‘Birds flying high’: How Ike Irish’s walkup song tradition came to be

Whenever Auburn baseball’s slugger, star outfielder Ike Irish, steps up to bat, Plainsman Park comes alive.

It’s not just because Irish is the team’s leader in batting average, hits, home runs, triples and slugging percentage either. Each time the projected first-round MLB draft pick walks up to the batter’s box, the rendition of “Birds Flying High” by Big Heavy comes blasting through the stadium speakers.

Not only does Irish’s walkup song get fans on their feet for the at bat, the song’s hook has a dance to go with it that engages both the fans and the players in the dugout.

As the beat drops and the hook of “Birds flying high, birds flying high, flying high...” starts playing, the fans and players start waving their arms, mimicking the motion of a bird flying, like the song suggests.