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Baby Jay

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One of the official mascots of Kansas Jayhawks

Baby Jay
University	University of Kansas
Conference	Big 12
Description	SmallerJayhawk costume
First seen	1971
Related mascot(s)	Big Jay

Baby Jay is one of the costumemascots of theKansas Jayhawks.^[1] Together,Big Jay and Baby Jay are Jayhawks and are the mascots used by theUniversity of Kansas.^[1] Another mascot namedCentennial Jay was temporarily used in 2012.

Baby Jay was created by student Amy Sue Hurst and "hatched" athalf-time of KU'sHomecoming victory infootball overKansas State University on October 9, 1971, and has served as a mascot ever since.^[2]

History

[edit]

In 1970 Amy Hurst saw a Jayhawkbumper sticker depicting Big Jay andhatchlings, which inspired her to create a new mascot.^[3] After talking to a co-worker who was a Big Jay and getting approval from the KUAlumni Association she created Baby Jay.^[4]^[5]^[6]

The official debut of Baby Jay was October 9, 1971 during the half-time of KU's homecoming game againstin-state rivals Kansas State University. In front of 55,000 fans Big Jay hauled a large egg to the 50-yard line ofMemorial Stadium. A few moments later Baby Jay "hatched" from the artificial egg and has served as an ambassador of KU at events across the country ever since.^[7]

The original costume, which consisted ofchicken wire,fiberglass, and felt, weighed 30 pounds.^[4] The total cost was $53.^[3] In 2003, Amy Hurst, the original Baby Jay, started a fund to help cover the cost of the now $5,000 costume that is replaced every two years.^[8]

Selection process

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The selection process to become Baby Jay is generally during the spring semester. Baby Jay is typically a female student and must be between 4' 11" and 5' 1" tall.^[9] The auditioning process may also include 20 minutes of running, performing an entrance and exit routine, emotion and reaction exercises.^[5]

Duties

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The primary duty of Baby Jay is to be an ambassador of KU, roaming the sidelines at football andbasketball games giving hugs to youngsters.^[10] Baby Jay, being smaller than Big Jay, is often involved in entertaining children. Baby Jay is also present at most major university events such as athletic competitions, Tradition Night, Band Spectacular, and graduation.^[11]^[12]^[13]

Baby Jay is also seen in the community attending weddings, opening theGodzilla film festival,^[14] or evenlobbying legislators to fund higher education.^[15]In return for these services Baby Jay receives a $300 scholarship per semester.^[9]

References

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^^a ^b"The Mascots".KU.edu.University of Kansas. Archived fromthe original on April 4, 2018. RetrievedJanuary 15, 2022.
^"Take the Jayhawk Walk". Archived fromthe original on September 2, 2006. RetrievedMarch 4, 2007.
^^a ^b"Original Baby Jay Now Roosting in Kansas Union". RetrievedMarch 4, 2007.
^^a ^bAndrews, Kim (August 14, 2004)."Fund Helps Support Baby Jay Costume". RetrievedJanuary 13, 2022.
^^a ^b"Baby Jays to Reunite". RetrievedMarch 4, 2007.
^Peterson | @CarlosWritesKU, Carlos (March 7, 2019)."The history of Big Jay and the birth of Baby Jay".The University Daily Kansan. RetrievedOctober 5, 2023.
^"KU Heritage & Traditions". Archived fromthe original on February 22, 2007. RetrievedMarch 4, 2007.
^"KU Baby Jay Mascot Creators Establish Fund". RetrievedMarch 4, 2007.
^^a ^b"Baby Jay FAQs". RetrievedMarch 4, 2007.
^"The Word on the Bird". Archived fromthe original on January 18, 2006. RetrievedMarch 4, 2007.
^"Traditions Night Stirs Spirit For New Jayhawk Students".Archived from the original on February 28, 2007. RetrievedMarch 4, 2007.
^"Band Spectacular!". Archived fromthe original on July 4, 2007. RetrievedMarch 4, 2007.
^"Ending Their KU Years with Plenty of Cheers". RetrievedMarch 4, 2007.
^"Baby Jay to Inflate Godzilla". RetrievedMarch 4, 2007.
^"Hemenway Blasts House Budget Plans". Archived fromthe original on November 8, 2006. RetrievedMarch 4, 2007.

Schools	School of Law School of Business School of Engineering School of Medicine School of Architecture and Design
Locations	Lawrence (primary) Edwards Campus inOverland Park Kansas City, Wichita, and Salina University of Kansas Health System affiliate
People	Notable alumni and faculty
Misc.	Carrie Center for International Political Analysis Coal City Review Kansas Geological Survey Studio 804 University Press of Kansas

Athletics

Teams	Baseball Men's basketball Women's basketball Football Women's soccer Track and field Crew Team
Mascots	Big Jay Baby Jay
Facilities	Allen Fieldhouse David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium Hoglund Ballpark
Misc.	Rock Chalk, Jayhawk Border War Sunflower Showdown

Campus

Student life

Broadcasting

History

History of the University of Kansas

Established: 1865

v t e Kansas Jayhawks football
Venues	McCook Field (1892–1920) David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium (1921–2023, 2025–future) Arrowhead Stadium (2024) Children's Mercy Park (2024)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Kansas State:Sunflower Showdown Missouri:Border War Nebraska
Culture & lore	Big Jay Baby Jay "I'm a Jayhawk" Marching Jayhawks Aggieville riots Timeline of football in Kansas First game in Kansas 1911 Missouri game
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	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 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025

v t e Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball
Venues	Robinson Gymnasium (1907–1927) Hoch Auditorium (1927–1955) Allen Fieldhouse (1955–present)
Rivalries	Kansas State Missouri
Culture & lore	Big Jay Baby Jay Blue blood status Champions Classic "Rock Chalk, Jayhawk" Jayhawkers
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1898–99 1899–1900 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 1999–2000 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 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25 2025–26
Helms and NCAA national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

v t e Kansas Jayhawks women's basketball
Venues	Allen Fieldhouse (1968–present)
Rivalries	Kansas State Missouri
Culture & lore	Big Jay Baby Jay "Rock Chalk, Jayhawk"
People	Head coaches
Seasons	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 1999–2000 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 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25 2025–26

v t e Mascots of theBig 12 Conference
Current mascots	Wilbur and Wilma Wildcat (Arizona) Sparky the Sun Devil (Arizona State) Bruiser and Marigold (Baylor) Cosmo the Cougar (BYU) The Bearcat (Cincinnati) Ralphie the Buffalo /Chip (Colorado) Shasta (Houston) Cy the Cardinal (Iowa State) Big Jay /Baby Jay (Kansas) Willie the Wildcat (Kansas State) Pistol Pete /Bullet (Oklahoma State) Super Frog (TCU) The Masked Rider /Raider Red (Texas Tech) Knightro (UCF) Swoop (Utah) Mountaineer (West Virginia)

Mascots of theBig 12 Conference

Current mascots