Just minutes before the football game starts, the well known lion enters the gates. Wearing a tan fursuit finished with paws and a lion mane, he is the topic of choice during pre-game. Since it takes only seconds for him to get into character, he slips into his attire, which he keeps close by in the back seat of his truck. As he enters the gates, he is no longer just a student at Legacy, he is ‘Coop Lion.’  

Senior Cooper Keeney, also very well known as ‘Coop Lion,’ tends to be the main attraction in the student section during sporting events. From random roars in the audience to creating cheers for everyone to participate in, Keeney’s goal is to make sporting events more entertaining for the fans. Keeney’s courageous personality displays during events when he stands in the middle of the crowd shouting random chants to excite the fans.

With many students saying Keeney is the main attraction at football, volleyball and basketball games, the spotlight is on him. With one of his main goals being to flood the baseball stands with supportive fans, Keeney thinks that his support will bring more fans to all the sporting events. During the games, Keeney makes up chants, yells for the team and keeps the crowd alive. Senior Rachel Henry feels that Keeney brings a positive outlook to the events.

“Cooper is the best lion,” Henry said. “He is very energetic and knows how to make the student section have more enthusiasm.”

The idea of a lion originated during the beginning of Keeney’s junior year, though he wasn’t recognized for it until it took off during the mid point of his junior year, during basketball season. Keeney bought the costume at Party City, saying it was for halloween, when really his idea was to become ‘Coop Lion’ all along.

With the costume being such a big hit, Keeney started to realize all the attention he received. Along with the lion suit, he also invested in a fathead of himself while wearing the costume. Keeney now brings that with him to every event he attends, and attracts pictures and comments from the fans within the student section.

“{Girls} dig the costume,” Keeney said. “They like the confidence it shows.”

Keeney became known around the Legacy campus quickly from students and faculty. Coach Billy Coats notices Keeney at the basketball and football games. Though he never knew exactly which student was inside the costume, he still knew it brought attention and confusion to the stands.

“It brings up the question as to why is there a lion in the stands, and where is bucky?” Coats said. “It’s confusing and it gets the fans attention.”

Keeney enjoys what he does and plans to keep the ‘legacy’ alive by handing down the responsibility after he graduates. Although Legacy’s mascot is the Broncos, Keeney has introduced a new species into our school’s history – the lion.

“It makes me proud, this is all about me leaving a legacy,” Keeney said. “When people think of Cooper Keeney, they think of a lion.”