The Nicholls State mascot, Tillou, will either get a face lift or a totally new look come next spring. “We are looking into either refurbishing the one we have, or redesigning the look of the costume and getting a new one,” Latoya Bailey, student life coordinator, said.

The old costume is shabby and falling apart, and the look is outdated. The new costume will not be to replace the colonel as mascot, but to make him look better, she said.

“The current mascot, because he wears it, feels that it is time to change it,” Bailey said.

The student who plays Tillou has his thoughts on why the costume should be updated.

“I feel that a cosmetic change in the mascot costume would be in line with the forward progression of this University,” Tillous said.

“I hope it would make our colonel more approachable by small children and incorporate all the ideas of a truly diplomatic colonel.”

When Bailey was a Student Government Association senator in 1996, she lobbied for a new mascot, and in November of that year, the University got one.

The costume the University uses today is the same one, and is about 5 years old.

The funding for a new costume would have to come from the University, because the cheerleader’s budget can not handle the cost of the $900-2,000 costume, Bailey said.

“It would be nice if we could bring it up to the senate in the fall and ask that they fund it, since it is a University-type item,” she said.

The cost for the costume will depend upon whether it is already made or if the University has it designed.

The process of getting a new mascot costume will take about two weeks for the senate to approve it, and then another two months for the costume to be made, Bailey said.

The reason the costume was hard to keep up, was that it was not just for cheerleader use, she said.

“Because it was bought with student money, it is not only for use by the cheerleaders or sporting events, but it is allowed to be used by other people for University events,” she said.

By getting a new costume, it can be specifically for the cheerleaders and sporting events, and the old one can be used by other organizations when needed, Bailey said.

“It still looks decent and is usable. It is just not in the best condition that it can be,” she said.

Because the costume will cost over $500, it must go out on bid.

“(It will go out on bid) to companies who do this type of service, whether it is locally or nationally.

“Once we do the specifications of what we want, then it goes out on bid, and whoever has the best price basically wins,” Bailey said.

Student suggestions and input are welcome, she said.

Any designs, suggestions, and other forms of input may be brought by the student life office, directed to Latoya Bailey.