BOWLING GREEN — When Scott Jess does the Diamond Cutter, good things are happening within Bowling Green State University’s hockey program.

And Jess, better known as “Scooter” amongst the team and fans, has been doing his own variation of the signature wrestling move a lot lately.

For three of the past four weekends, the BGSU hockey equipment manager has performed an energetic, high-flying rendition of the move made famous by former professional wrestler Diamond Dallas Page. It sends the Falcons’ locker room into a frenzy.

Jess, a 1982 Clyde High School graduate, only does the move when BGSU sweeps a weekend series. Thankfully for the team — and fans of college hockey on social media — the Falcons have been on a roll by sweeping three of their opponents in the past month.

“Everybody that follows social media knows, they can see right there how excited our players get when we win that second game of the weekend and they start the Scoot chant and he gets going,” BGSU coach Ty Eigner said. “Then he just, I don’t know what happens, he just transforms into some other [person], he has an out-of-body experience or something like that where he goes around the room.”

Jess, who is in his 27th season as the program’s equipment manager, is one of the most popular figures within BGSU hockey. Players and coaches enjoy his positivity and dedication.

The energy he generates when he leaps off a cooler certainly speaks volumes.

Jess said he started doing the move about six or seven years ago. He has been a huge fan of Diamond Dallas Page his whole life, going back to the World Championship Wrestling (WCW) days.

Shortly after BGSU completed a sweep against Bemidji State on Jan. 14 at Slater Family Ice Arena, Bowling Green Hockey’s Twitter account posted a video of Jess that has gotten nearly 400 likes and more than 21,000 views. Jess went around the locker room high-fiving players and coaches as they erupted in cheers, and he even chest bumped BGSU defender Zach Vinnell.

Jess stepped on a cooler, put his hands in the shape of a diamond, and leaped into the air as the team went wild in the background.

“I just try to get more enthused each time I do it,” Jess said. “It’s something for the players, they enjoy that. That’s their fulfillment in knowing they just swept.

“It’s awesome to know that we have great players that are mindful of something like that at the end, so it’s awesome. And then people are on Instagram or Twitter, we’ve got great fans in the community and surrounding communities. It touches me in a special way, but the main thing is it’s for the players.”

Taylor Schneider, a fifth-year senior forward, has enjoyed watching Jess in his element during his BGSU career.

“I came in as a freshman and not knowing what it was all about, and then the first time you see it, you’re like ‘Holy smokes, this is awesome,’” Schneider said. “Over the years, you live for that Diamond Cutter. You win Friday, you know you’ve got to win Saturday to see it, so it’s an awesome tradition.

“Guys feed off that energy. It starts with him, everybody loves him. He’s a positive guy, so just the energy that goes around the room starting with him, it’s contagious.”

On Jan. 7, Jess and Blake Borders, a young BGSU hockey fan who got the team’s attention on Twitter by doing the move at his home the previous weekend, performed the Diamond Cutter together after a sweep against Lake Superior State. The video has more than 14,000 views on Twitter.

Borders was invited by Eigner to join the team in the locker room if the Falcons swept the Lakers.

“The more people that see that and talk about that, maybe that’s their first impression of Bowling Green hockey, and it’s a cool thing,” Eigner said. “He does a great job with it, the guys love it, everybody around it loves it, and it’s been a lot of fun.”

Jess’ responsibilities for the team include sharpening skates and managing the ice arena equipment room for the Falcons. He is also the head equipment specialist for BGSU’s baseball, tennis, golf, and swimming programs.

BGSU hockey has sustained success since Jess started performing the Diamond Cutter. The first-place Falcons (14-13-1, 11-8-1 Central Collegiate Hockey Association) are shooting for their eighth winning season in the past nine years.

Spending so much time with and getting to know different players over the years has been meaningful for Jess.

“We have a rich tradition in Falcon land with hockey to the point where it doesn’t [matter] how your team’s composed, it’s a matter of getting results after each weekend, and we’ve been able to do that,” Jess said. “That’s the most important fulfillment right there knowing that on Sunday, man we just swept a good team, or this or that.

“The memories that have come about from my time with Bowling Green hockey is second to none, and I’ll always cherish that the rest of my entire life.”

First Published January 23, 2023, 7:18 p.m.