Being Rocky: USF alumni reflect on life inside the suit

By Paul Guzzo and Matthew Cimitile, University Communications & Marketing

Mascots are vital to a university's identity and culture. Their impact is felt in athletics, student life, community engagement and so much more.

Being a university's mascot also impacts the student behind the costume. For some, it brings them out of their comfort zone; for others it makes them more connected to the campus community. For many, it becomes a defining moment of their college experience.

On National Mascot Day, the University of South Florida celebrates the many students who have been Rocky D. Bull over the years, bringing cheer and goodwill to the university and the Tampa Bay region.

Here are some of their stories.

Mike Mashke - Rocky from 1984-1988

For most of his career, Mike Mashke needed two very different kinds of suits.

By day, he wore a shirt and tie as a banker, now serving as chief credit officer for United Trust Bank. But, for around two decades, his other suit was anything but traditional - the oversized, animated costumes of mascots for several Tampa Bay professional teams, including the Buccaneers and Lightning.

"A lot of people might find that odd - a banker who's also a mascot," Mashke said with a laugh. "But it was always just normal for me."

He traces both paths back to USF - banking to his bachelor's degree in economics, and mascotting to his time portraying Rocky.

Mashke first donned the USF mascot costume on a lark.

Starting out as a sports medicine student, he taped ankles and wrists for cheerleaders but often critiqued the mascot's performance - until his cheerleader roommate challenged him to audition.

"He told me to put my money where my mouth is," Mashke said. "So, I tried out and got the job."

One of his most memorable moments came during a USF basketball game against the University of Florida.

Mashke provoked the opposing crowd, drawing trash and tensions that escalated until the coach ordered him off the court. Undeterred, he returned later, blowing "smoke" from Rocky's nose - further igniting the arena.

"That's exactly what I wanted to achieve," he said.

Mashke continued performing as a mascot through 2006, even earning a Super Bowl ring as Captain Fear with the Buccaneers. He said the experience boosted his banking career.

"People wanted to bank with Captain Fear," he said. "It opened a lot of doors."

Jody Glassman - Rocky from 1995-1997

Jody Glassman made history as Rocky at least once - and possibly twice.

She was the first Rocky to run onto a football field, doing so in 1997 for the Bulls' inaugural game. She may also have been the first woman to wear the Rocky costume.

"I'm the first female on record that USF can find," said Glassman, now assistant vice president of enrollment and admission at Florida International University. "That's at least what they told me after I was chosen. They couldn't remember ever having a girl."

She has a few theories as to why no woman had taken on the role before.

"Maybe it's because Rocky is a boy," Glassman said. "Maybe it's because of the smell. Back then, at least, the costume really smelled bad. You had to get through that."

Glassman's path to becoming Rocky began at Walt Disney World, where she portrayed a variety of characters while attending Valencia College. After transferring to USF, she auditioned to better connect with campus life.

"I was a transfer student," she said. "Being Rocky gave me confidence, belonging, and a way to engage, express myself and feel part of the campus community."

Glassman graduated in 1996 and remained at USF, working in admissions. When the football team needed a Rocky to lead it onto the field for the first time in 1997, they called her briefly out of retirement.

"That was a highlight, a pinnacle," Glassman said. "The atmosphere in Raymond James Stadium was incredible. I'll always hold that near and dear to my heart."

Aidan Cawley - Rocky from 2023-2024

Curiosity led Aidan Cawley to Rocky.

"Does it feel natural? Is it hot?" he asked himself when hearing about the opportunity to try out to be USF's mascot. "It might seem like a cop-out answer, but it seemed like so much fun and, going into my senior year, it felt like my positions before Rocky were preparing me for being Rocky."

A self-proclaimed high energy goofball, donning the costume became a natural extension of his personality. That persona energized crowds from orientation to Sailebration, the sunset cruise for graduates at USF St. Petersburg.

"No matter what kind of day I was having, if I was tired from exams or hyped up on caffeine, being Rocky was one of those things that felt easy, effortless and endlessly fun," he said.

The experience was a mixture of amusement, wackiness and special moments that he shared with hundreds of other classmates, many of whom he knew but that didn't know who was behind the costume.

"Rocky, the suit, USF St. Petersburg, it became a real home in a way," he said. "And that isn't something you can find just anywhere."

Matt Hitchcock - Rocky from 2004-2006

Matt Hitchcock still stands by his side of the story.

During a 2005 USF football game against UCF, while portraying Rocky, he knocked over an opposing fan's cooler - an incident that drew enough attention to make local headlines, with reports suggesting it was intentional.

Hitchcock insisted at the time it was an accident. More than two decades later, he hasn't wavered.

"For me, being a mascot was always about having fun," he said.

Hitchcock's path into mascotting began while he was working at a Palm Beach-area ice rink as a high school student. A manager asked if he could jump into the rink's mascot costume for birthday parties.

A drama student, he quickly discovered he loved performing and would pursue mascotting even after his time at USF with a range of professional teams.

He was best known as the Lightning's ThunderBug from 2006 to 2009 and also performed for minor league baseball affiliates of the St. Louis Cardinals, Pittsburgh Pirates and Florida Marlins.

At his 2009 wedding, Hitchcock's mascot career even took center stage - each reception table was named after one of the roughly 20 characters he had depicted.

Today, Hitchcock is the morning show producer at The JOY FM, a role he said his time as Rocky helped prepare him for.

"The tagline for our radio station is 'Helping you find joy,'" Hitchcock said. "That is also the primary responsibility of a mascot."