Old Dominion University's "Big Blue" Voted 2010 Capital One Mascot of the Year

Old Dominion University's "Big Blue" Voted 2010 Capital One Mascot of
the Year

Oregon State's "Benny The Beaver" wins write-in campaign and shot at next year's title

ORLANDO, Fla., Jan 01, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) --

After an intense, season-long competition and more than seven million online and text votes, Old Dominion University mascot "Big Blue" proved that the lion is king, winning the coveted Capital One Mascot of the Year title. He won the popular vote in a finals showdown on www.CapitalOneBowl.com against University of Texas El Paso mascot "Paydirt Pete."

"Big Blue" was officially crowned Mascot of the Year today during the Capital One Bowl in Orlando, besting a talented pool of 15 other Capital One All-America Mascots, bringing glory and $20,000 to Old Dominion University's mascot program.

"We are immensely proud of 'Big Blue' being named the Capital One Mascot of the Year," said Dr. John Broderick, President of Old Dominion University. "His victory not only demonstrates his hard work, but the passion of students, alumni, and supporters of our university. This is a wonderful honor and we are thrilled."

Last summer, 16 oversized fuzzy characters were named to the ninth annual Capital One All-America Mascot Team, and have since been embroiled in a fierce competition to be named 2010 Capital One National Mascot of the Year. Since August 31st, fans have come out in force casting their votes at www.capitalonebowl.com.

The entire 2010 Capital One All-America Mascot Team included:

Joe Bruin of the University of California Los Angeles								Bearcat of the University of Cincinnati

Joe Vandal of the University of Idaho								Mike the Tiger of Louisiana State University

Testudo of the University of Maryland								Sebastian the Ibis of the University of Miami

Goldy Gopher of the University of Minnesota								Monte of the University of Montana

Brutus Buckeye of The Ohio State University								Big Blue of Old Dominion University

Duck of the University of Oregon								Smokey of the University of Tennessee

Paydirt Pete of the University of Texas El Paso								The Birdof the U.S. Air Force Academy

Mr. C of Vanderbilt University								Big Red of Western Kentucky University

The Capital One Mascot Challenge also includes an annual write-in campaign at capitalonebowl.com for school mascots that are not on the All-America team. This year's write-in winner was "Benny the Beaver" from Oregon State University, earning him $1,000 toward OSU's Mascot Program and inclusion on the 2011 Capital One All-America Mascot Team, pending a nomination from his school.

Since 2002, Capital One has helped shine the spotlight on these unsung heroes of the college gridiron. Each participating school's mascot receives $5,000 for its university mascot program, and the Capital One National Mascot of the Year receives an additional $15,000 scholarship to help fund its school's mascot program.

"In the nine years of the program, this has been one of the most memorable and spirited campaigns for the Capital One Mascot of the Year," said Roger Ferguson, VP of Advertising and Sports Sponsorships at Capital One. "We are very proud of all of the mascots who campaigned hard throughout the regular season and congratulate Big Blue on his victory."

"Big Blue" joins a prestigious list of winners, consisting including a ruggedly handsome Bearcat (University of Cincinnati, 2009), a giant bird from the heartland (Iowa State Univ., 2008), a kangaroo from the Midwest (Univ. of Akron, 2007), a cougar from the Northwest (Washington State's Butch T. Cougar, 2006), a working man (Nebraska's Herbie the Husker, 2005), a grizzly bear (Univ. of Montana's Monte, 2002 and 2004) and a gamecock (Univ. of South Carolina's Cocky, 2003).

Fans can find more information about the Capital One National Mascot of the Year competition at www.CapitalOneBowl.com, on Facebook (Facebook.com/MascotChallenge), Twitter (Twitter.com/CapitalOneBowl) or on the Mascot Football Challenge iPhone application.

About Capital One

Capital One Financial Corporation (www.capitalone.com) is a financial holding company whose subsidiaries, which include Capital One, N.A. and Capital One Bank (USA), N.A., had $119.2 billion in deposits and $196.9 billion in total assets outstanding as of September 30, 2010. Headquartered in McLean, Virginia, Capital One offers a broad spectrum of financial products and services to consumers, small businesses and commercial clients. Capital One, N.A. has approximately 1,000 branch locations primarily in New York, New Jersey, Texas, Louisiana, Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. A Fortune 500 company, Capital One trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "COF" and is included in the S&P 100 index.

Capital One, an NCAA corporate champion, began its affiliation with college sports with the sponsorship of the 2001 Capital One Florida Citrus Bowl (now the Capital One Bowl) and ESPN's Capital One Bowl Week. In addition, Capital One sponsors the ABC College Football Halftime Report, all 88 NCAA Championships including the Division I Men's and Women's Basketball Championships, and numerous other collegiate athletics programs.

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SOURCE: Capital One

Capital One
Pam Girardo, 703-720-2351
pam.girardo@capitalone.com