Rufus ambush results in canceled event, other fallout

A fundraiser for those affected by last month's tornado and storms last Thursday night featuring Brandon Hanning, formerly Rufus the Bobcat, at the Red Brick Tavern was canceled due to controversy still swirling over Hanning's Rufus attack on Brutus Buckeye when OU played Ohio State on Sept. 18 in Columbus.

The fundraiser was slated to benefit the Athens chapter of the American Red Cross, and feature Hanning signing autographs. His pre-game ambush of Brutus, which was caught on at least two videos, received national attention, and soon after, OU athletics announced that Hanning would no longer wear the Rufus outfit or otherwise be involved in university athletics.

Pamela Martino, executive director of the American Red Cross in Athens, said Friday that her organization historically stays out of controversial issues.

She said it quickly became evident to her that the mascot issue was controversial. "I did receive many, many phone calls from various people in the community, including OU athletics, who expressed concern," she said. "That is the reason why I pulled out of that."

She said she told organizers that they could have the event, but could not use the Red Cross name and would have to give the donations to somebody else in the community.

"It wasn't because of OU athletics, or anyone from OU particularly," she said. "But my chapter began getting a lot of phone calls after it was publicized that it was going to be for the Red Cross and the (former) mascot was going to be there. In order to just stay away from that sort of thing, I made a decision to not endorse it at all."

Hanning, 19, now a Hocking College student who attended OU last year, has said that he tried out for the part of Rufus with the sole purpose to eventually attack Brutus. He said his understanding was that the Red Cross pulled out because of too many complaints.

"I know one of them came from OU that was trying to shut it down in the first place," Hanning said. "And that's pretty much why it got canceled. OU just didn't want them to have it because they didn't want me to have any part of it."

Hanning, who did show up Thursday night, said he was going to sign ticket stubs and T-shirts for the event. In an e-mailed statement from OU athletics, department spokesperson Jason Corriher said that after learning about the event through an on-campus flier, Ohio athletics officials "reached out" to both the restaurant and Martino on that Wednesday.

"Once aware of the event, the (athletics) department shared with each party that it did not support the activity, but respected their ability to choose whether to participate," Corriher said. "From the beginning of Wednesday's conversation, the department made it clear that it would welcome an ARC (Red Cross) fundraising event at one of our next two home games, and Ms. Martino selected our Homecoming matchup with Akron for that event."

QUESTIONS HAVE ALSO BEEN raised about OU athletics' decision to not send its cheerleaders with the football team to Marshall on Sept. 25, the first game following the Rufus-attacks-Brutus incident.

The cheerleading squad did not attend Saturday's game at Eastern Michigan either, but Corriher said that they were never scheduled to do so.

"Our cheerleading squad does not travel to every road game, and they were not originally scheduled to travel to EMU," he said. "In terms of their absence at the Marshall game, the department elected the best approach was to keep the focus of the game on the field."

A relative of an OU cheerleader, wishing to remain anonymous, said her understanding was that the decision not to send the squad was a punishment for cheerleaders having foreknowledge of Rufus/Hanning's planned attack on Brutus. The athletics department did not address that rumor specifically, and no cheerleaders or advisers to the squad responded to requests for comment.

Hanning revealed, however, that he had told some of the cheerleaders the night before the Ohio State game about his plan to ambush Brutus.

"I did tell the cheerleaders, and I'm guessing that's probably why they didn't go (to the Marshall game)," he said. "I don't know why (else) they wouldn't send the cheerleaders."

Meanwhile, OU Band Director Ricky Suk confirmed that the band was never scheduled to attend either game, and that had nothing to do with the Rufus incident. It was already the plan long before the game against Ohio State on Sept. 18.