24 MARCH 2024 By Mallory Gleich T here are 80,000 screaming fans packed into Notre Dame Stadium, anxious for the moment their team will burst onto the field. The energy is palpable, dulling the chill of a winter afternoon in South Bend, Indiana. The masses will be led by the glowing cheerleaders and the vibrant Notre Dame Leprechaun, who will encourage everyone to match their spirit and energy through a football battle steeped in tradition. The Leprechaun is decked out in his bright shamrock green jacket complete with tails, a gold vest, silk tie, matching Irish Bowler Derby hat, and his shillelagh , an Irish walking stick typically made from a knotted hunk of blackthorn. The Leprechaun is fired up. He’s ready to do push-ups for every touchdown (there will be a lot today). He’s ready to run around and do his Irish jig for what seems like a hundred times. He’s ready to jump into the crowd, who all want to take a selfie with him. He’s enthusiastic, with a genuine smile. They only pick the best to be The Leprechaun, after all. For the past two years, Arcadia’s own Ryan Coury has been that Leprechaun. Ryan’s parents attended Notre Dame and growing up, the whole family “bled gold and blue,” so it was little wonder that Ryan followed in their footsteps. In 2022, the finance major saw some social media posts about mascot tryouts at the school. He was also friends with some people on the cheer team. One day, he joked to those friends that he was going to try out and was met with an overwhelming “Yes, you absolutely should.” The earliest evidence of a leprechaun joining the Notre Dame cheerleading squad was in 1960, when a student named Terry Crawford, dressed in all green, would walk back and forth on the sideline with the team’s Irish terrier mascot. Over 60 years later, the Notre Dame Leprechaun has become a famed – and expected – part of every sports competition within the university – and much more. The first thing Ryan had to do was fill out an application, but thought he should call his mom first to see what she thought of him trying out. “She said, ‘Oh honey, you can’t do a backflip!” Ryan laughed. He went to the tryouts anyway. Once the athletic department decided on the finalists, Ryan and eight other potentials were invited to a two-day, in-person “gauntlet” to whittle down who would be the four official mascots for the upcoming sports seasons at Notre Dame. “In our case, the mascot is more performance-based, rather than just ‘wearing a big head.’ There’s a public speaking aspect, too,” Ryan said. “Those two days were filled with prompts and game day scenarios where they tested how we would react in front of a big crowd.” Ryan and his compatriots were over the moon after they were chosen. Their first order of business was to be fitted for the uniforms – and to learn the Irish jig. A far cry from the stone-faced mascots of the 60s, Ryan’s primary responsibility is to be present at all athletic events – and to fire up the crowds as much as possible, throwing the jig in his routine whenever the school song comes on. “There’s a lot of fan interaction. During the games, I’m running around; I’m a chaotic force,” he said. “I try to get the fans to do the jig with me, which is a lot of fun.” Each of the four mascots divvy up which sport they cover, and it switches each year, depending on schedules. They all cover at least one fall, winter, and spring team. The main requirement is to have fun – and the number one rule ? No two leprechauns can be seen on the field – or in the arena – simultaneously. “There’s no official reason for that,” Ryan said, “other than we wouldn’t want someone to see us and be like, ‘Okay, who’s the actual, real leprechaun?’” Ryan took over the football, basketball, and women’s lacrosse games in 2023-24, and aside from being at the actual games, he was also present at pep rallies, kick-offs and media events. “We do interviews, content creation and recruit for the next set of Leprechauns,” he said. “I’ve also been in costume on TV and in a Nissan commercial, which was a ton of fun.” When he’s not running around in his fitted green ensemble, Ryan can be found operating a camera at various games. While his “sport” is technically cheer- based, he makes sure he’s part of every Notre Dame team in some aspect. Ryan will graduate with a major in finance and minors in real estate and sports media and culture in May 2024. “The coolest part of this is what I get to represent at Notre Dame. Both of my parents went here,” Ryan said. “Being part of that on the other side and sharing that joy and what Notre Dame is about with other people is a really unique experience.” After graduation, he plans to return to Phoenix and immerse himself in the real estate world. Undoubtedly, his experiences as the Fighting Irish Leprechaun will come in handy for many years. THE FACE OF THE FIGHTING IRISH How this Arcadia local became a Leprechaun   Four of the six religious men who founded Notre Dame in 1842 with French priest Edward Sorin were Irish – but the true origin of the slogan didn’t really begin with them. The first use of “Fighting Irish” regarding Notre Dame sports teams may have happened in 1909, when – according to legend – a player’s speech at halftime during a game against Michigan inspired a comeback. He reportedly yelled, “What’s the matter with you guys? You’re all Irish, and you’re not fighting worth a lick.” During the 1920s – the Knute Rockne era – the press often referred to Notre Dame as the Catholics, the Papists or the Dirty Irish because Catholic immigrants largely occupied the school. Rockne hired student press to tell the team’s story, and some used the “Fighting Irish” nickname to characterize his team’s determination. The press turned the insult (which calls to mind drunken brawling) into a triumph. It then became a symbol of pride. In the 1960s, the same thing happened to the leprechaun: It started as a mockery. Now, it’s the team mascot. nd.edu Ryan’s main responsibility as the Notre Dame Leprechaun is to energize the crowd. Chris, Renee, Ryan and Katie Coury.