Grace Ford ’26 (left) and Tiernan Kelly ’26 (right), who have worked as Bucky during their time at Santa Clara University, pose with Bucky at the Leavey Center on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. **(Nina Glick/The Santa Clara)**

To most students at Santa Clara University, Bucky the Bronco is a familiar figure giving high-fives, taking photos and dancing on the sideline. For Grace Ford ’26 and Tiernan Kelly ’26, Bucky was their best-kept secret.

The two graduating seniors spent part of their Bronco careers inside the suit, anonymously representing one of the most distinguishable figures on campus. Behind the oversized head and sweaty costume, Ford and Kelly said having the privilege to represent the University and its community as Bucky became one of the most meaningful parts of their college experience.

Ford, an economics and political science double major, became Bucky during her junior year with the hopes of getting more involved on campus. The opportunity, she said, “looked kind of silly and fun.”

“The second you put the costume on, you lose your identity and become more of a representation and ambassador of the school, which is such a cool opportunity,” said Ford.

Ford described the experience of being Bucky as “intense but so rewarding.”

Getting the chance to meet Buckys of the past has been an especially meaningful piece of Ford’s tenure.

“I had one alumni come up to me, give me a hug and then tell me that they used to be Bucky back in ’87. That was really cool to hear.”

And it’s not just Buckys of the past she’s gotten to meet—it’s been part of her job to help vet the next generation of students who will don the suit.

“One of the girls who came in told us that it has been her dream to be Bucky since she got to the school. It’s so cute seeing the actual impact. She’s coming in so excited.”

Grace Ford ’26 poses with Bucky at the Leavey Center on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. **(Nina Glick/The Santa Clara)**

Ford compared the experience to living a Hannah Montana-style secret life, saying that keeping the role a secret was one of the most challenging aspects of the job. She is proud of what she has accomplished as Bucky, and it was hard to keep that quiet

“I’ve really built up confidence in both myself as a person and in my ability to go out and try new things and do scary things that end up being awesome,” said Ford, who credits her time as Bucky as the “biggest thing” of her college career.

“Bucky has been the thing that I am most proud of in both myself doing it and what it means,” she said. “Once I became Bucky, I was able to embrace the school and the community in a way that I never could have done from outside.”

Kelly, a marketing major, began suiting up in April 2025 and started his Bucky tenure during the softball and baseball seasons. He described becoming Bucky as the “most fun, most dream come true experience.”

Despite it being one of the best experiences, Kelly joked that wearing the costume had its own challenges.

He described the moment “when you put that suit on for the first time,” and “feel the amount of sweat rolling down your face, and there’s nothing you can do to wipe it away.”

Still, Kelly said any discomfort was outweighed by the excitement of interacting with the campus community.

Tiernan Kelly ’26 poses with Bucky at the Leavey Center on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. **(Nina Glick/The Santa Clara)**

“As rough as that sounds, every aspect of it made up for any sort of discomfort, because you walked around campus and everyone treated you like a celebrity. The campus really thrives and puts Bucky in this highlighted, awesome, fun-loving environment that everyone sees Bucky as.”

Kelly reminisced about his first appearance as Bucky at a baseball game. He considered himself an extrovert, so not being able to talk was initially a struggle.

“I am dancing with everybody, and everybody is just smiling, waving, trying to high-five me. People are loving the idea of Bucky, the essence of Bucky,” he said. “They’re just treating me like I am this amazing thing for the campus, and that exactly is what Bucky is.”

His goal as Bucky was to “never be still.” Though his identity remained hidden, Kelly’s personality shone through his constant dancing, entertaining and making people smile.

“It was essentially the way I looked at things. And so no matter how I felt, I made sure to put it all on and remember that this is more than just myself, but rather a person and a figure that the community looks upon.”

Like Ford, Kelly emphasized the challenging side of keeping his identity a secret, but knows that the symbol of Bucky is what’s most important.

“Bucky should be for the community. It should be about this persona that we put on, that can make somebody’s day, make somebody smile, make somebody feel better about what they’re doing at that current moment. Get people excited about sports or whatever Bucky needs to do,” said Kelly.

Tiernan Kelly ’26 (left) and Grace Ford ’26 (right) pose with Bucky at the Leavey Center on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. **(Nina Glick/The Santa Clara)**

Before becoming Bucky, Kelly rarely attended sporting events beyond men’s basketball games. He said the role changed his perspective on Santa Clara athletics.

“Seeing the fans at all of these incredible other sports that we have going on at Santa Clara really opened my eyes to this sporting community, which people don’t necessarily give credit for. A lot of the students only go to basketball or women’s soccer. These sports that are kind of underrepresented are really exciting and have a really great community around them.”

Bucky recently received a redesigned costume, which Kelly describes as “more childish and fun.”

“I think it builds off this idea of a mascot being this fun-loving kind of character from a movie that is just bringing a sense of childhood joy and excitement that I really love about it.

Reflecting on his stint as Bucky, Kelly said, “It’ll be a thing I tell my kids and my grandkids, and it’ll be the most exciting thing that I can tell people. The first thing whenever I talk about my time at Santa Clara is that I was Bucky.

Ford’s advice to the next generation of Buckys is simple: “Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there. Have fun with it, and remember how big the responsibility is that you are the face of the school.”