Who Is The Mascot Of The West Virginia Mountaineers?

Braden Adkins, a junior economics major from Richwood, West Virginia, is the 70th Mountaineer mascot at West Virginia University. He is pursuing an undergraduate degree in Economics and plans to enter the WVU College of Law upon completion. Adkins is inspired by the passion and resilience of the first female Mountaineer Mascot, Natalie Tennant, who became the third female in nine decades to wear the mascot. The Mountaineer mascot, which has been a beloved part of WVU athletic traditions since 1934, is a buckskin-clad, rifle-toting figure.

Sophomore Cade Kincaid, junior Braden Adkins, junior Justin Waybright, and senior Elijah Jones, all West Virginia natives, will compete to be the next Mountaineer mascot during a cheer-off. After a year in the alternate mascot role, Adkins was named the 2024-25 Mountaineer mascot during the men’s basketball game at the university.

The West Virginia Mountaineer is the official mascot of West Virginia University (WVU), selected annually since the 1930s from the university’s student body. The Mountaineer is a symbol of the university’s commitment to its athletic traditions and the passion and resilience of its students.