To celebrate the 75th birthday of the University of Iowa's mascot, Herky, we wanted to increase school spirit through a unique profile on a subject who only communicates through hand gestures and hijinks. We collaborated with Spirit Squad Director Gregg Niemiec, who connected us with multiple "friends" of Herky over the years. Their stories provided a wealth of original content and fueled our imaginations. What would Herky do to celebrate his 75th birthday? We got playful and asked our audience to submit their version of Herky’s origin story. Meanwhile, an unprecedented multi-hour photoshoot was in the works to create iconic images that resonated with our audience. These visuals and b-roll helped us create a series of social media posts and a teaser reel to spark anticipation and nostalgia. When we shared the article on Facebook, we saw 6,174 engagements, including 433 shares and 192 comments wishing Herky a happy birthday.
From the Judges
Herky's cheerfulness was effectively portrayed in the writing's tone. The piece describes the excellent work Herky has been doing for years. This is a really interesting quick read with a lot of fun facts. The judges appreciated the timeline of Herky and it did well on social media too.
