LSU criticized after bringing caged live tiger into stadium before defeat to Alabama

(CNN) — No. 15 LSU has been criticized for unveiling a live caged tiger in its stadium for the first time in almost a decade before they were routed 42-13 by No. 11 Alabama in their SEC showdown.

Ahead of “The First Saturday in November,” a live tiger named Omar Bradley, owned by Florida resident Mitchel Kalmanson, was brought out in an enclosed cage with a black curtain over it, before the stadium lights went dark and a spotlight flashed onto the cage as it was unveiled.

The tiger laid down and then paced around his cage, which was attached to a truck, while photographers crowded around it, still keeping their distance. After a few minutes, the cage was slowly driven off the field at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

LSU has a long tradition of bringing caged tigers into the stadium on gamedays but, since 2015, the school has moved away from this and instead keeps its current live tiger mascot named Mike VII in a 15,000-square-foot enclosure on campus.

But Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry pushed for the return of this tradition, much to the frustration of the LSU community, which circulated several petitions against the practice which gathered more than 27,000 signatures between them by Sunday morning.

Footage posted on social media also showed protesters outside the stadium holding placards with slogans including, “Justice for Omar” and “Did Tiger King teach us nothin’.”

For Landry, having a live tiger on the field was all about “tradition,” he told FOX News on Friday.

“This is about from Mike One through Six, we have had a live mascot on the field like many other colleges have before,” he said.

“And, of course, we’re honoring those Mikes, and no one is going to take away the honor and the respect and the love that we have for Mike the Seventh. Our hope is that maybe that we can get this tiger to roar a couple of times and that’ll indicate how many touchdowns we’ll have and it’ll be more than Alabama.”

Landry and Kalmanson, the tiger’s owner, also drew the ire of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which called the act “shameful and out of touch with respect for wild species.”

“LSU rightly ended this idiotic, archaic practice nearly a decade ago after recognizing that it was cruel to subject a sensitive big cat to the noise, lights, and crowds in a football stadium,” PETA Foundation Associate Director of Captive Wildlife Research Klayton Rutherford said in a statement.

“Whether the tiger is confined to campus or shipped in from elsewhere, no reputable facility would subject a tiger to such chaos and stress, and PETA and nearly 50,000 of its supporters have already called on Landry to let up and leave big cats alone – and are now urging LSU to grow a spine and just say no.”

Louisiana Surgeon General Ralph Abraham, who is also a veterinarian, came to the defense of the decision.

“We had numerous discussions and took every step to ensure this was safe for the tiger. I spent several hours with the tiger last night, and you could tell he was comfortable around people and enjoyed the attention,” Abraham said. “He’s in great health, well cared for by his owners, and socially acclimated. As both a veterinarian and medical doctor, I couldn’t think of a better day to literally and figuratively be a tiger.”

CNN has reached out to LSU, Landry and Kalmanson for comment.

On the field, Alabama routed LSU behind quarterback Jalen Milroe’s big day. The 21-year-old junior rushed for 185 yards and four touchdowns including a 72 yarder to put the game away in the fourth quarter.

Despite the deafening crowd on hand, both sides of the ball – offense and defense – took care of business as the Crimson Tide defense forced Tigers quarterback Garrett Nussmeier to throw two interceptions.

With the win, Alabama improves to 7-2 while LSU falls to 6-3.

The Crimson Tide will host Mercer next week while the Tigers head to Gainesville to take on the Florida Gators.

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