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In 1972, on the way to the Liberty Bowl, Cy and his traveling companions were involved in an accident near St. Louis, Missouri. That year’s Cy, Robert “B.J.” John, along with the costume, traveled the rest of the way to Memphis, Tennessee and a Greyhound bus. John had only bruises and scratches—but Cy was another story. His frame was bent and he had been spattered with oil and battery acid.
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When John and Cy arrived at alumni headquarters—the Memphis Sheraton-Peabody Hotel—it was early in the morning of December 18. The game was to be played that evening. Alumni and friends who were on hand went into action. A bowl for donations was placed on the alumni registration table. Max Porter of the Civil Engineering Department and Jim Hopson of the Alumni Association coordinated repairs. The body was removed from the frame and staff of the hotel worked on getting the frame back into shape. Then Porter and Hopson located fabric to match Cy and a Memphis costumer. The costumer, with her assistants, spent the rest of the day reassembling Cy. Except for the costumer, who charged a minimum amount to pay her staff, no one involved charged for any of the work. The money collected at the Sheraton was used for more permanent rejuvenation once Cy got home | |
| Cy arrived at the pre-game rally that evening as Governor Robert Ray was speaking. The fans—who had heard about the accident—went wild, and the applause effectively ended the Governor’s speech. Cy was back to normal, and ready for his appearance on national television. | ||
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Thank you note from Cy to contributors after the Liberty Bowl. 1973.
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