The hiring of Karl Dorrell as the Buffaloes' 27th full-time head football coach has doubtless brought stability to the Colorado on the gridiron, yet questions remain surrounding the status of CU's beloved live mascot, Ralphie.
Of course, Ralphie V, who had led the Buffs onto Folsom Field a total of 65 times, retired last November at the age of 13. She also appeared 10 times in Denver as well as at the 2016 Alamo Bowl in San Antonio, TX.
While the process of identifying and grooming a prospective Ralphie VI is underway, the Ralphie Handler program itself is also going through a transitional period.
On Thursday, Ralphie Program Manager John Graves announced that he'd be stepping away from his position, which he assumed in July, 2015. Graves had previously served as assistant director since 2010 and was a Handler himself from 2007-09.
"After careful consideration and almost 14 years with the Ralphie Live Mascot Program, it is time for me to depart," Graves announced on Twitter. "I cannot express how much I will miss working with the Handlers and caring for the buffalo each day."
Taking his place will be Taylor Stratton, who turns 29 at the end of March. Stratton has served as Graves' assistant coach since 2016 and was a Handler for three seasons from 2010-13 before graduating from CU with a triple major in ecology and evolutionary biology, environmental studies and geography.
Graves will remain with the program for the next month or so to aid Stratton in taking the reins. In the meantime, Graves and his wife, Jennifer, will focus their attention to their "own bison ranch, focusing on bison education and land preservation."
Stratton said she'll officially take over Graves' role on April 1.
“John has done such a fantastic job with the program," Stratton said. "He sort of built this position into what it is and what I’ll be stepping into. I’ve been so lucky to have the opportunity to work with him. A lot of what it is is taking care of the buffalo. Every day I’ll be out there (at the ranch) taking care of Ralphie V and her buffalo companions. Then, I’ll manage and oversee the handlers, making sure that we’re practicing as needed, checking in and making sure they’re seeing trainers and doing well in school."
"Our team (are) fantastic students and fantastic athletes — they make my job very easy. I also manage a lot of the transportation as well as our USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) animal exhibition license.”
Now for the $1,000,000 question: what is the status of Ralphie VI?
Followers of the Ralphie Handlers will know that Ralphie, her ranch, its location — precise information — are extremely well-kept secrets. That said, Stratton did allude to some details on that front.
She and the Handlers are currently working with a candidate Buffalo to become Ralphie VI who is roughly 11 months old.
"It’s the top question on everybody’s mind," Stratton said. "We have actually identified a buffalo who we think would be a good fit. As with all of our buffaloes, the decision on whether or not she’ll become the next Ralphie is going to be completely up to her.”
“She was born last April. We’ve had her for a few months and have been working with her. Training a buffalo definitely takes a significant amount of time. We’re going to just make sure we’re moving at her pace. Her safety and well-being is the top priority.”
On that note, whether Ralphie VI, whether it ends up being the current buffalo Stratton and Co. are working with, will be ready to lead Colorado out onto Folsom Field for the 2020 season remains to be seen.
“All I can really share is that training a buffalo takes a significant amount of time," Stratton said. "We’re really not going to do anything that puts her outside of her comfort zone. We’re going at her pace, so I’m not really able to make any sort of predictions. (But) I can promise you that her safety is always going to be our number one priority as is the safety of the Ralphie Handlers.”
Having learned the ropes first as a Handler and then as an assistant under Graves for the past few years, all signs seem to indicate that Stratton will be more than ready to lead the program into its next chapter.
“I consider John Graves to be completely irreplaceable, as an influence in the program and as a human being," she said. "I’m really flattered and excited that he even took me as an assistant in the first place. He has really gone out of his way the entire time that I’ve worked with him to have an open dialogue and have conversations about what I think should be happening, what he thinks should be happening (in order to) look at different perspectives."
"There’s always going to be a learning curve whenever starting something new but John has done absolutely everything in his power to make sure it’s the easiest learning curve out there.”
