It was news to me to find out that June 17 isn’t just the anniversary of the O.J. Simpson police chase in 1994 but is also National Mascot Day. I can only hope that you celebrated accordingly and responsibly.
In honor of the day, it’s as good of time as any to look back at the Notre Dame leprechaun mascot over the years. The leprechaun became an official part of the Notre Dame cheer squad in 1960 and has been a mainstay on gameday ever since.
Enjoy some of the best photos of the Notre Dame leprechaun below to conclude your National Mascot Day celebrations!
Jaguars’ Jaxson de Ville earns ‘Mascot Hall of Fame’ bid
Make that two Hall of Fame Jaguars.
Jacksonville earned its first Pro Football Hall of Fame bid when former Jaguars offensive tackle Tony Boselli was inducted in the class of 2022.
It’s only fitting that Boselli informed Jaguars mascot Jaxson de Ville on Thursday that he’d been named to the “Mascot Hall of Fame.” Jaxson is joined in the class of 2024 by Lou Seal of the San Francisco Giants (MLB), Monte of the Montana Grizzlies (NCAA) and Orbit of the Houston Astros (MLB).
The “Mascot Hall of Fame” is a children’s museum focused on S.T.E.A.M. (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) education, based in Whiting, Indiana. The museum announced that 90,000 votes were cast to determine the Hall of Fame’s class of 2024, with four inductees selected from 19 finalists.
De Ville has served as Jacksonville’s mascot since the 1996 season, gaining fame for his ziplining and bungee jumping into EverBank Stadium, among other crowd-energizing antics, and notoriety for antagonizing opposing teams, their mascots and their fans.
“No mascot is more worthy of Hall of Fame selection than Jaxson de Ville,” said Christy Stechman-Zynda, director of entertainment groups for the Jacksonville Jaguars, when de Ville was named a finalist in May. “His commitment to the team and the Northeast Florida community is unparalleled.”
The Kansas City Chiefs are still celebrating their victory in Super Bowl LVIII, but all eyes are looking forward to the upcoming Super Bowl LIX — which will be played at the Caesars Superdome, home of the New Orleans Saints. The 2025 Super Bowl figures to be the championship game’s biggest event yet, and FOX Sports is already building anticipation for their keystone broadcast.
FOX Sports released a teaser trailer for Super Bowl LIX starring their mascot “Cleatus the Robot,” who found himself wandering the desert after Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas. The hitchhiking robot was picked up by revelers in a party bus, complete with a brass band, Mardi Gras beads, and a pet snake, before they hit the road for “New Orleans or Bust!”
Once it hosts Super Bowl LIX, New Orleans will tie Miami for being the cities to have hosted the most NFL title games (11). It’s going to be the first Super Bowl that New Orleans has hosted since 2013, but another successful event could lead to more championship games in the future. Maybe the Saints can play in one of them themselves.
In a not-so-subtle tweet, it was pointed out that Michigan does not have wolverines living in the wild.
Hours before Monday’s CFP National Championship game between the Washington Huskies and Michigan Wolverines, some trash talking focused on nicknames.
“Good morning from the only state playing football today that actually has wolverines,” the Washington State Department of Natural Resources ribbed on X.
Despite the University of Michigan’s nickname, the state does not have an established wolverine population. The last known sighting of a wild wolverine in Michigan occurred in 2004. (Origins of Michigan being labeled the Wolverine State date to the 1800s.)
Good morning from the only state playing football today that actually has wolverines.
— Washington State Dept. of Natural Resources (@waDNR) January 8, 2024
Aside from being elusive, wolverines are mighty critters known to prey on full-grown deer and chase bears and wolves from their territories.
They are the largest terrestrial members of the weasel family, growing to about 40 pounds. Their nicknames include Skunk Bear, Mountain Devil, and Evil Spirit.
#Chiefs mascot K.C. Wolf had a ball scaring fans to get in the Halloween spirit.
The Kansas City Chiefs are known for having one of the zaniest mascots in the NFL, and on a week of a highly anticipated international road trip, the team’s beloved canid had some fun scaring fans to celebrate Halloween.
In a video posted to the Chiefs’ official Twitter account, K.C. Wolf can be seen having the time of his life injecting a little spookiness into his surroundings.
While the Halloween holiday may be over, the levity provided by this one-of-a-kind canine is sure to stick with fans for months to come. The patience necessary to execute this outstanding gag is an underrated part of K.C. Wolf’s game, and his googly eyes really hammer home the bizarre nature of any interaction he has with the general public.
Expect the Æðelwulf (noble wolf) to be a fixture of the holiday season as the Chiefs prepare for the most challenging part of their 2023 schedule, starting with their Week 9 matchup against the Miami Dolphins in Germany on Sunday.
Blue, the Colts mascot, was out in downtown Indianapolis taking his lumps Tuesday after losing a bet.
Indianapolis Colts mascot Blue took his lumps Tuesday, two days after the Jacksonville Jaguars handed his team a 37-20 loss.
On Friday of last week, Blue bet 1010XL radio host Joe Cowart that Indianapolis would beat Jacksonville. If he won, the mascot would do the outro for every one of Cowart’s shows next week, which undoubtedly would’ve been full of Colts love. If the Jaguars won, Blue would wear a sandwich board that reads “Jaxson is the GOAT” and “DUUUVAL.”
Alas, Blue was out in downtown Indianapolis suffering through the shame:
On Sunday, the Jaguars completed a season sweep of Indianapolis and made it nine straight home victories — including one in London — against the Colts.
Jaguars mascot Jaxson de Ville is no stranger to being on the wrong side of bets, though. A decade ago, Jaxson made the ill-advised decision to bet that the Jaguars would beat the Colts in a 2013 matchup. After a 37-3 blowout loss, the Jaguars’ mascot was shot with 40 paintballs.
K.C. Wolf practiced his dance moves at First Fridays in Kansas City ahead of the #Chiefs’ regular season kickoff.
The Kansas City Chiefs made an appearance at First Fridays yesterday to mingle with fans ahead of their season opener against the Detroit Lions on September 7.
Though First Fridays is known for its raucous atmosphere in Kansas City’s Crossroads district, nothing could have prepared those in attendance for the dance moves that Chiefs mascot K.C. Wolf broke out when he arrived at the monthly gathering downtown.
The rotund canine could be seen getting down with fans and high-fiving attendees with a gusto usually reserved for touchdown celebrations at Arrowhead Stadium.
K.C. Wolf is one of the Chiefs’ best ambassadors and knows how to liven up any party with his quirky dances and over-the-top antics.
While this gathering in the heart of Kansas City may not have been his natural habitat, the beloved canid is sure to be extra juiced up for the Chiefs’ regular season kickoff next week and may incorporate some of these moves into his act against the Lions.
Much was made in the last week about Notre Dame’s nickname and mascot as the leprechaun was named one of the most offensive mascots in college sports by a poll that has since been taken down.
Former Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz has since weighed in and he strongly disagrees with the leprechaun being offensive.
“The students at Notre Dame, when I coached there for 11 years, they’re proud to be a part of the Fighting Irish. The Irish have a great tradition, etc. But why does everybody have to say what you want to do? There’s a lot of things I don’t like that I tolerate. That’s part of life. That’s part of the United States. It’s part of the freedom of speech,” Holtz said.
“But people, they get offended and try to bully and try to shut you up. But I think it’s time for the silent majority to stand up and say no more. This is what we believe and this is what is going to go on. This is our country and this is the way it was founded.”
Holtz has never been afraid to speak his beliefs and this is again no expcetion for the coach that won 100 games at Notre Dame from 1986 to 1996 including the 1988 national championship, the most recent for the Fighting Irish.
The Commanders used Major Tuddy to reveal 2023 schedule.
The next big day on the NFL calendar after the NFL draft is now schedule release day. While some fans don’t care, others do, and teams are following suit to take advantage of those who do care.
The new annual craze is NFL teams using social media creatively to announce the new schedule. One of the best in recent years has been the Denver Broncos, who used legendary quarterback Peyton Manning and the team’s mascot as a part of the schedule release videos. Manning and the Broncos did it again this year.
The Washington Commanders, with their new mascot, Major Tuddy — and head coach Ron Rivera — also got creative with their schedule release.
Got 
: Catch the full 2024 
