BOULDER, Colo. — One of the University of Colorado Boulder's most beloved game day traditions has reached a historic first. Senior Emma Morgan became the first woman to lead Ralphie from the front position onto Folsom Field. It is an honor she’s proud of, but she’s quick to credit the teammates who have been in her corner throughout the journey.
CU Boulder is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year, while the tradition of Ralphie’s run dates back to 1967. Taylor Stratton is the program director and head coach of the Ralphie Live Mascot Program. She ran for three years in college and took over the program in 2020.
Currently, the team is made up of 17 students who met specific criteria to earn a spot as a Ralphie handler.
Stratton explained that the application opens in August and closes around the end of October. There are athletic evaluations, including timed running and strict form pull ups.
"There's not a minimum speed necessarily that you have to be to run the Buffalo," said Stratton."We just kind of look at where the times shake out from year to year, as well as applications and every other data point that we have. We select a subset of people that we then move on to interviews, because so much of what we do is acting as ambassadors of the university."
The first woman joined the Ralphie team in 1992. Today, five women are part of the program, including Morgan, whose connection to Ralphie started long before she became a CU student.
Growing up in New Castle, Morgan came to CU games and watched her brother and sister run with Ralphie. Inspired by them, she eventually began training to follow in their footsteps and earn a spot on the team herself.
"I came from a track background. I ran track in high school, so I kind of was familiar with that side of it. So a lot of sprint training, weightlifting and then some upper body work for the pull ups and just full body workouts, usually just to get ready for it all," Morgan said.
She made the team her freshman year, eager to join the close-knit group bonded by an unusual teammate, a buffalo. But being part of the Ralphie team takes commitment, as the team practice five days a week, spending three of those days training alongside Ralphie.
"I think we all love it so much and you can tell everyone on the team worked so hard to get here. So we all have very similar interests in that way and we work together and always are cheering each other on," Morgan said.
Morgan started in the back right position before working her way to the back left. Once she mastered those roles, she began training for the front. This meant studying film with her coaches and learning how her athletic strengths could translate to the front position.
"Once you start getting professional at those back two positions, then we'll start moving you up front. Emma has been the first woman handler who's pretty consistently on this buffalo kind of locked in, done every position really well and then we moved her up front earlier this year," Stratton said.
On Oct. 15, when the Buffs took on the Utah Utes, Morgan made history as the first woman to run in the front position. Not only was she thrilled, but her teammates were too.
"They were so excited for me and my biggest cheerleaders, super grateful for all of them," said Morgan. "I'm very grateful for all the female handlers that came before me to help me get to this place today and I can't wait to see what the future handlers can do too."
The Ralphie Live Mascot Program relies entirely on donor support to care for Ralphie and cover travel and other team expenses. Stratton said the program currently has one scholarship fund, with hopes of creating more to support the students who dedicate their time to the tradition. A link to support the program can be found here.
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