Kansas Jayhawks “Rock Chalk, Jayhawk” Bobblehead Unveiled to Celebrate College Colors Day

This morning, to celebrate College Colors Day and in conjunction with the kickoff of the 2026 football season and start of the new school year, the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum unveiled an officially licensed, limited-edition Kansas Jayhawks “Rock Chalk, Jayhawk” Bobblehead. The bobblehead is part of our new College Slogan Series featuring nearly 30 of the best college slogans. The special edition bobblehead is being produced by the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum, an official licensee of the University of Kansas.

All the details about the Big Jay bobblehead are below, and you can find pictures and graphics of the bobblehead that you can use at this Dropbox link. The bobbleheads are now available in our online store at the following link.

• The bobbleheads, which are expected to ship in February, are now available at this link.
• Each bobblehead will be individually numbered to only 2,026.
• The bobbleheads are $40 each, plus an $8 flat-rate shipping charge per order.
• Standing on a “Rock Chalk, Jayhawk” base in school colors, the Big Jay bobblehead is wearing a white No. 1 jersey while giving the No. 1 sign.
• “Rock Chalk, Jayhawk” has been the battle cry for KU fans for more than 100 years. The iconic chant originated in 1886 when chemistry professor E.H.S. Bailey created a simple club yell that evolved to celebrate local limestone geology and became one of the most famous cheers in college sports history. Bailey designed the original cheer for the KU Science Club as “Rah, Rah, Jayhawk, KU” repeated three times. By 1889, the “rahs” were replaced with “Rock Chalk.” It is a play on “chalk rock,” which describes the prominent Permian- and Cretaceous-age limestone and flint outcroppings found on Mount Oread in Lawrence, Kansas.
• The bobblehead is being released in conjunction with College Colors Day, which is celebrated annually on the Friday before Labor Day for the start of the new college football season and school year. The fall semester began on Monday, August 24th for undergraduate students. The Jayhawks open the 2026 football season on Friday, September 4th against LIU at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium in Lawrence.
• The original mascot for the Kansas Jayhawks was a bulldog. In 1912, the Jayhawk was first seen in a cartoon by Henry Maloy in The University Daily Kansan. In November 1958, the Jayhawk became the official mascot of the University of Kansas. Big Jay arrived on the scene in the 1960s, while Baby Jay was created by KU student Amy Sue Hurst and hatched at halftime of KU’s Homecoming victory over Kansas State on October 9th, 1971. Both mascots are instrumental in “Rock Chalk, Jayhawk” (aka the “Rock Chalk” chant) that is used at Kansas sporting events.
• “We’re excited to unveil this ‘Rock Chalk, Jayhawk’ bobblehead as part of our College Slogan collection,” National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum co-founder and CEO Phil Sklar said. “As one of the most iconic and recognized college slogans, ‘Rock Chalk, Jayhawk’ gets KU fans fired up every time. This bobblehead is a must-have for Jayhawk fans everywhere!”
• The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum, which is located at 170 S. 1st St. in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, opened to the public on February 1st, 2019. The HOF and Museum also produces high quality, customized bobbleheads for retail sale as well as organizations, individuals, and teams across the country.