Mississippi State Names New Mascot After Cowboys QB Dak Prescott

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott earned quite the prestigious honor at his alma mater, Mississippi State, on Saturday during the team’s spring game.

While the former Bulldogs quarterback was on the field for halftime, the school formally announced that its English bulldog mascot, Jak, would be retiring and would be replaced by a new dog named Dak.

Not many NFL players can say their alma mater’s mascot is named after them.

“How about it?” Prescott said, via Mississippi State’s athletics website. “They’ve named the mascot after me, so I had to come back and see that. … For the mascot of Mississippi State, of this university, to be named after me, it’s humbling. It’s something I hold very special to me.”

The news of the bulldog’s name was announced nearly a month ago, but Prescott got to meet the dog himself on Saturday during the “passing of the harness” ceremony.

Prescott played for the Bulldogs from 2012–15, recording a 62.8% completion percentage, along with 9,376 passing yards and 70 touchdown passes.