’t take the rebel away!” implores one Facebook group, which boasts more than 100 members.

But those sympathizers are just whistling Dixie, according to Hays High School Principal David Pierce.

“It’s all rumor,” he said. “It’s all false. I have not tried to change any mascot, nor have I wanted to change the mascot.”

It’s not even up for discussion, Pierce added.

“There’s not been anyone that’s approached me about it,” he said. “I’m sure there’s people out there that don’t like it. Really, that could be said for a lot of mascots.”

The mascot has been around almost as long as football coach Bob Shelton, who retired after the end of last season. Shelton had coached at Hays since it opened in 1968, and at Buda High School four years before that.

“As far as I know, people will take that mascot, and different organizations will do different things with it,” Shelton said. “The ones we use for athletics, I think he still has guns in his hands.”

People have argued that Confederate imagery, including the rebel, is a painful reminder of slavery. At the collegiate level, the University of Mississippi’s mascot, Colonel Reb, was retired in 2003. Last year, Ole Miss replaced him with an anthropomorphic black bear.

About 10 high schools around Texas boast Rebel mascots.

The original Colonel Jack, though, was no rebel. Jack C. Hays, the namesake of Hays High School and Hays County, was a former Texas Ranger who lived in California during the Civil War.

During the fighting, he remained neutral.

Published Feb. 17, 2011, in the Hays Free Press.


8,471 responses to “No more changes for Rebel mascot”

  1. But now, he should not solely battle the blindly formidable Bong-ju, but additionally face the corrupt jurors and take care of his Alzheimer’s-struck grandfather, and also take a few moments to contemplate the budding romance with Jin-su.

  2. One important issue is that while you are searching for a education loan you may find that you’ll want a cosigner. There are many situations where this is correct because you could find that you do not employ a past credit rating so the mortgage lender will require you have someone cosign the financial loan for you. Good post.

  3. One thing is that one of the most widespread incentives for utilizing your credit card is a cash-back or maybe rebate present. Generally, you’ll get 1-5 back with various expenditures. Depending on the card, you may get 1 back again on most purchases, and 5 back on expenses made in convenience stores, gas stations, grocery stores along with ‘member merchants’.

  4. Excellent read, I just passed this onto a colleague who was doing some research on that. And he just bought me lunch because I found it for him smile So let me rephrase that: Thank you for lunch!

  5. Good day! I just wish to give you a big thumbs up for the great info you have got right here on this post. I’ll be coming back to your site for more soon.

  6. Good site! I really love how it is simple on my eyes and the data are well written. I’m wondering how I could be notified whenever a new post has been made. I have subscribed to your feed which must do the trick! Have a nice day!

  7. Hey this is kind of of off topic but I was wanting to know if blogs use WYSIWYG editors or if you have to manually code with HTML. I’m starting a blog soon but have no coding experience so I wanted to get guidance from someone with experience. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

  8. Thanks for your publication on the vacation industry. I might also like to include that if you’re a senior considering traveling, its absolutely vital that you buy travel insurance for retirees. When traveling, retirees are at biggest risk of having a healthcare emergency. Buying the right insurance plan package on your age group can safeguard your health and provide peace of mind.

  9. Take 2 mins to learn more eToro USA LLC does not offer CFDs and makes no representation and assumes no legal responsibility as to the accuracy or completeness of the content of this publication, which has been prepared by our companion using publicly available non-entity specific information about eToro.

  10. If your safety system is fitted, you also want to speak with the security company to see if they will transfer the gear free of charge for you or if it will incur a charge.

  11. Based mostly on the animated television sequence The Simpsons, the trip was introduced in 2007 as a replacement for Back to the longer term: The Experience at each parks.

  12. Most folk favor to buy used cellular homes so in this regard they need to check out the availability of homes for sale at their desired location in United States.

  13. Israeli Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said that “Israel will examine the conclusions and can work to implement them by means of ongoing cooperation with UNICEF, whose work we value and respect”.

  14. At the October 4 meeting, attended by not less than 800 residents of Passaic at Woodrow Wilson Junior Highschool, Martini offered a decision to withdraw the elevation different from the mission.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *