Our beloved mascot may frequently be named among the scariest, but we know there’s nothing to fear when you’re a member of the Spider family.

While we Spiders thrive year-round, Halloween is a particularly fitting time to tout our #SpiderPride. We’re the only Spider mascot in NCAA’s Division I, and we’re proud to have been named the No. 1 most frightening mascot in college sports by NCAA.com, the No. 2 scariest mascot by ESPN, and, perhaps the most apt for today, one of the “12 mascots you don’t want to cross on Halloween” by College Magazine. We even made a Spider stencil that you can download for your own jack-o’-lantern carving!

But all that fear and fright? That’s for the outside world. Here, we know that spiders are more than the creepy, crawly creatures that cause shrieks and scares. Spiders are strong, determined, and full of surprises. And being a Spider means you have an inexhaustible curiosity, intellectual independence, and the ultimate readiness to take on a challenge.

That’s why we love to celebrate the fact that we’re the only Spider and embrace our mascot — especially at Halloween. We even host our own annual Halloween festival for the community, Trick or Treat Street, where kids come to campus to get in the spooky spirit with our students.

Are you using our stencil or covering your house with spider webs? Show us your Halloween #SpiderPride!