Fitting the bill: An inside look at what it takes to be St. John’s mascot

Several students tried out to join the Johnny Thunderbird team last Thursday.  Eagle photo by Ryan Schwach

By Ryan Schwach

On an uncharacteristically muggy night this fall, it’s not the court at Carnesecca Arena on St. John’s University's campus in Jamaica playing host to a test of endurance, athleticism and wit. Instead, it’s the arena’s lobby.

In the shadow of a statue of the arena’s namesake, legendary basketball coach Lou Carnesecca, cones were set up, toy water guns were stacked in a pile, AC/DC was blaring and six large red and white bird-shaped helmets were sitting on a foldout table.

The stiff competition to find who would serve on the school’s small and secretive mascot team was about to begin.

In mid-September, well before the basketball season tipped off, 10 St. John’s students auditioned for the privilege of being Johnny Thunderbird, St. John’s bright red, and often eccentric, avian mascot.

Johnny, the mascot for the St. John’s Red Storm for the past 16 years, has grown in popularity and notoriety in recent years as the school’s men’s basketball team soared to heights not reached by the program in a generation last season.

The bird has also garnered attention for its on-court antics and big personality.

“Mascots make or break a lot of things, people don't realize that,” said Rob Benigno, the volunteer coach of the mascot team who himself served as a previous version of St. John’s mascot.

“If you have an entertaining mascot that can create a story on a moment's notice, you're going to talk about it later, and that creates the memory,” he said.

This athletic season is a big one for the school and students suiting up as Johnny.

Following the men’s basketball team’s BIG EAST championship and tournament run last year, more home games this year will be played at Madison Square Garden, which is three times larger than Carnesecca in terms of seating capacity.

It's those games where Johnny earns his bird seed, but will only account for a fraction of the over 200 on campus and sporting events the mascot will have to be present for in the next few months.

“That's why we need more mascots, we're getting busier and busier,” Benigno said.

Prior to the tryouts, there were eight Johnny Thunderbirds who split the various events.

They attend regular practices, working on their feathered moves and developing skits for gametime.

“We started getting the mascots more involved, more activities, more crowd interaction, and now they're doing more antics and acrobatics and skits,” Benigno said. “We're progressing constantly.”

The Eagle, sworn into secrecy by its winged brethren, was asked not to publish the names of current mascot team members, or print photos of their faces, because their actual identity among the SJU student body is a guarded secret.

Instead, the Eagle promised to identify the two senior co-captains interviewed for this story by their code names, which are used when they are in costume.

“Johnny has become a very popular figure,” said one senior, known as Fruitloop. “People want Johnny everywhere, and that's awesome.”

“I could stand on a table at Applebee's and not get kicked out, because it's hilarious and it's awesome,” he added.

Dizzy, another senior who performs at many of SJU’s games at MSG, said Johnny is the “cool guy on campus.”

“He knows he's that guy,” she said. “Everyone wants to be his friend.”

During the tryout, the crew is paying close attention to the ten students hoping to join the flock.

“I’m looking for how they use their bodies and how they improvise,” said Benigno. “I’m looking to see if they were enjoying what they were doing.”

“You have to be willing to go full speed,” he added.

Among the students vying for the job are first year students Declan and Shanel. The Eagle was allowed to use the first names of the auditioners.

“I love the bird,” said Declan. “I see him around, and I'm like, God, that just looks so cool’.”

Shanel agreed.

For some, the big head of Johnny Thunderbird required adjustments.  Eagle photo by Ryan Schwach

“He's a guy who's just 100 percent in it, there's no stop sign, he's going to see a green light the whole time,” she said.

Both were excited for the opportunity, but weren’t sure what to expect, seeing cones, hula hoops and waterguns strewn on the floor at the feet of a statue of Coach Carnesseca.

“It looks like a camp to me, and I'm ready for it, honestly,” Shanel said.

The duo, numbered one and two for the remainder of the tryouts, were paired together to perform a 30-second skit – the average length of a timeout in basketball – in a Johnny Thunderbird head, to show how they think on their feet and craft a story.

“You have 30 seconds to make your presence known,” said Fruitloop. “You have 30 seconds because if St. John's is down by 15 points and there's about five minutes left in the second quarter, our team, the Johnny's, they're not happy. So as a mascot, I have seen it, and I have done it, you have the ability to change the course of the game.”

Shanel and Declan put together a skit where they marched in formation, Declan carrying a large St. John’s flag and holding a salute, only to walk into Shanel’s back, starting a conflict of pushing and shoving.

Benigno and most of the current team members nodded approvingly.

Now a senior, Dizzy rose through the team ranks since her own tryout, and now performs in front of thousands at MSG.

“My first MSG game was really nerve wracking,” she said. “But after the first one, it's so fun. You really feed off of everyone's energy. Everyone's just cheering you on, and it's like you're a big celebrity.”

Fruitloop remembers his first game, a home matchup at Carnesecca between SJU’s men’s basketball and Sacred Heart. He was told he’d be performing as Johnny 10 minutes before tip off.

“Thankfully, they trusted me,” he said.

Following the skits, auditioners had to run into the main court at Carnesecca and stand underneath the score board, jumping around and mimicking how they would rile up a crowd.

Part of the key for Benigno is keeping a consistency amongst the many diverse students who embody Johnny Thunderbird.

“There are certain character traits that Johnny must follow amongst all the Johnny mascots,” he said.

Volunteer coach of the Johnny Thunderbird team, SJU alum and former mascot, Rob Benigno. Eagle photo by Ryan Schwach

Fruitloop had his own way of putting it.

“We're different personalities of the same bird,” he said. “Birds of a feather.”

When the tryouts finally wrapped up, and the Johnny heads were returned to the folding table and hopeful future mascot reflected on their first time wearing the mask.

“It was definitely interesting, basically a mascot camp,” Shanel said. “It did exceed what I expected.”

Declan was all smiles.

“It was so much fun, I had a blast,” he said. “The thought of doing that in front of a crowd of people and like, getting them all hyped up. I am so excited if I [get picked].”

Ultimately, eight of the 10 trying out made the squad, doubling the size of the team.

Benigno looked forward to a new season filled with events and appearances for the big red bird.

Johnny Thunderbird in action during a women’s basketball game against UConn last season. Eagle photo by Ryan Schwach

“I have a great team,” he said. “There is a good core group of kids, no egos on a team, which I really enjoy. The culture is good. They work pretty hard and they're willing to do things and achieve their goal.”