Dons New Mascot
The University of San Francisco Dons will introduce a new mascot for athletic events, games, and campus activities, beginning in spring 2027.
We’re excited to share that USF’s new mascot is a wolf. USF’s Jesuit roots provide the inspiration for the new mascot: a wolf figures prominently in the story of St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuits. Wolves are an important part of USF’s story, too. At the center of campus, a large bronze sculpture of Ignatius’ legendary wolves, Los Lobos de Loyola, stands in front of Gleeson Library and is a popular location for student photos. It is also the central spot for the Night Howl, an official New Student Orientation activity every August.
The USF Dons, with a wolf as a mascot, honors the university’s Jesuit heritage, and the nickname, the Dons, is an expression of the university's history, culture, and mission since 1932.
“Ignatius was a Spanish nobleman or ‘Don’ before he pursued religious life,” said Kevin F. Burke, S.J., USF’s vice president of mission and Ignatian imagination, who is overseeing the transition. “His family, known for their hospitality, provided food for others and even for the wild wolves in their Spanish territory. The Loyola coat of arms includes two wolves (los lobos) standing on their hind legs and resting their paws on either side of a hanging cooking pot over a fire (olla).”
The Nickname "Dons" Will Remain
Going forward, “Dons” will continue to be used, but the physical mascot is being retired.
Why?
With new leadership at USF and in Dons Athletics, we believe the time is right to revitalize our image and embrace a new mascot, one that is known for its intelligence, endurance, and ability to work cooperatively in its pack. At the same time, we will proudly remain the University of San Francisco Dons.
What Will Change?
USF will remain the Dons, but the physical mascot is changing. USF will phase out references to Don Francisco across university communications, materials, and spaces. This includes language that personifies the character and visual elements associated with the mascot.
FAQs
A wolf! USF’s Jesuit roots provide the inspiration for the new mascot, as wolves figure prominently in the story of St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuits. Wolves are an important part of USF’s story, too. At the center of campus, a large bronze sculpture of Ignatius’ legendary wolves, Los Lobos de Loyola, stands in front of Gleeson Library and is a popular location for student photos. It is also the central spot for the Night Howl, an official New Student Orientation activity every August.
Yes, we will continue to be the University of San Francisco Dons or the USF Dons.
Kevin F. Burke, S.J., USF’s vice president of mission and Ignatian imagination, is overseeing the adoption of USF’s new mascot. Fr. Burke worked with members of USF’s community, from athletics, alumni engagement, university ministry, and leadership, to develop ideas for a new mascot. The group chose the wolf.
The USF Dons, with a wolf as a mascot, honors the university’s Jesuit heritage. “Ignatius was a Spanish nobleman or ‘Don’ before he pursued religious life,” said Fr. Burke. “His family, known for their hospitality, provided food for others and even for the wild wolves in their Spanish territory. The Loyola coat of arms includes two wolves (los lobos) standing on their hind legs and resting their paws on either side of a hanging cooking pot over a fire (olla).”
As we consider mascot designs and costumes, we will engage the community in helping us choose how the mascot will look. The mascot will appear at athletic events, games, and campus activities.
We expect to introduce the USF Dons wolf mascot in spring 2027.
The character of Don Francisco is being retired. The nickname "Dons" will remain as USF's nickname.
In 2022, the Senate of the Associated Students of the University of San Francisco (ASUSF) passed a resolution to retire the Don Francisco mascot. A Dons Mascot Working Group was created, including alumni, students, faculty, librarians, and staff. They consulted the university community and found there was substantial support for the name “Dons,” but not for the Don Francisco mascot character. The recommendation to university leadership was to keep the “Dons” nickname and to find a new mascot character for USF.
“The Dons,” which dates back to 1932, will continue as USF’s nickname. Historically, “Don” was a Spanish title given to a noble person. It is an abbreviation of the phrase De Origen Noble, which means “of noble origin.” The Dons were Spanish noblemen, and St. Ignatius, the founder of the Jesuits, was himself a Spanish nobleman before he pursued a religious life. In Spanish culture, using Don before one’s name has been a sign of affection and respect.
We felt it was an appropriate time to act on the recommendation from the process that began in 2022 and embrace a new mascot connected to USF’s Jesuit roots. At the same time, we will proudly remain the University of San Francisco Dons. The Dons Mascot Working Group included faculty and staff, alumni, and students.
The Don Francisco mascot character is no longer used at USF Athletics events. The name “USF Dons” will continue to be used on uniforms and in marketing materials. Once there is a design for the new wolf mascot, it can be included in Athletics materials.
USF reached out to other universities, including all of the colleges and universities that are members of the Associated Jesuit Colleges and Universities, and we found a wide variety of efforts by other institutions — some were driven by marketing consultants and others were directed by broad community-wide participation, like USF. There is no one way to do this.
Faculty, staff, alumni, and students will be involved in the launch of the wolf as the new mascot of the USF Dons. We will share more information soon about our new mascot, and we appreciate your support of USF and the Dons.
We are currently planning the updates for the university website and the USF Athletics website. Stay tuned for more information.