Auburn’s pre-game flight is considered one of the best traditions in college football, but Saturday’s flight before the Mississippi State game took a turn for the worse.

Spirit, Auburn’s American bald eagle, collided into the glass window of a luxury skybox during his routine flight from the flag post to center field.

After hitting the window, Spirit flew close overhead of some fans that fearfully ducked away from him.

“It looked like he hit the window pretty hard,” said Elizabeth Stewart, a fan at the game. “Everyone screamed because we thought he was going to be really hurt. I’m glad he’s ok.”

Spirit’s trainers do not know why he decided to change from his normal route. Once he is let out of his box, he will do what he wants to do, explained Dr. Jamie Bellah, professor of small animal surgery and director of the Southeastern Raptor Center.

“When we saw Spirit drop down and then fly normally… it made me feel a lot better because if he had a more severe injury, or any injury, he might not have been able to fly,” said Bellah.

Although purely speculating, Bellah said Spirit could have seen a reflection of himself or the field in the window and became confused.

Spirit in his home at the Southeastern Raptor Center

After the game, trainers and doctors examined Spirit to make sure he was ok. Although they didn’t suspect any fractures, Bellah says they also did radiographs on the eagle just in case.

The eagles start their training in the early part of the summer and do so almost everyday of the week except for Saturday and Sunday. They go through a lot of repetitions of the same routine to make sure they are ready for game day.

“[Spirit] has had practice flights already and he’s flying just fine,” said Bellah.

Nova, Auburn’s golden eagle, and Spirit switch out every couple games meaning it is almost Nova’s turn to take part in the pre-game tradition. Either Spirit or Nova will fly at Auburn’s next home game Sept. 24 against Florida Atlantic.

“If Spirit doesn’t fly at the next game it’s not because he is injured, it’s about Nova’s turn,” said Bellah.

A lot of people have called in expressing their concerns for Spirit. The trainers and doctors at the Southeastern Raptor Center are grateful for the loving messages from the Auburn family.

If you would like more information on Auburn’s eagles and other birds, visit www.vetmed.auburn.edu/raptor. You can also follow Nova on Twitter @auburnnova.