Oregon's Duck costume was born in -- gasp! -- Ohio

CINCINNATI (AP) -- It turns out that the birthplace of the Oregon Ducks' mascot is, of all places, Ohio.

A Cincinnati company designed and created the costume worn by the Ducks mascot three decades ago after being contacted by the University of Oregon.

Randy Kent has been in the mascot making business since the 1970s. He says the Duck costume evolved during the design and that he had to make its head bigger.

His company called Stagecraft has created mascots for hundreds of schools across the country including North Carolina, Duke, Louisville, LSU and UConn.

He tells WKRC-TV (http://bit.ly/1B08SJa ) that it's the person inside the costume who really gives life to the mascot.

The Ducks will take on Ohio State's Buckeyes in college football's championship game Monday night.