Keith Burkes posing next to the Brutus costume he wore from 1974-77. Credit: The Lantern Archives
This story has been updated for the BuckeyeBound edition.
When Keith Burkes sprinted into the Block “O” office in 1973 to turn in his hastily written paper moments before the deadline, he was unaware that he was about to reinvent Brutus Buckeye in more ways than one.
At that time, the audition process consisted of writing a paper about why you want the role and then performing a skit in front of the Block “O” panel. Knowing he had no experience for the role of Brutus Buckeye, Burkes did what he had his whole life — improvised.
Burkes decided that he would put on a show in the costume and hoped that his energy would win them over. After stumbling around the audition room in the 35-pound costume and dropping it several times, Burkes was afraid he had blown his shot.
However, after the audition was over, Burkes found out that he would officially be Brutus Buckeye for the 1974 football season — becoming the first Black person to be Brutus. He held on to his role through 1977 when he left Ohio State to pursue a career in air traffic control.
Burkes grew up on the east side of Columbus in a neighborhood he described as “the other side of the railroad tracks.” Despite this, he said he never saw himself as different while growing up, regardless of those around him.
“I’ve always been very fortunate,” Burkes said. “I’m always in the right place at the right time with the people I ended up hanging around with, even when there weren’t many Black people.”
Although there have been other Black Bruti since Burkes, the exact number is unknown.
Brutus’ character is tightly protected, which means that finding out who has performed as Brutus is not always possible, and information on the races of all Bruti could not be found.
Ray Sharp, Ohio State’s head mascot coach, said that by taking the first step in becoming Brutus, Burkes was able to break down a barrier and open up doors for future students. He explained that looking back on Brutus’ history since Burkes’ reign, diversity has been important in selecting Bruti.
“As far as importance to the program, and really to Ohio State, I’m a big believer in the fact that representation matters,” Sharp said. “It’s really hard for someone to commit to something or even try out for something if they’ve never seen someone like them in that position.”
In 1972, Burkes began his first year at Ohio State and got involved in any way he could.
Burkes was vice president of his freshman class for Ohio State’s Undergraduate Student Government, a role that he leveraged to stand up for Black students and teachers.
“We were trying to get Black studies up at Ohio State, and we were doing sit-in and stand-ins and protesting,” Burkes said. “We were trying to get Black professors tenure in school, and we were trying to get a Black Student Union.”
Being more recognized on campus and having a voice was important to Burkes. He said that although Ohio State was not segregated, he often felt pushed aside as a Black student.
Using his passion for equality, he said he took advantage of any opportunity to get involved, regardless of any societal barriers.
Although the Columbus native said he didn’t see his accomplishment of becoming the first Black Brutus as significant at the time, he forged a new trail for those who followed him.
“We’ve had Bruti from all different races, ethnicities and beliefs, and every one of them has brought a new element to the program,” Sharp said.
Burkes took on the role of Brutus and made it his own, a trend that Sharp said has become customary with new Bruti. Burkes added fur to the eyebrows of the costume that he could control from the inside to give the mascot more emotion.
Burkes also expanded Brutus’ appearances from primarily football and basketball games to sporting events of all kinds in addition to community events on campus.
By the end of Burkes’ first football season, he was such a crowd favorite that there was public outcry when word got out that Ohio State would not be sending him to the 1975 Rose Bowl game.
After The Lantern wrote an article on Brutus’ situation, a collection was taken up for him by Ohio State fans. Using the funds from this collection, Burkes was able to attend the game.
Burkes continued expanding Brutus’ public appearances until he stepped down from the role in 1977 when he left Ohio State. Despite leaving the costume behind, he continued representing the mascot.
“I used Brutus as my nickname when I became a flight attendant, so I took Brutus from the state of Ohio and took him all over the world,” Burkes said.
Burkes worked as a flight attendant for more than 30 years before opening his own consultancy service, where he continues to work today.
When looking back on his time as Brutus, Burkes said he was proud of what he was able to accomplish.
“I’m grateful I was able to go through some of those experiences that helped make me the person who I am today,” Burkes said.
Although Burkes received many honors throughout his career, being recognized by Jim Rhodes, the governor of Ohio at the time, as the official state nut was his most significant.
“To me, that was one of the biggest honors I could ever have,” Burkes said. “I became a part of the official welcoming committee for the state of Ohio.”
Burkes now sees the significance in being the first Black person to hold the role of Brutus — but that was not why he did it.
“That never dawned on me that I was the first,” Burkes said. “For me, I was going to be an ambassador for the school at that time, and I was going to try everything that I could.”
Correction: Keith Burkes’ first year at Ohio State was changed from 1973 to 1972. The anecdote about Burkes driving to Pasadena, California, in 1975 was removed. The story was updated Thursday at 10:48 a.m.
