Put yourself in the shoes of a college mascot. You're a vital part of the operation. The more you rile up the crowd into a fever pitch, the better your home team does. When they win, you win and experience the joy on the field like everyone else! Then again, it's not always as glamorous as it seems. Some of the uniforms can feel like you're trapped in an oven. Even worse, they aren't machine washable, so keeping them clean and smelling fresh is no easy task. If you've ever wanted to know the truth about life as a college mascot, you're in for a treat!

You won't believe the real story behind mascot fights!

The Costume Smells Terrible

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This first secret probably isn't surprising, but the costume college mascots wear tend to smell. Really bad. It gets hot inside the costume, especially during outdoor games, and it gets extremely hot inside the costume because of it. On any given day, a mascot performer can lose up to 10 pounds of water weight!

There's also no real way to clean the costume, either. Just about the only thing you can do is kill the bacteria living in the suit. One old-school trick mascots still use is to fill a spray bottle with vodka and get to work. A spray bottle with Listerine works. And smells better, too!