[Video] Dressed As Mascot, Coach Proposes To Dance Team Girlfriend
When a man proposes to the woman he wants to marry, there can be a lot of pressure. When he’s a head coach who does it dressed as a mascot in front of a packed arena and she says yes, it ends to thunderous applause.
Craig Heatherly, assistant men’s basketball coach at Davenport University in Grand Rapids, Michigan is now engaged to Linaya Hass, the dance coach at Davenport. The mascot marriage proposal, caught on now-viral video, had Heatherly dressed as the school’s Panther mascot engaging in a dance-off with his bride-to-be, who had no idea her boyfriend was in the suit.
During the dance-off, which took place during the Davenport version of Midnight Madness, the Panther mascot feigned an injury, bringing him to one knee. Hass came over to assist, and the coach revealed himself.
The mascot proposal worked.
“Linaya Hass,” Heatherly said. “Will you marry me?”
Her response wasn’t audible but the answer was a clear yes. A stunned Hass nodded yes and lept into the Panthers’ arms as the crowd of roughly 1,000 cheered.
Fox 17 reports that the premise of the creative wedding proposal was a rigged dance contest designed to put Pounce the Panther against Hass in the final. It almost didn’t happen.
“On Monday, she called me and said, ‘I just got the script for the Midnight Madness. We’re doing a dance-off! I am not doing it! Absolutely not,” Heatherly said. “And I’m thinking, ‘Holy cow, you gotta do it,’ I was like, ‘Have some school spirit! This is for the university! Stop thinking about yourself!’ ”
CBS reports that the two have been dating for a little more than a year. Heatherly came up with the idea on his way back from a recruiting trip. Heatherly isn’t just a creative performer; he’s also a solid coach.
The video below has amassed more than 20,000 views in the three days it has been online. After showing off such solid dance moves, one can only wonder what their first dance at their wedding will be like.
Would you say yes if a mascot proposed to you?
