MARQUETTE - As freshman goalie Billy Sauer came out onto the ice in the Berry Events Center, he was greeted by a large man in a baby diaper.

The diaper, which had a crossed out block 'M' on the front and "Baby Goalie" written on the back was just one of many props used to make fun of the goalie's youth - baby bottles and a large towel with the Gerber logo were among the others.

"I didn't even think I could get into the building tonight with what I was wearing," said Northern Michigan senior Erich Merril, who goes by the nickname "Average Jo." "I almost made it through the first period (with just a diaper on), so I was doing pretty good."

Arena officials eventually made Merril put pants on.

But chants of "baby goalie" aren't new to Northern Michigan. Four years ago, the chant started when another Michigan baby goalie, Al Montoya, made his college debut in Marquette.

Costumes and heckling are all part of being a Puckhead, an elite group of fans in the Northern Michigan student section who are in charge of creating different chants and cheers to pump up the crowd.

"We're like the leaders, and we get everybody going," Merril said. "Every cheer that gets going, we start it most of the time. This year, more of the student section has helped out, and it's expanded to where we have people in other sections helping us so we don't have to do everything ourselves."

The Puckheads are the brainchild of a man who is known only by his nickname "Mojo."

Stationed in Omaha with the Army during Northern Michigan's national championship title run in 1990-91, Mojo went to a Omaha Lancer hockey game. While there, he noticed how rowdy the crowd got, and he saw a few fans wearing hardhats with pucks stuck on the top. The combination of the atmosphere and goofy headwear was enough inspiration for him to start the same thing at Northern Michigan.

The Puckheads have created an atmosphere that makes the Berry Events Center one of the most entertaining and frustrating road trips for other teams in the CCHA. Mojo - along with his right-hand man, Cujo and his right-hand woman, Lujo, started the group seven years ago.

"A lot of players will say they think we're funny," Cujo said. "Wherever we go, sometimes (the players) come up and do a few demonstrations with the stick. We know they hear us."

The original Puckheads decided to hang up the hard hats this past season and leave it up to what they call the "new generation" to continue the legacy.

"The only requirement to be a Puckhead is that you love Northern hockey, you're not afraid to show it, and win or lose you smile and you move on," Mojo said.

In Saturday night's game against the Wolverines, with the score tied at three late in the third period, Puckheads, new and old, helped pump up over 4,000 fans to decibel levels that rivaled the 6,000-plus at Yost Ice Arena.

And despite the 4-3 loss in overtime, most fans still left the arena with smiles on their faces, happy to see a good college hockey game.

The smiles on everyone's faces were proof of the effect Puckhead legacy has and will continue for years to come - ready for Michigan's next baby goalie.

Put me in coach, I'm ready to play: This weekend was interesting for freshmen Jack Johnson and Mark Mitera and sophomores Kevin Porter and Chad Kolarik, hopefuls for this year's U.S. Junior National Team. Northern Michigan coach Walt Kyle will also be the head coach that will lead the team when they play in the 2006 IIHF Junior World Championships in British Columbia in December and January. Many in college hockey circles have said that Kyle has delayed the announcement of his team for a chance to see the four Wolverines up close and personal. But Kyle denounces those rumors.

"The plan is we're going to announce the team in early December, (and) we're going to announce the team all together," Kyle said. "We want to create a team and not an elite society."

Elite society or not, the team sent yearly to the World Junior Championships consists of the country's best hockey players. Johnson, Mitera, Porter and Kolarik have been among those thought to be top candidates to represent the Red, White and Blue this year.

"They're all very good players, and they're all very live candidates to make the team," Kyle said. "We'll make those determinations as we go along, but they're very much in the pool right now."