30 Best College Football Mascots of All-Time

When it comes to college football mascots, they add an incredible dimension to any game you’re attending. Whenever you go to see a college football game in person, most of you are traveling to watch your favorite team come away with a hard-fought win.

Some undoubtedly go for the tailgating and sense of community and school pride that arises when you’re eating grilled and smoked meats and pouring adult beverages by the case down your throat. And some are there to watch the band and cheerleaders perform.

But even if they aren’t the primary reason for your attendance at football, basketball, or any other campus event, the mascots play a significant role in the program. Mascots can be living animals, humans in animal costumes, or wacky outfits. Sometimes they’re not even animals or people, but rather fictional characters or inanimate objects who are responsible for leading the cheers from the student section in a sold-out stadium.

Mascots pose for pictures with students on graduation day, children grow up wearing mascot-themed apparel and are often the most recognizable part of a university or athletic program. Now is a perfect time to honor the mascots who are the best at what they do for their program. So without further ado, here are the 30 best college football mascots of all-time.

There is no scientific formula for picking and ranking the mascots, it’s all subjective, so feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments section below with your reaction to the list and who should be ranked higher, and who was the biggest snub.

Editor’s Note: Luis Tirado Jr. contributed to an edit of this article

30. Notre Dame Fighting Irish – Leprechaun

Yes, Notre Dame at No 30?! Notre Dame is an iconic brand and college football royalty with the highest winning percentage of all-time. They have Heisman winners, national championships, touchdown Jesus, and those classic gold helmets and I think the Leprechaun gets overshadowed by all that tradition and history.

Leprechaun isn’t an adorable dog or anything intimidating, but it’s classic Notre Dame. It’s all about tradition and that nostalgia of watching this iconic mascot ever since 1960. It’s also a pretty cool fun fact that Leprechaun made the cover of TIME magazine all the way back in November 1941.

For a brief period of time back in the 60s, Irish terrier dogs were also used as mascots before football games. At the end of the day, it’s a great sight to see that the Fighting Irish stuck with the concept of Leprechaun as it just feels perfect for gameday and helping to rally the team when they need it most.