JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Florida State College at Jacksonville’s Manta Rays have won the National Junior College Athletic Association mascot championship.
After seven rounds of online voting, the Manta Rays defeated the Cuyahoga Community College Triceratops the national championship matchup, the college said. The contest has been fueled by support from students, faculty, staff and voters across the Jacksonville community.
The community, FSCJ students, faculty and staff joined forced to vote the Manta Rays to the top position over seven rounds, beginning December 2025 and continuing through the Championship which took place March 5-6.
“To every single person who voted, encouraged others and proudly represented the Manta Rays, thank you. This was truly a collective effort, and it shows what we can accomplish when we move together,” College President John Avendano, Ph.D. said. “This championship is more than a fun victory. It’s another reminder of who we are: the best community college in the nation, now with the best mascot in the nation to match.”
During each round, supporters of each of the 82 NJCAA schools who entered the bracket challenge were invited to cast votes for their favorite mascot via NJCAA’s Instagram Stories and X (Twitter) over a 24-hour matchup. Votes across both social media platforms were totaled to determine the winner of each round.
FSCJ’s Manta Rays mascot was announced during the Commencement Ceremony on May 9, 2024. The costume was introduced on September 17 of that same year, in celebration of World Manta Day, and following a name nomination process and voting window, the College revealed “Rayzor Ray” as the official name for the mascot the following October.