Spurs Coyote has secret weapon

Jon Fisher is the Coyote's right ‘paw'

SAN ANTONIO – The Spurs Coyote has been entertaining fans since the team picked him up as a "flea" agent in 1983.

Over the past 30 years the Coyote has had a secret weapon to help him keep the crowd in stitches and into the game.

His name is Jon Fisher and he's the Coyote's right "paw" man and he has quite a few responsibilities.

"Picking up his toys, keeping him from running over small children, that kind of stuff," Fisher said prior to the start of Game 2 against the Warriors at the AT&T Center.

Fisher is the Coyote's faithful sidekick that no one knows, a funny man who's been helping the furry mascot tickle the crowd's funny bone for the past 30 years.

From quick wardrobe changes in the Coyote's secret den under the bleachers, to keeping all those costumes and props organized, it's up to Fisher to make sure the Coyote always hits his mark.

"They need very specific directions, not just over there, or turn around," Fisher said. "You need to tell them, to the left, to the right, 10 feet away, three rows up, blonde hair, blue eyes."

Fisher spends a lot of time picking up after the Coyote following a time-out performance and he has to make sure they stay on top of the game, keeping tabs on a small T.V. set with a live feed of the game.

"We can tell when the Spurs score and when they don't and when there's a foul or a missed call," Fisher said. "So we have a general idea of what's going on but we're usually pretty much very frantic in the back making sure we're ready for the next time out."

Much of what the Coyote does during a game is pre-scripted but Fisher said it's not unusual to do a bit of winging it, or in the Coyote's case, pawing it.

"A lot if it comes up at the last minute. We have a lot of options and we keep those options open," Fisher said. "We have different signs ready to go, different outfits ready to go and we try to get him in that position at the right time so we can be ready to go."

While Fisher's job seems like a lot of fun and games he knows he plays a very important role for the team.

"At this point in the Playoffs we're here to keep the crowd into the game," Fisher said. 

For a list of recent stories Tim Gerber has done, click here.

Images: Spurs Coyote