
Duke's
"Tubby Time"
Bringing out the flavor in mayo. Literally.
The Bowl Game Battleground
Over the last couple years, college bowl games have become a hotbed for big, loud, potentially absurd brand stunts. As a proud sponsor of a bowl game—and a leader in marketing that’s not afraid to get a little silly—Duke’s wanted to make their mark on college football in a way that couldn't be ignored. The question was, how?
Harnessing Mascot Power
We got to brainstorming headline-worthy acts, and ultimately devised a plan: in a grand televised moment, we’d remove the costume of Tubby, the Duke’s mascot originally created by Familiar Creatures years ago. Underneath would be none other than hip-hop’s greatest hype man, FLAVOR FLAV.
To add to the firepower, we decided to reveal Flav right before the mayo dump, AKA, the tradition where the winning coach gets a cooler full of mayo dumped on their head. This would ensure maximum media coverage and a savory interaction between legends.
The Great Flavor Dump of 2025
After rehearsing the stunt with Flav himself just hours prior, the moment had finally come. After accepting his trophy, Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck made his way to the stadium’s northwest tunnel as cameras and the entire Minnesota team crowded around to watch. The coach’s reaction to Flav and the mayo dump that followed were, frankly, nothing short of spectacular. See for yourself:
The Lasting Buzz
The stunt garnered enough hype to make its way onto ESPN’s broadcast, and since then the headlines haven’t stopped coming. Variety, Sports Illustrated, USA Today…the list goes on. As for the next mayo dump? Well, you’ll have to wait and see. Bring goggles though, the mayo splash zone is a thing.
Earned Coverage:

Want Some Mayo with That? A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Duke’s Mayo Bowl Mayonnaise Bath
ABC News

Flavor Flav Dumps Gallons of Mayonnaise on Football Coach’s Head
AllHipHop.com

Flavor of Mayo
AOL.com

Want Some Mayo with That? A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Duke’s Mayo Bowl Mayonnaise Bath
AP News

Mixing Mayonnaise with Ice Cream Does Not Go Well for Matt Barrie
Awful Announcing

Celebrity Mascot Reveal at Duke’s Mayo Bowl
Awful Announcing

Duke’s Mayo Bowl Takes Over Uptown
Axios Charlotte

Flavor Flav Revealed as Duke’s Mayo Bowl Mascot
Bleacher Report

Flavor Flav Plays Duke’s Mayo Bowl Mascot
CBS Sports

WATCH: Rapper Flavor Flav Helps Douse Minnesota Coach PJ Fleck at the Duke’s Mayo Bowl
Charlotte Observer

Flavor Flav Dumps Mayonnaise in Charlotte! Big Surprise in Charlotte
Charlotte Observer

Flavor Flav Makes Surprise Appearance at the 2025 Duke’s Mayo Bowl
Design Rush

Duke’s Mayo Surprises Fans with Celebrity Mascot Reveal at 2025 Duke’s Mayo Bowl
Eastern Progress

The best of 2024 college football bowl season
ESPN

P.J Fleck Receives Mayo Bath from Secret Celebrity After Minnesota’s Mayo Bowl Win
FOX 4 Kansas

Minnesota Beats Virginia Tech 24-10 in Duke’s Mayo Bowl For 8th Straight Bowl Victory
FOX 21

P.J Fleck Receives Mayo Bath from Secret Celebrity After Minnesota’s Mayo Bowl Win
FOX 59

6 disgusting photos of P.J. Fleck getting the Duke's Mayo bath from ... FLAVOR FLAV!
For the Win / USA Today

Flavor Flav was the Duke's Mayo Bowl mascot and Minnesota coach PJ Fleck was amazed
For the Win / USA Today

Watch Flavor Flav Dump Bucket of Mayonnaise on Minnesota Coach
KDHL

Duke’s Mayo Surprises Fans with Celebrity Mascot Reveal at 2025 Duke’s Mayo Bowl
Kilgore News Harold

Flavor Flav dumps mayonnaise in Charlotte! Big surprise at Duke’s Mayo Bowl
MSN

Flavor of Mayo: How Flavor Flav Became Tubby, The Mayonnaise Mascot, at the Duke’s Mayo College Football Game
MSN

Want some mayo with that? A behind-the-scenes look at the Duke’s Mayo Bowl mayonnaise bath
News10

Minnesota’s P.J. Fleck gets mayo bath from surprise guest mascot Flavor Flav in surreal bowl moment
New York Post

P.J Fleck Receives Mayo Bath from Secret Celebrity After Minnesota’s Mayo Bowl Win
Sport Illustrated

The Duke’s Mayo Bowl Is Gross and Weird. That’s Why People Love It.
The New York Times

Flavor Flav revealed as celebrity 'Tubby' mascot at Duke's Mayo Bowl
On 3

WATCH: Rapper Flavor Flav helps douse Minnesota coach PJ Fleck at the Duke's Mayo Bowl
Richmond Times-Dispatch

Matt Barrie, Aaron Murray eat mayo-covered ice cream bars during Duke’s Mayo Bowl
Saturday Down South

ESPN Announcers Tried Unhinged Foods With Mayonnaise During Duke's Mayo Bowl
Sports Illustrated

Duke's Mayo Bowl brings cameo for mayo dump
Sports Business Journal

Duke's Mayo Bowl: A Commentary
The Key Play

Duke’s Mayo Surprises Fans with Celebrity Mascot Reveal at 2025 Duke’s Mayo Bowl
The Malaysian Reserve

ESPN's Matt Barrie spits out ice cream bar dipped in Duke's Mayo
Touchdown Wire / USA Today

Watch: Minnesota Coach P.J Fleck Receives Mayo Bath After Golden Gophers Win Mayo Bowl
USA Today

Flavor of Mayo: How Flavor Flav Became Tubby, the Mayonnaise Mascot, at the Duke’s Mayo College Football Game (EXCLUSIVE)
Variety

Minnesota beats Virginia Tech 24-10 in Duke’s Mayo Bowl for 8th straight bowl victory
WHSV

Who was the celebrity mascot at the Duke's Mayo Bowl?
WHTR

Duke’s Mayo Surprises Fans with Celebrity Mascot Reveal at 2025 Duke’s Mayo Bowl
WRIC

P.J Fleck Receives Mayo Bath from Secret Celebrity After Mayo Bowl Win
WRIC

Flavor Flav was the Duke's Mayo Bowl mascot and Minnesota coach PJ Fleck was amazed
Yahoo! Sports

6 disgusting photos of P.J. Fleck getting the Duke's Mayo bath from ... FLAVOR FLAV!
Yahoo! Sports