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To celebrate the drive it takes to advance to the 84th annual Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, title sponsor Goodyear unveils life-sized tire sculptures of Penn State University’s mascot, the Nittany Lion, and the University of Memphis’ mascot, Tom the Tiger on Thursday, Dec. 26, 2019. Handcrafted by tire artist Blake McFarland, they will serve as centerpieces for the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic on Dec. 28, 2019, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. (Matt Strasen/AP Images for Goodyear) (PRNewsfoto/The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Comp)
Standing over five feet tall and weighing more than 200 pounds each, Goodyear’s tire art features Penn State University’s mascot, the Nittany Lion, and the University of Memphis’ mascot, Tom the Tiger. Collectively, the tire-based artwork was constructed from more than 260 Goodyear-branded tires, leverages approximately 450 hidden screws and took 400 hours to complete. The 2019 Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic game kicks off on ESPN on Dec. 28, at 11 a.m. CST. (Matt Strasen/AP Images for Goodyear) (PRNewsfoto/The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Comp)
Goodyear introduces a life-sized tire mascot sculpture of the University of Memphis’ Tom the Tiger on Thursday, Dec. 26, 2019, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Made from 145 Goodyear tires and standing over five feet tall, the Tom the Tiger sculpture recognizes the drive and effort of the University of Memphis players for advancing to the 84th annual Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic. The artwork took over 200 man hours to complete. (Matt Strasen/AP Images for Goodyear) (PRNewsfoto/The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Comp)
Goodyear introduces a life-sized tire mascot sculpture of the Penn State University Nittany Lion on Thursday, Dec. 26, 2019, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Standing five feet tall and made from more than 100 Goodyear tires, the Penn State Nittany Lion sculpture took over 200 total hours to complete. The statue recognizes the drive and effort of the Penn State University players and coaches for advancing to the 84th annual Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic. (Matt Strasen/AP Images for Goodyear) (PRNewsfoto/The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Comp)
Goodyear unveils life-sized mascot tire art of the University of Memphis’ Tom the Tiger for the 84th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic on Thursday, Dec. 26, 2019, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The Tom the Tiger statue was constructed from more than145 hand-painted Goodyear tires, 150 hidden screws and 8,000 crown staples. (Matt Strasen/AP Images for Goodyear) (PRNewsfoto/The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Comp)
Goodyear unveils life-sized mascot tire art of the Penn State Nittany Lion for the 84th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic on Thursday, Dec. 26, 2019, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The Nittany Lion statue was constructed from more than 100 hand-painted Goodyear tires, 300 hidden screws and 3,000 crown staples. (Matt Strasen/AP Images for Goodyear) (PRNewsfoto/The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Comp)
When we hear “tire art,” our first thoughts are usually of the abstract doodles left behind by a driver ripping a nasty succession of donuts. NCAA Cotton Bowl Classic title sponsor Goodyear has something else in mind. For four years running, it has commissioned life-size and highly detailed sculptures of the participating teams’ mascots made—perhaps predictably—almost entirely from tires.
This year, Goodyear again tapped artist (and former minor league baseball player, apparently) Blake McFarland to recreate both the Penn State Nittany Lion and the University of Memphis’ Tom, the Tiger.
Between the two sculptures, McFarland utilized 260 tires and 450 well-hidden screws. While both mascots are big cats, the designs are very different. The Nittany Lion’s smooth physique is recreated with large, solid sections of tread that appear almost seamless from a distance. Meanwhile, Tom’s fluffy coat utilizes many layers of smaller, triangular slices.
After the festivities, the two tire sculptures will go to their respective universities as mementos of their trip to this year’s bowl game.
We’ve seen McFarland’s previous work, and he’s not alone in creating life-life tire art. Korean artist Ji Yong-Ho’s awesome shark created entirely from used radials turned heads nearly a decade ago.
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