“Zoosadism” And Football, A Rivalry’s Sick Tale

In 2011, a miserable, disgusting Alabama fan, upset over losing to Auburn in the 2010 “Iron Bowl,” the traditional rivalry game between the two schools, deliberately poisoned 80-year-old “Toomer Corner” oak trees on the Auburn campus. The trees were a rallying point for generations of Auburn fans that would gather around them after victories and drape them in toilet paper.

Harvey Updyke Jr. confessed to the crime when he called into the Paul Finebaum radio show and admitted what he had done. Calling himself, “Al from Dadeville,” he ended the call with “Roll Damn Tide.”

When asked why he did it, Updyke replied, “The weekend after the Iron Bowl, I went to Auburn because I lived 30 miles away, and I poisoned the two Toomer’s trees. I put Spike 80DF in ’em. They’re not dead yet, but they definitely will die.”

Fan is short for “Fanatic,” and sadly some ignorant fools like Updyke, take it to a totally unacceptable level. To destroy beautiful 80-year-old oak trees, over a football game that happened a year earlier is despicable.

On Friday, the day before Oklahoma State and Texas played in the Big 12 Championship game, the body of a mutilated Longhorn steer was found in front of a fraternity house in Stillwater, Oklahoma. KRIV reported that the body of a steer was discovered around 6:30 a.m. in front of the university’s FarmHouse fraternity house with its stomach ripped open and an expletive scrawled into its side.

Oklahoma State University’s posted this on their Twitter/X account after the discovery of the Longhorn carcass:

“OSU is appalled at the disturbing display of animal cruelty that occurred overnight at an off-campus location near a fraternity house. The Stillwater PD is investigating the incident, and the university’s Office of Student Support and Conduct has initiated an investigation.”

“Oklahoma State expects all students to adhere to university codes of conduct, and appropriate action will be taken based on the outcome of the investigation.”

Obviously, many believe that the incident was related to the football game the following day, which doesn’t seem like a stretch since the Texas University mascot is a Longhorn steer.

the FarmHouse fraternity released a statement on their Facebook page , writing:

 “As a chapter founded on principles driven by our agricultural roots, we’re just as sickened and surprised by this incident as our peers on campus. No FarmHouse member was involved in this incident, and we do not condone cruelty or defacing livestock in any manner.”

Kennedy Thomason is a reporter for The O’Colly, a student run newspaper on the Oklahoma State campus, and one of the first people on the scene. In an interview with WFAA, she speculated that it may have been a prank by a rival fraternity.

“I can’t confirm that, but from my own opinion, yeah, that’s what I would say. There are a lot of harmless pranks that are done usually between frats, but I’ve never seen anything of this magnitude.”

The Livestock Conservancy is a nonprofit organization focused on preserving and promoting rare breeds. It noted that the Texas Longhorn has been listed as an endangered species and went on to release a full statement.

“As individuals and as an organization, we are saddened and heartbroken by the death of a Texas Longhorn, found this morning at an off-campus fraternity in Stillwater. Texas Longhorns (CTLR), an endangered breed listed on The Livestock Conservancy’s Conservation Priority List, are a “subset” of Texas Longhorns registered by the Cattleman’s Texas Longhorn Registry. These animals have a different genetic makeup than the much more common “Modern” Texas Longhorns, the breed used, for example, as mascots for the University of Texas. Regardless, animal cruelty is something we take very seriously and work tirelessly to prevent.”

Texas longhorns have an Iconic look. Most longhorn cows and bulls have horns of four feet or less. However, mature steers have an average span of six feet or more and a 15-year-old’s horn span can reach up to nine feet. The thought that a group of ignorant monsters would gut one of these majestic animals and display it the way they did indicates a sickness that goes well beyond being a radical fan.

There is a term known as zoosadism. It describes a person with a history of torturing pets and small animals and is considered one of the signs of certain psychopathologies, including antisocial personality disorder, also known as a psychopathic personality disorder.

In every gang of idiots, there is a leader. Someone that the stupidity/sickness originates with. The mastermind that concocted this scheme needs to be not only imprisoned but observed very carefully for years. This does not fall under the category of a “prank,” these individuals are depraved and need to be made examples of.

There are reports that, “the animal was suffering from a natural disease process.” The full necropsy results will be available soon, providing more information on the time of death, cause of death, and any information about animal cruelty. Even if the animal was sick and dying, it did not eviscerate itself, or carve disgusting messages on its own side.

The Stillwater Police affirmed that the “heinous nature of how the animal carcass was disposed of is unlawful.” They also indicated that members of the Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity have crucial information about the incident. So, we are hopeful that those responsible will soon be arrested.

For the record, the Texas Longhorns defeated Oklahoma State 49-21 to win the Big 12 championship.

“Hook Em Horns.”