Victor E. III is commemorated with a statue in front of the Lynda and Stewart Resnick Student Union.

On Wednesday, Oct. 25, the Fresno State Alumni Association unveiled a bronze statue of Fresno State’s beloved live mascot, Victor E. III. The statue is a replica of the mascot and is sized at 150%.

In a statement released by the Alumni Association, they described that the now retired mascot “embraces the true Bulldog spirit: determination, strength and courage.”

The bronze statue was sculpted by Jean Carter, a 94-year-old artist and sculptor.

Peter Robertson, director of alumni connections, served as the event coordinator and talked about the conception of the idea of implementing a statue.

“What we wanted to do was have a permanent marker on campus that celebrated our live mascot program, and the tradition of having bulldogs as the mascot for Fresno State,” he said.

Robertson said that the statue serves as a way to recognize campus pride as well as a place that people can come visit and take pictures with.

Carter played a pivotal role in helping the university bring the statue to life by designing and sculpting the statue.

“At first I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to do it, as I am getting older, but I confided in God and he [Robertson] told me I should do it and figure out a way to work it out,” Carter said.

Carter credits Lester Harries, who is also a sculptor, for helping her create the molds and castings for the statue.

Carter said she enjoyed the process of creating the sculpture. She added that she enjoyed meeting individuals from the Alumni Association.

“They would bring the dog [Victor E. III] to me and we would take hundreds of pictures, which was very joyful,” she said.
Carter said she hopes that students will enjoy and honor the statue.

“This is their dog,” she said.

The ceremony itself, which lasted about 10 minutes, was full of gratitude, joy and appreciation.

University President Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval briefly spoke about the live mascot and what Victor E. III means to the university.“Our live mascot represents the loyalty and vitality of what Fresno State is,” he said.

The statue will also be a source of pride for future generations of students.

After his remarks, the bronze statue was unveiled and attendees of the ceremony formed a line to take pictures with the statue.

Jacquelyn Glasener, caretaker of Victor E. III and IV, said she is very excited about the statue going up.

“To be able to have a representation of the live mascot program and the importance of Victor E. Bulldog to this campus is just amazing,” Glasener said.

Glasener wants students to see the statue as a good luck charm.

The statue permanently resides in front of the RSU for students and visitors to see.

In a press release, the university announced the unveiling of the statue.

“The 100 year legacy of live mascots at Fresno State was memorialized with the unveiling of the bronze statue of recently retired live mascot, Victor E. Bulldog III, who served from 2015 to 2023. Out of all 23 campuses in the California State University, as well as the 10 campuses in the University of California, Fresno State has the longest standing live mascot tradition,” the press release stated.