SMITHFIELD, R.I. (AP) — A college campus in Rhode Island is mourning the loss of its bulldog mascot that collapsed and died during a campus festival.

Bryant University President Ron Machtley announced Thursday that the 7-year-old mascot, named Ironclad Tupper I, died peacefully Wednesday night of an apparent stroke.

A posting by Tupper’s caregivers on his Facebook page says he suddenly collapsed in the middle of the school’s Festival of Lights.

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The post by Bryant staffers Tina and Claire Senecal says Tupper “was where he loved being, doing what he loved: on campus being adored.”

Machtley says Tupper was beloved as Bryant’s first official mascot and was a “wonderful symbol of grit and determination” for students.

He says the university plans to immediately begin a search for Tupper’s replacement, and he hopes Tupper II will bring the same sense of pride to the community.