Throwback Thursday #5: Day in the Life of a Leprechaun

Irish Creed throws it back to the days of yore every Thursday 

by giving you a sample from my behind-the-scenes book 

Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun

Throwback #5 comes from Chapter 5: Week 5, in which I recall some of the superstitious "pregame" routine I had developed by our third home game:

UPDATE:  I'm signing copies of "Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun" at Martin's Supermarket (2081 South Bend Ave.) 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. on Friday, Sep. 27 and 8 a.m. - 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sep. 28.

By my third home game as the Gold Leprechaun, I picked up a pretty regular routine, fraught with superstition of course.  If the Fighting Irish won, I had to do everything in the exact same sequence leading up to the next game.  When my classes finished for the week on Thursday afternoon, I prepared for my weekly morale-boosting visit to Club Fever.  "College Night" meant skipping long lines and dancing on stage with the cheerleaders.  After shutting down "The Feve" around 3 a.m. I crashed back in Alumni Hall until noon on Friday when I walked to South Dining Hall for something deliciously greasy to soak up my hangover.  Once I got back to my room, I came up with my pep-rally introduction speeches while carefully crafting my chinstrap beard.  At some point, every Leprechaun developed his own specific style of facial hair.  I liked to keep mine thick enough to seem caricature-like, yet groomed well enough to look sharp.

...

Without fail, my Dawgs in the room next door would commence their "40s at 4" celebration right around the same time I finished getting dressed.  I loved stopping by their parties just as they got into full swing so I could surprise the weekly mix of students, parents, and alums as they enjoyed the finest malt liquor money could buy.  The looks on their faces were priceless, and they often thanked me for getting their weekend off to a lucky start...

Signed & Personalized Books Available Now:

www.LeprechaunBook.com

Throwback Thursday: Golden Swan-Dive Special Edition

Irish Creed throws it back to the days of yore every Thursday 

by giving you a sample from my behind-the-scenes book 

Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun

This week's throwback comes from Chapter 5, in which I recall my encounter with a certain foam phony named Sparty:

SPECIAL EDITION UPDATE:  I'm signing copies of "Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun" in the ND Bookstore from 3-5 p.m. on Friday, Sep. 20 and 9:30-11:30 a.m. on Saturday, Sep. 21 (ND v. MSU Game Day).  

You can also catch me at Mulligan's Bar & Grill (across from the Backer on South Bend Ave.) both nights with more signed books on tap, along with a raffle for my authentic game-worn Leprechaun hat!  I'll be wearing my limited edition "Air Golden" t-shirt, pictured above.

..."Nothing will ease my pain until we ruthlessly beat Sparty into submission next Saturday."  I couldn't remember who I said that to, or what publication it appeared in, but a long talk with my supervisors about political correctness followed shortly after my heartfelt public statement.
...
Every Leprechaun knew that Sparty had always been our only natural enemy.  The extra significance of our mascot rivalry made showing him up on local television that much sweeter.  When WNDU-TV invited us to co-anchor their pre-game sports segment early Saturday morning they must have forgotten that Sparty couldn't speak.  I ended up running the show all by myself, while Sparty literally disappeared in front of the green screen as he attempted in vain to act out the weather like some deranged version of charades.  The best part of my newscasting debut came backstage when I discovered that four separate Michigan State students actually shared their role as Sparty.  Apparently, none of them could handle the rigors of a full game day on their own.
...
... I reserved some of my energy during the Step-Off Parade just in case I happened to find myself in an altercation with my nemesis at some point during the game.  He surprisingly kept his distance throughout the entire pre-game warm-up, so I decided to be a good little Leprechaun and let him go.  Public shaming on the local news was good enough for me.
...
... Golden must have thought our band would catch him when he celebrated the go-ahead score with a swan dive.  Instead, he ended up crushing the scrawny kid holding a french horn in the middle of the Michigan State band while Sparty stood by motionless.  I prayed that play would end up as the winning touchdown so ESPN could eature it on their Top-10 as well as their Not-Top-10.

Signed & Personalized Books Available Now:

www.LeprechaunBook.com

Throwback Thursday: Skunkbear Edition

Irish Creed throws it back to the days of yore every Thursday 

by giving you a sample from Daniel Collins' behind-the-scenes book 

"Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun" 

This week's throwback comes from Chapter 5, in which Collins recalls his first visit to that filthy rotten skunkbear nest they call Ann Arbor:

... I paced back and forth behind Stepan Center as dusk set in Thursday night, hoping at least a couple hundred students would choose our rally over pregaming Club Fever.  They didn’t exactly pack the house, but the thousand or so diehards who did come made up for their classmates’ lack of spirit with war paint, Irish flags, and enough toilet paper to blanket the whole state of Indiana...

... After jumping on stage I held up an old #21 Desmond Howard Michigan jersey.  With the whole crowd booing and throwing toilet paper at me I slowly tore it in half, tossing the tattered pieces to the angry mob below...

... Brian Smith didn’t want to give up the mic.  That was okay.  The crowd loved the story he told about how his dad, a fullback for the Fighting Irish back in the early 1980s, refused to buy him any Skunkbear swag as a kid.  For some reason Brian happened to like their colors when he was young, but his dad sat him down to tell him that no son of his would ever wear a Michigan jersey.  His ten-minute epic tale probably would’ve gone on much longer if it weren’t for the frenzied chant he incited.  With no adults around to scold them, the students felt free enough to belt out “Muck ‘em up! Muck ‘em up! Michigan Sucks!” Except they didn’t say “muck.”

... After a swift three-hour drive we pulled up to a sprawling campus dotted with horrid pee-yellow t-shirts. ... A multitude of middle fingers pointed our way as our police escort brought us up to the Big House.  They only pumped us up even more.  The spirit leftover from our sendoff rally juxtaposed against so much hatred concentrated in one place would surely help our boys in blue and gold flatten the Skunkbears like road kill.

... Every time someone yelled “Go Blue!” in my face I quickly added “…and Gold!”  The usual response I got consisted of nothing more than a blank stare.  To every “Where’s your pot of gold?” or “Where’d you hide your lucky charms?” I responded with “They’re safe back home in South Bend.  Where’d you leave your dignity?”  The puzzled looks continued.  Whenever anyone did anything especially obscene I just blew kisses back at them.  That did the trick by making them all the more irate.  I continued blowing kisses until kickoff.

Signed and Personalized Books available now www.LeprechaunBook.com

Leprechaun Quote Countdown: #2

ONLY TWO MORE DAYS!

To celebrate the release of his book "Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun" IRISH CREED writer / former Fightin' Irish Leprechaun Daniel Colt Collins is releasing 10 exclusive quotes leading up to the season opener in Notre Dame Stadium.

Quote #2 comes from chapter 5, which takes readers behind the scenes of an entire football season from the perspective of that little green guy on the sidelines:

"We walked through the main tunnel into an already packed house, with the student section filling up at asteady pace... My most important pregame task involved assembling the giant steel flagpole covered with fresh flakes of the same 24-karat gold the managers used to paint the football helmets.  I hooked it up to the monster blue and gold flag made from the same material as our football jerseys.  Less than five minutes remained on the pregame countdown clock.  Time to get in position for my big moment with the flag.  Just then, Jerome Bettis and Tim Brown walked by.  I casually said hello to my two favorite NFL players of all time.  Only at Notre Dame...

"Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun: Behind the Face of the Fighting Irish" is now available in the Notre Dame Bookstore and online at www.LeprechaunBook.com.

Every copy bought online comes personally autographed by Daniel Colt Collins.

  

Every online purchase also qualifies as an automatic entry into the Lucky Leprechaun Hat Sweepstakes, awarding one lucky fan with an autographed game-worn Notre Dame Fighting Irish Leprechaun Hat at the conclusion of football season.  

May the Luck of the Irish be with you!

www.LeprechaunBook.com

Leprechaun Quote Countdown: #3

Three.  More.  Days.

To celebrate the release of his book "Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun" IRISH CREED writer / former Fightin' Irish Leprechaun Daniel Colt Collins is releasing 10 exclusive quotes leading up to the season opener in Notre Dame Stadium.

Quote #3 comes from chapter 5, which takes readers behind the scenes of an entire football season from the perspective of that little green guy on the sidelines:

"Dinner at Rocco's that night gave me a chance to carbo-load before my first game.  I signed an 8 x 10 for the owner Warren, making sure to include my ringing endorsement for the best pizza in the Midwest.  After walking over to the midnight drum circle on the steps of the Golden Dome with a posse that would've put the Beastie Boys to shame, I decided to call it a night.  As much as I wanted to raise an Irish toast to our upcoming victory, I had a long day ahead of me in the ninety-degree heat."

"Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun: Behind the Face of the Fighting Irish" is now available in the Notre Dame Bookstore and online at www.LeprechaunBook.com.

Every copy bought online comes personally autographed by Daniel Colt Collins.

  

Every online purchase also qualifies as an automatic entry into the Lucky Leprechaun Hat Sweepstakes, awarding one lucky fan with an autographed game-worn Notre Dame Fighting Irish Leprechaun Hat at the conclusion of football season.  

May the Luck of the Irish be with you!

www.LeprechaunBook.com

Daniel Colt Collins appears on "Sports Lounge with Lisa Varga"

IRISH CREED writer, former Fightin' Irish Leprechaun, and newly published author Daniel Colt Collins recently sat down with Lisa Varga to discuss his new book "Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun"



The up-and-coming internet talk show "Sports Lounge with Lisa Varga" is set to air new webisodes starting in September.  Follow Lisa Varga and Sports Lounge on Twitter to stay updated.

Leprechaun Quote Countdown: #4

4 days away...

To celebrate the release of his book "Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun" IRISH CREED writer / former Fightin' Irish Leprechaun Daniel Colt Collins is releasing 10 exclusive quotes leading up to the season opener in Notre Dame Stadium.

Quote #4 comes from chapter 5, which captures what it feels like to lead a pep-rally on campus during opening weekend at Notre Dame:

"...'If you don't feel it yet, you will tomorrow.  If you don't feel it then, you might need to check in over at our health services building because you don't have a pulse.'  My first attempt at a joke in front of thousands didn't flop.  I liked where this was headed."

"Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun: Behind the Face of the Fighting Irish" is now available in the Notre Dame Bookstore and online at www.LeprechaunBook.com.

Every copy bought online comes personally autographed by Daniel Colt Collins.

  

Every online purchase also qualifies as an automatic entry into the Lucky Leprechaun Hat Sweepstakes, awarding one lucky fan with an autographed game-worn Notre Dame Fighting Irish Leprechaun Hat at the conclusion of football season.  

May the Luck of the Irish be with you!

www.LeprechaunBook.com

Leprechaun Quote Countdown: #5

5 days left until football season for the Fighting Irish...

To celebrate the release of his book "Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun" IRISH CREED writer / former Fightin' Irish Leprechaun Daniel Colt Collins is releasing 10 exclusive quotes leading up to the season opener in Notre Dame Stadium.

Quote #5 comes from chapter 5, which captures the excitement on campus during opening weekend at Notre Dame:

"My voice echoed over the crowd, 'It's good to be back.  I can feel it in the air.  Every time I walk past our stadium... every time I look up at our Golden Dome... and every time I hear our marching band play our fight song... chills run up and down my spine.  It's a feeling I only get here at Notre Dame.  How many of you know just what I'm talkin' about?'  By their response, it sounded like most of them knew exactly what I was talking about."

"Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun: Behind the Face of the Fighting Irish" is now available in the Notre Dame Bookstore and online at www.LeprechaunBook.com.

Every copy bought online comes personally autographed by Daniel Colt Collins.

  

Every online purchase also qualifies as an automatic entry into the Lucky Leprechaun Hat Sweepstakes, awarding one lucky fan with an autographed game-worn Notre Dame Fighting Irish Leprechaun Hat at the conclusion of football season.  

May the Luck of the Irish be with you!

www.LeprechaunBook.com

Leprechaun Quote Countdown: #6

Only 6 days until football season for the Fighting Irish...

To celebrate the release of his book "Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun" IRISH CREED writer / former Fightin' Irish Leprechaun Daniel Colt Collins is releasing 10 exclusive quotes leading up to the season opener in Notre Dame Stadium.

Quote #6 comes from chapter five, which captures the excitement of campus during opening weekend at Notre Dame:

"I let loose during my first pep-rally, 'Notre Daaame!  Make.  Some.  NOISE!  It's officially football season!  I said MAKE SOME NOISE!' Thousands of students wearing their respective dorm colors gathered closer to the stage while chanting "Here come the Irish!"  I let them take control of the crowd..."

"Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun: Behind the Face of the Fighting Irish" is now available in the Notre Dame Bookstore and online at www.LeprechaunBook.com.

Every copy bought online comes personally autographed by Daniel Colt Collins.

  

Every online purchase also qualifies as an automatic entry into the Lucky Leprechaun Hat Sweepstakes, awarding one lucky fan with an autographed game-worn Notre Dame Fighting Irish Leprechaun Hat at the conclusion of football season.  

May the Luck of the Irish be with you!

www.LeprechaunBook.com

Leprechaun Quote Countdown: Lucky #7

Just one week until football season for the Fighting Irish...

To celebrate the release of his book "Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun" IRISH CREED writer / former Fightin' Irish Leprechaun Daniel Colt Collins is releasing 10 exclusive quotes leading up to the season opener in Notre Dame Stadium.

Quote #7 comes from Chapter 5, which takes readers behind the scenes of an entire football season from the perspective of that little green guy on the sidelines:

"I noticed a peculiar energy building on campus all week.  It reminded me of something I felt before, but I couldn't quite place it.  Then, while ceremoniously carving my initials into the lucky shillelagh like every Leprechaun before me, I suddenly knew what it was... The students, players, coaches, and fans were finally starting to believe again.  I sensed it.  Notre Dame was back."

"Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun: Behind the Face of the Fighting Irish" is now available in the Notre Dame Bookstore and online at www.LeprechaunBook.com.

Every copy bought online comes personally autographed by Daniel Colt Collins.

  

Every online purchase also qualifies as an automatic entry into the Lucky Leprechaun Hat Sweepstakes, awarding one lucky fan with an autographed game-worn Notre Dame Fighting Irish Leprechaun Hat at the conclusion of football season.  

May the Luck of the Irish be with you!

www.LeprechaunBook.com

Leprechaun Quote Countdown: #8

Only 8 days left until football season for the Fighting Irish...

To celebrate the release of his book "Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun" IRISH CREED writer / former Fightin' Irish Leprechaun Daniel Colt Collins is releasing 10 exclusive quotes leading up to the season opener in Notre Dame Stadium.

Quote #8 comes from the book's prelude, which captures the moments leading up to the season-opening kickoff inside Notre Dame Stadium:

"...the familiar voice of Mike Collins blared over the loudspeakers: 'Heeeeeere come the Irish!'  Mike wasn't lying.  The Irish were coming right at me.  A flash of gold hit my eye as they burst out of the tunnel into the sunlight, and I was off to the races..."

"Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun: Behind the Face of the Fighting Irish" is now available in the Notre Dame Bookstore and online at www.LeprechaunBook.com.

Every copy bought online comes personally autographed by Daniel Colt Collins.

  

Every online purchase also qualifies as an automatic entry into the Lucky Leprechaun Hat Sweepstakes, awarding one lucky fan with an autographed game-worn Notre Dame Fighting Irish Leprechaun Hat at the conclusion of football season.  

May the Luck of the Irish be with you!

www.LeprechaunBook.com

Leprechaun Quote Countdown: #9

Only 9 days remain until football season for the Fighting Irish...

To celebrate the release of his book "Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun" IRISH CREED writer / former Fightin' Irish Leprechaun Daniel Colt Collins is releasing 10 exclusive quotes leading up to the season opener in Notre Dame Stadium.

Quote #9 comes from the book's prelude, which captures the moments leading up to the season-opening kickoff inside Notre Dame Stadium:

"Over 81,000 voices hushed in the ninety-degree heat, waiting to erupt on my cue... I could feel the weight of over 162,000 eyes bearing down on me... Only one thought filled my mind..."

"Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun: Behind the Face of the Fighting Irish" is now available in the Notre Dame Bookstore and online at www.LeprechaunBook.com.

Every copy bought online comes personally autographed by Daniel Colt Collins.

  

Every online purchase also qualifies as an automatic entry into the Lucky Leprechaun Hat Sweepstakes, awarding one lucky fan with an autographed game-worn Notre Dame Fighting Irish Leprechaun Hat at the conclusion of football season.  

May the Luck of the Irish be with you!

www.LeprechaunBook.com

Leprechaun Quote Countdown: #10

Only 10 days separate us from the 2013 edition of Notre Dame Football...

It's a familiar feeling for every Fighting Irish fan.
The hype seems almost palpable during this exciting time of year, and IRISH CREED writer / former Fightin' Irish Leprechaun Daniel Colt Collins is proud to announce the release of his brand new behind-the-scenes tell-all book:

In this autobiographical account, Daniel Colt Collins presents a never-before-seen insider's look into life at Notre Dame from his own first-hand perspective as he shares unforgettable stories about becoming the face of the Fighting Irish.

To celebrate this momentous occasion, IRISH CREED will release 10 quotes from "Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun" leading up to the season opener in Notre Dame Stadium.

Quote #10 comes from the book's prelude, which captures what it feels like to take that first charge out of the tunnel onto the field in front of 81,000 Fighting Irish fans.

“Notre Dame Stadium filled to the brim with an electric charge…

I triumphantly waved the Blue and Gold to our sellout crowd and millions more watching on TV…  An inescapable smile spread across my face while I paused to take it all in.  A wildly unlikely journey had brought me to this unforgettable moment in my life, and an even more unbelievable story was about to unfold…”

"Life as the Notre Dame Leprechaun: Behind the Face of the Fighting Irish" is now available in the Notre Dame Bookstore and online at www.LeprechaunBook.com.

Every copy bought online comes personally autographed by Daniel Colt Collins.

Every online purchase also qualifies as an automatic entry into the Lucky Leprechaun Hat Sweepstakes, awarding one lucky fan with an autographed game-worn Notre Dame Fighting Irish Leprechaun Hat at the conclusion of football season.

May the Luck of the Irish be with you!

www.LeprechaunBook.com