The Nittany Lion mascot took a trip out of town for the weekend to celebrate the opening of the Mascot Hall of Fame.

The Symbol of our Best was on hand for the ribbon-cutting ceremony, which took place with a giant pair of scissors, of course. He and a host of other mascots from collegiate and professional sports gathered in Whiting, Indiana, which is a 30-minute drive from Chicago, for the grand opening.

Penn State’s mascot hung out with Tommy Hawk of the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks and Sluggerrr of the MLB’s Kansas City Royals, two fellow members of the Mascot Hall of Fame inducted in 2017 along with the Nittany Lion, among others. The vast majority of mascots in attendance at the grand opening are based in the midwest, so you have to give the Nittany Lion credit for making the 553-mile trip to celebrate the occasion.

Before this weekend, the Mascot Hall of Fame only existed online. The interactive children’s museum opened for a sneak preview in late 2018, but it’s now open to the public after this weekend’s ceremony. The Nittany Lion has his own plaque in the 25,000-square foot building, which officially immortalizes him as a Hall of Famer.

The Lion’s species is listed as “Cool Cat,” which is definitely an understatement. Calling the mascot tasked with leading Penn State’s football team out of the tunnel “cool” is like saying Beaver Stadium gets “kind of loud” during the White Out game.

Penn State is one of eight universities with Hall of Fame-caliber mascots. The Nittany Lion is joined by Brutus the Buckeye (Ohio State), Bucky the Badger (Wisconsin), and Lil Red (Nebraska) as Big Ten mascots in the hall.