After a two-week election, students, staff, faculty and a random sample of alumni have selected "Surge" as the next Georgia Southwestern mascot.

Ballots were cast online through www.gswcanes.com. The ticket consisted of six different concepts, including: a character that resembled Poseidon, mythological god of the sea; a character modeled after Thor, the Norse god of thunder; a lion to be named ENAC II after a previous GSW mascot that was a blue lion; and a pair of furry figures geared to be kid-friendly - resembling something off the television show Sesame Street.  

Over 850 votes were submitted.

The name Surge comes from the term "storm surge," which the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration states as "water that is pushed toward the shore by the force of the winds swirling around the storm."

A final sketch is complete and the production process will begin next week.

While production can take up to 12 weeks, the hope is to have Surge in Americus for the men's and women's basketball home openers on November 16.