Notre Dame Leprechaun

The Leprechaun
The ND leprechaun
Team	Fighting Irish
University	University of Notre Dame
Description	Irish leprechaun with his fists up
Origin of name	Irish heritage
First seen	1960
Related mascot(s)	e
Website

The Notre Dame leprechaun is the mascot of the Fighting Irish sports club at the University of Notre Dame, USA. He appears at athletic events, most notably at football games. It was designed by sports artist Theodore W. Drake in 1964 for US$50.^[1]

The Leprechaun was featured in the cover of TIME magazine in November 1964.^[2]

Irish tradition

The Fighting Irish logo features a side view of The Leprechaun with his fists up, ready to battle anyone that comes his way. The live version is a student, chosen annually at tryouts, dressed in a cutaway green suit and Irish country hat. The Leprechaun brandishes a shillelagh and aggressively leads cheers and interacts with the crowd, supposedly bringing magical powers and good luck to the Notre Dame team.

The Leprechaun was not always the official mascot of Notre Dame. For years, the team was represented by a series of Irish terrier dogs. The first, named Brick Top Shuan-Rhu, was donated by Charles Otis of Cleveland and presented to football head coach Knute Rockne the weekend of the Notre Dame-Pennsylvania game November 8, 1930. A number of terriers later took the role of the school mascot, which usually took the name Clashmore Mike. The Clashmore Mike mascot last made an appearance on the cover of the 1963 Notre Dame Football Dope Book with coach Hugh Devore and captain Bob Lehmann. In 1960, the Irish cheerleaders added the leprechaun to their cheering lineup. Terry Crawford, dressed in green, would walk back and forth in front of the cheerleading group with the Irish terrier, Mike.

The Leprechaun was named the official mascot in 1965,^[3] when the Leprechaun was registered as an official university mark. However, earlier, in 1961, John Brandt from Elyria, Ohio became the first man to don the uniform and appear with Clashmore Mike at a home game against Oklahoma. Brandt served as the Leprechaun until 1963. The Leprechaun for the 2011-2012 academic year was Mike George.^[4] Senior Bryce Burton was the leprechaun for the 2012 football season.^[5] Senior Johnny Romano was the leprechaun for the 2013 football season. ^[6] Junior John Doran is the leprechaun for the 2014-2015 football and basketball seasons. ^[7]

Campus figure

The Leprechaun can be seen around campus on football game weekends as he acts as the MC of Friday night pep rallies, makes several appearances at tailgates before games, and leads the band as it marches to Notre Dame Stadium. During games, he leads the traditional cheers of the student section, who are named "The Leprechaun Legion."

Along with the cheerleaders, The Leprechaun also travels with the team as the Fighting Irish travel across the nation. He engages in several community service initiatives and makes public appearances.

Tryouts

Tryouts to become The Leprechaun take place over a month long process each spring. Prospect leprechauns are presented with several mental and physical challenges until the field is narrowed down to under ten finalists. During the final round of tryouts, each contestant must lead a 5 minute mock pep rally, answer questions during an interview with a local media personality, respond to a game situation, answer Notre Dame trivia, dance Notre Dame's version of the Irish Jig, and complete 50 pushups. A panel of judges then interviews each candidate in private before making the final decision.

Despite popular belief, there are no strict requirements for becoming the leprechaun. Notre Dame students of any height are eligible to try out regardless of their ability to grow a beard. The overall "look" of candidates does weigh into the decision, however, and more often than not a young man with a chinstrap beard will be chosen.

References

↑ "Ted Drake, 92, Creator of Notre Dame Logo". The New York Times. May 30, 2000.
↑ http://content.time.com/time/covers/0,16641,19641120,00.html
↑ University of Notre Dame Traditions at CSTV.com
↑ Stryker, Sam (May 2, 2011). "ND names leprechaun". The Observer (Notre Dame). Retrieved November 24, 2012.
↑ Curtis, Charles (November 14, 2012). "Mascot Memoirs: Notre Dame leprechaun". ESPN The Magazine. ESPN. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
↑ http://www.abc57.com/news/Notre-Dame-selects-Johnny-Romano-as-leprechaun--202857241.html
↑ http://www.troyrecord.com/sports/20140501/notre-dame-leprechaun-mascot-john-doran-a-troy-native

Notre Dame Fighting Irish football

Venues	Cartier Field (1889–1928) Soldier Field (1929) Notre Dame Stadium (1930–present)

Bowls and rivalries	Bowl games Emerald Isle Classic Army Boston College: Holy War (Frank Leahy Memorial Bowl; Ireland Trophy) Michigan Michigan State (Megaphone Trophy) Navy (Rip Miller Trophy) Northwestern (Shillelagh Trophy 1930–c. 1973) Purdue (Shillelagh Trophy) Stanford (Legends Trophy) USC (Jeweled Shillelagh)

Culture and lore	All-time series results History Band of the Fighting Irish Irish Guard Notre Dame Box Notre Dame Leprechaun "Notre Dame, Our Mother" "Notre Dame Victory March" Play Like a Champion Today Subway Alumni T formation Tall Grass Game 1946 "Game of the Century" 1966 "Game of the Century" Catholics vs. Convicts 1993 "Game of the Century" Bush Push Navy ends the drought Knute Rockne, All American Notre Dame Football on NBC Rudy

People	Head coaches Starting quarterbacks Four Horsemen NFL draftees

Seasons	1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

National championship seasons in bold

Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball

Venues	Notre Dame Fieldhouse (1898–1968) Joyce Center (1968–present)

Rivalries	UCLA

Culture & lore	Notre Dame Leprechaun Crossroads Classic Accomplishments

People	Head coaches

Seasons	1897–98 1898–99 1899–00 1900–01 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16

Helms national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearance in italics

University of Notre Dame

Topics	Alumni History Campus Presidents Congregation of Holy Cross Notre Dame, Indiana

Schools and Colleges	College of Arts and Letters College of Engineering College of Science Law School Mendoza College of Business School of Architecture

Academics	Center for the Study of Religion and Society Environmental Research Center History of Science Society Journal of Legislation Medieval Institute --> Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics & Public Policy Notre Dame OpenCourseWare Driehaus Architecture Prize

Campus buildings	Basilica of the Sacred Heart Cartier Field Compton Family Ice Arena Edmund P. Joyce Center Fire Department Frank Eck Stadium Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes Legends of Notre Dame Log Chapel Main Building Notre Dame Fieldhouse Notre Dame Stadium Snite Museum of Art Stepan Center Theodore Hesburgh Library Washington Hall

Residence Halls	Residence halls Lewis Hall Morrissey Hall O'Neill Hall Old College Sorin Hall St. Edward's Hall Walsh Hall

Athletics	Bengal Bouts Football Jeweled Shillelagh Leprechaun Baseball Men's Basketball Men's Ice Hockey Men's Lacrosse Men's Soccer Rugby Football Club Women's Basketball Women's Soccer UConn–Notre Dame rivalry

Culture and the arts	Band of the Fighting Irish Irish Guard Laetare Medal Molarity comic strip Notre Dame Collegiate Jazz Festival Notre Dame Glee Club "Notre Dame, Our Mother" (Alma mater) Notre Dame Review Notre Dame Symphony Orchestra "Notre Dame Victory March" (Fight song) Scholastic Summer Shakespeare University of Notre Dame Press WNDU-TV WSND-FM

Key people	Fr. Edward Sorin Fr. Theodore Hesbrugh Knute Rockne Fr. John Zahm Fr. Edward Malloy Fr. Julius Nieuwland Dan Devine Frank Leahy Ara Parseghian Lou Holtz

Mascots of the Atlantic Coast Conference

Atlantic Division	Baldwin the Eagle (Boston College) The Tiger (Clemson) Osceola and Renegade (Florida State) Cardinal Bird (Louisville) Mr. & Ms. Wuf (North Carolina State) Leprechaun (Notre Dame) Otto the Orange (Syracuse) Demon Deacon (Wake Forest)

Coastal Division	Blue Devil (Duke) Buzz & Ramblin' Wreck (Georgia Tech) Sebastian the Ibis (Miami) Rameses (North Carolina) Roc the Panther (Pittsburgh) CavMan (Virginia) HokieBird (Virginia Tech)

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Saturday, January 30, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.