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Bright LED lights bathe the crowd at Q2 Stadium in a verdeal glow. On the jumbotron, an animated armadillo appears, stalking buildings with a Godzilla-like presence and menacing glare. The cameras then cut to the star of the halftime show, Speed Bump, a real-life nine-legged armadillo who has become Austin FC’s unofficial mascot this season.
Speed Bump’s path to attention goes back to 2020, when he was stranded on a Hill Country farm north of San Antonio. Farmers often consider armadillos a pest because of their tendency to dig for food or create underground burrows. This particular farmer used live wooden traps designed to keep the animal safe until it was removed. While most adult armadillos can be released back into the wild in another location, Speed Bump was just a baby. But the farmer knew who to call: Swift Sparks, one of the best armadillo handlers in Central Texas. After Swift rescued Speed Bump, he spent some time training the young creature how to be comfortable around people, and the pair have been best buds ever since.
Keeping up with armadillos is in Swift’s blood — his father, Sparky, has been wrangling armadillos for more than four decades, and Swift grew up learning how to interact with the famous Texas creatures. “Some of my first jobs as a child were taking care of the animals, feeding them, watering them, cleaning their habitats, and I’ve been doing that since I was a year old or younger,” says Swift. Father and son run a company called The Sparks Agency, which produces armadillo (yes, you read that right) racing events, among other experiences with Texas’ iconic wildlife.
Swift currently cares for four armadillos in a specially constructed habitat in his back yard, where the nocturnal animals sleep 16 to 18 hours each day and spend most of their waking hours digging in the ground for live insects. Swift and his bandmates will perform about a hundred shows at convention centers, corporate events and private parties each year.
In 2023, he received a call from Austin FC, who were interested in having the Speed Bump featured during matches. The partnership was an extension of the local football club’s thematic push this year: their newest kit is called The Armadillo Kitand the team started its season expecting one collaborative event with the founders of Austin’s beloved (but now defunct) live music center Armadillo. Soon, football fans were cheering for the Speed Bump every week during halftime.
It may seem that the armadillo has always been part of Texas lore, but the unusual creature’s popularity owes much to visionaries. Austin artist Jim Franklin, who embraced the animal as a muse in the 1970s. And it wasn’t until 1995 that the nine-banded armadillo became the official small mammal of Texas. If it feels like ‘dillo’ has returned to the zeitgeist lately, Swift thinks she might know why. “The armadillo is kind of a slow-moving, quiet, laid-back hippie animal, and I think it refers to a time that a lot of people long for,” he says. In other words, they personify a beloved bygone era.
Beyond their unexpected appearance and mythical status, the creature has many impressive features, including one that recently caught the attention of Yale University. According to Swift, the prestigious college recently contacted the Sparks Agency in hopes of studying the armadillo’s ability to delay pregnancy. While a normal pregnancy for the animal lasts two to four months, the actual implantation of the egg is delayed by four months or more. And Swift says there have been rare cases where armadillos have given birth more than a year after their last contact with a mate.
Universities taking an interest in these creatures is great news for Swift, who says: “I’ve always wanted people to learn more about them, so they have a greater appreciation for what they might have seen in side of the road.” However, it doesn’t take a Yale background to win the affection of a boy who is used to loving the little things about his four-legged friends. “I like it when they’re swimming and bathing,” he says. “Because it’s clear they’re enjoying themselves.”
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