On Sept. 16, 1989 Michigan State fans filled Spartan Stadium just like any other Saturday. Tens of thousands of fans anxiously waited for the football team to run onto the field, but before that happened a new figure was driven out of the tunnel in a convertible.
It was the first official Sparty mascot.
“They drove me out on the field in the pouring rain and the band suddenly came to a stop,” said Dave Russell, who spent his senior year in 1989-90 acting as Michigan State’s first modern Sparty. “When they introduced me, it sent shivers up my spine. I got out of the car and put my foot on the turf and the whole crowd erupted. That’s when I knew that being Sparty was really something special.”…