Bubble Boy

Bubble Boy becomes Billy Buffalo

By Amy Cyphers
NU Alumni Association
1992 news-editorial graduate

Children love him. Chicks dig him. Guys envy him. Who wouldn’t? On a typical workday, Brad Post can be found delighting kids with goofy antics, cavorting with NFL cheerleaders and brushing elbows with the likes of Doug Flutie, Peerless Price and Sam Cowart.

Throw in a decent salary, a front-row seat to loads of NFL action and some TV exposure, and it seems obvious: Post has landed one heck of a first job out of college.

The only real drawback might be having to wear a 25-pound padded blue-fur buffalo suit in late-summer heat and humidity. But as the alter ego behind Billy the Buffalo — the brand-new mascot for the Buffalo Bills — Post takes the discomfort and limitations of the costume in stride. He’s used to it.

For four years in college, Post brought Lil’ Red — NU’s beloved bubble boy — to life. As part of the team of students who don the inflatable plastic suit to entertain Husker fans at Big Red events, Post helped establish Lil’ Red’s popularity and nab the national title for collegiate mascot of the year in 1998.

Despite a knack for the job, he fell into the plastic suit almost by accident. Fascinated by Lil’ Red at first sight, Post couldn’t resist the chance to try on the inflatable costume at mascot auditions in the spring of 1995.

“I never contemplated being Lil’ Red,” he explains. “I just wanted to wear the suit and find out how it worked.”

Winning the job (with three other students) was a complete surprise that brought with it a slew of opportunities, including an annual trip to the Mascot Olympics — a field day for professional and collegiate mascots in Orlando, Fla. There, Post became friends with others in the mascot “subculture” and learned more tricks of the trade. The networking paid off.

On a tip from the Rochester Americans’ Moose (of the American Hockey League) in the fall of 1999, Post sent a resume and audition tape to the Buffalo Bills, who were set to unveil a brand new mascot. Early chats with Bills representatives seemed promising, but then months went by without a word.

Not long after graduating with a broadcasting degree from NU last May, Post got the call he had given up on. His first day as “mascot coordinator” for the Bills was July 31, giving him only five weeks to perfect his persona and sharpen his buffalo shtick.
Billy’s official debut was Sunday, Sept. 3. And the circumstances, says Post, couldn’t have been better. It was a big game — the season opener against the Tennessee Titans, who had crushed the Bills’ Super Bowl dreams with a last-second controversial comeback in last year’s AFC wild card playoff.

“People were really psyched about the game,” he says. And Post wanted to help ensure the contest lived up to the hype. Putting his shiny new broadcasting degree to work, Post collaborated with the Jumbotron producers to create a pre-game skit to rile the crowd.
In it, Tennessee’s raccoon mascot, T-Rac, lounged in a makeshift living room on the field. Ensconced in a recliner, he flipped a button on his remote control, which turned on the stadium’s Jumbotron. T-Rac’s “channel” replayed the heart-breaking lateral pass/touchdown run that ended the Bills’ 1999 season. While T-Rac enjoyed reliving the moment, the crowd booed and hissed.

Seconds later, Billy the Buffalo burst out of the stadium tunnel and onto the field to beat up T-Rac. The WWF-style thrashing fueled 73,800 rabid Bills fans’ fury, and they spurred the Bills to a 16-13 win.

While Post doesn’t take credit for the team’s win that day, he does claim responsibility for building fan spirit.

“They’ve been waiting for a mascot for a long time. I’m the missing link,” he says. “I made them believe they needed it. If Billy wasn’t there and T-Rac came out, it would have been disastrous for the fans.”

So far, feedback on Billy has been overwhelmingly positive. Kids adore him. Men want to slap him a high-five. And female fans like to flirt.

Admits Post, “Girls are really starting to dig Billy.”

Billy has caught the attention of some of the players, as well.

Buffalo’s Sheldon Jackson, who played tight end for the Huskers from 1995-98, once told Post he’d “love” to be Billy for a game. “You can do anything you want in that costume and everybody’s gonna think you’re funny and cute.”

Post’s past as Lil’ Red prepared him well for big-time football and mascot-dom.

“The university is like the NFL in Nebraska — the only difference is (the pro players) make money. But it’s amazing how similar the two organizations are,” he says. “They have the same kind of fan base. Buffalo is a traditional team; the fans aren’t flashy.”

Post is passionate about the importance of mascots in the wide world of sports.

“People want to talk to the players, touch them, get autographs. But the players are busy,” he says. “The mascot’s job is to make the connection between the fans and the team. While the players are at practice, I’m at the grocery store shaking hands. I’m at the children’s hospital meeting kids. I’m at the birthday party making those connections.”

It’s a strange job, to be sure, one that has him seeking advice from old pros like Swoop, the Philadelphia Eagle, and Clutch, the bear for the Houston Rockets. In a weird world where the San Diego Chicken and the Philadelphia Fanatic are revered, Post is amazed be part of the menagerie of professional mascots.

“I never expected to do this as a job,” he says. “I pursued it for a little while, but in all honesty, it didn’t seem like a great career move at the time.”

Yeah, right. Tell that to the Chicken.