Air Force Falcons Football - Brand Identity

[BrandMooreArt]

very happy to be able to wrap this one up before the end of the year, it's been my personal project for the last 4 months. you can see the whole project on Behance here:

WORD MARK & TYPE

the word mark is a modified version of Rush which you can get from SportsFonts.squarespace.com and the supporting font Century Gothic. Amarillo (the font used by the USAF) will be the secondary choice. I felt it was important to keep the lightning bolt around and extend it into the identity in other places besides the football helmet and primary logo. it's the key element of the identity here

PRIMARY LOGO

This logo actually started as a concept for a client but they didn't like it. I felt it was good enough to try in the Air Force project and ended up liking it way more than any of the sketches i had at the time. again the lightning bolt makes an appearance here.

FIELD DESIGN

secondary logo at midfield and i always like trying some new, odd things with the end zone art. again, lightning bolt. doesnt need to be anything else.

UNIFORM

i hope you all like this because its one of my personal favorite uniform designs i've created. i think you can connect the pics to how i used them in the uniform design. i imagine the shoulder design changing to match whatever rank the player holds similar to how UnderArmor designed navy's latest alternate.

the lightning bolt on the side has always been at a downward angle and i just done think it fits on the helmet really well that way. this rotation give a sense of upward movement (if i were a Nike copywriter i'd say "it's inspired by the angle of an F-16 taking off from an aircraft carrier before it goes hunting from the shadows"). the helmet stripe has ann F-16 at the front and the white design meant to mimic a contrail from the exhaust.

ALT HELMETS

I never designed any alt jerseys or pants because i had 2 other helmets i really wanted to use and wanted to keep the overall options as minimal as possible. both are inspired by AF aircraft and use the same 2 grays, Ghost Gray, and Gunship Gray. the number on the back would change with the player of course and so would the position next to it on the back. for example a RB with the no. 23 would have "AF RB 23" on the back of his helmet.

THUNDERBIRDS

One of the main reasons i chose to do a whole identity for Air Force was the chance to design a uniform based on the USAF Thunderbirds. looking into their history i found all kinds of great visuals. the planes have been silver for most of their history which was new to me and i might design another uni that uses silver helmets, but just the white for now. Andrew Harrington suggested doing some sort of tribute to a fallen slot pilot (number 4). the Thunderbirds used to paint the "fin" of their slot plane black but took Harry's suggestion and went with an upside down number.

i felt the Tbird uni they had a couple of years ago was OK, but it took some elements from the planes and shoehorned them onto the football uniform. i designed the whole uni with the same mindset the actual planes are painted in, following the shape and curves of the uniform pieces to create something that looks like it belongs there.

[Clintau24]

Good gosh that is sexy. The fighter plane inspired helmets are gorgeous.

Damnit, order me one please.

[PackerFan98]

That is pretty awesome. Love the jerseys.

[Hat Boy]

I am not sold on the literal interpretation of the shoulder boards/rank on the uniform, but everything else is very creative.

[Raysfan12]

Love the entire identity for them!

[JJHoser]

As someone who grew up in Colorado Springs and lives among the large supporting masses who love the Air Force Academy, I have to say no. No to all of this. The interlocking AF is such a recognizable and powerful thing around the academy. The A logo you created seems generic and just screams typical military font. You also just ripped off the font used by ARMY at West Point.

The Air Force Falcons are more than just a Military Academy, they are a university who competes among other universities. These uniforms would be like watching a weekend football team, for a bunch of servicemen, playing against big name colleges.

[clemsonfan25]

Those are friggin' sweet!!! I agree with Clintau24 about the fighter plane helmets...friggin' gorgeous!!! Are you thinking of maybe doing a concept like this for Army and Navy? Would be a great idea to try out and see what you come up with.

[BrandMooreArt]

As someone who grew up in Colorado Springs and lives among the large supporting masses who love the Air Force Academy, I have to say no. No to all of this. The interlocking AF is such a recognizable and powerful thing around the academy. The A logo you created seems generic and just screams typical military font. You also just ripped off the font used by ARMY at West Point.

The Air Force Falcons are more than just a Military Academy, they are a university who competes among other universities. These uniforms would be like watching a weekend football team, for a bunch of servicemen, playing against big name colleges.

LOL, well sorry man. I understand your position though. I think we're all so close to our teams it almost offends us when someone tries to change them. I dont even like it when someone puts a blue face mask on my Colts

you know, i felt like the AF monogram was one of the weakest parts of the whole identity. it's not a clever mash up, it's not a unique font, it's quite lazily slapped together. not to say that my own is anything great, but the reason it's "recognizable and powerful" is not because it's interesting or good in any way, but because you see it a lot, and have for many years. i did NOT "rip off" the West Point font, the word mark is completely unique; a modification of Rush. spurs on type are not owned by Army.

but isnt that last sentence what AF football is anyway?. . . i'm kidding! my primary focus was making them look like a respectable University football team. thats why i stayed away from any "war references" and why the F-16 logo isnt carrying any missiles/bombs. but i also wanted to have them look like a modern football team that would not look like the weakest link if you put them next to Army and Navy, who have worn some of my favorite uniforms the last 3 years. Air Force currently looks like they just ordered some generic stuff from a Nike catalog. . . which is what they did. but, maybe i missed on that?

I am not sold on the literal interpretation of the shoulder boards/rank on the uniform, but everything else is very creative.

Same here honestly. I wasnt sure if i should go with them or not but i think when doing concepts like this and you cant really decide what to do, its better to push a little too far than not enough

Are you thinking of maybe doing a concept like this for Army and Navy? Would be a great idea to try out and see what you come up with.

You never know when ill throw up a random logo or uni design and would love to so something for Army, but as far as a whole rebranding project like this, probably not. Im thinking the UCF Knights will be my next major project

[Cult of the Black Flame]

I think you should do something with falcon head on the primary logo. Give it a profile instead of an oval lump.

[kewp80]

I'm in love with everything about this. Except the A alternate mark. It reminds me too much of GI Joe. Great work on this project though!

[BlackBolt3]

I really like this. The uniforms and helmets are outstanding, and so is the primary logo. One thing, maybe you can shoehorn an "AF" monogram from the word mark you've made. Overall outstanding stuff here.

[jaker52]

Outstanding work. My only suggestion is to change the midfield logo to look more different from Dayton.

[Ninjorz]

As an Air Force guy myself, I do like what you've done here.

I especially love the alternate helmets and would rather see the Gray ones as primary instead of alternate, with the Thunderbirds helmet as an alternate with matching uniforms.

I would note that the Rank Insigna-inspired stripes on the sleeves of the uniforms are too much akin to enlisted stripes. It may be important to note that these guys are training to become officers, and you're also wanting to put cadet ranks on top of the shoulders. Personally, I would have used the Aircraft Insignia that you used on the helmets on the sleeves instead, and had those two stripes wrap around, so as to put a military twist on traditional stripes. Cadets and officers don't wear rank on their arms.

As for the shoulder ranks themselves, I'm a big fan of it. But, in reality, it is not practical. The cadets receive too many promotions in their short time there and it would be an expenditure nightmare to inact.

Lastly, I feel like the pants could use a touch of dark gray blocks in the pants to mimic the aircraft theme.

All-in-all though, it's a solid branding project, with the alternate helmets being the true hero of the ensamble. Makes me want to do my own!

[PSUcelticsWON95]

I'm... I'm speechless... Well, not speechless enough to where I can't tell you that you did an AMAZING job, to say the very least. Looks fantastic. Great work!!!

[e_gossage]

As someone who is born and raised in Colorado Springs I have to say I LOVE the logo you made! The unis and helmets I wouldn't touch. I already like the unis and helmets Air Force has because they are so simple. Maybe add a small beak to the falcon in the logo??? Awesome job on keeping the lighting bolt in the football!

[FlyingLamprey]

Coming from a guy who's been involved with the Air Force for most of his life due to his dad's service, this is a great set. The jet forming the helmet stripe is a nice subtle touch, as is the pants stripe. The secondary logo is good too, as it gives me a Dayton Flyers vibe, though I wish it could get incorporated more. I second the thoughts on the rank patches on the shoulders - I like it yet I feel like that could get complicated quick. I also really like what you did with the sleeve stripes, although I am intrigued on what Ninjorz suggested would look like (with the wrapped around Aircraft insignia instead). I also really like the alternate helmets a lot. I'd like the aircraft helmet a lot more if it weren't for that blue stripe with text - I get its importance but it feels out of place. Maybe you try something similar to the F-16 helmet's striping. I'm also curious - what finish were you planning to use for the helmets? I'm not normally a fan of matte finishes, but for some reason I feel like it would look good with the F-16 helmet. Can't for the life of me figure out why. And lastly, definitely add something to the primary to make the bird's head more detailed, probably a beak. That would make it all the better I think. Beyond all that, great work. I'd love to see what you could do for Army and Navy.

[BrandMooreArt]

As an Air Force guy myself, I do like what you've done here.

I especially love the alternate helmets and would rather see the Gray ones as primary instead of alternate, with the Thunderbirds helmet as an alternate with matching uniforms.

I would note that the Rank Insigna-inspired stripes on the sleeves of the uniforms are too much akin to enlisted stripes. It may be important to note that these guys are training to become officers, and you're also wanting to put cadet ranks on top of the shoulders. Personally, I would have used the Aircraft Insignia that you used on the helmets on the sleeves instead, and had those two stripes wrap around, so as to put a military twist on traditional stripes. Cadets and officers don't wear rank on their arms.

As for the shoulder ranks themselves, I'm a big fan of it. But, in reality, it is not practical. The cadets receive too many promotions in their short time there and it would be an expenditure nightmare to inact.

Lastly, I feel like the pants could use a touch of dark gray blocks in the pants to mimic the aircraft theme.

All-in-all though, it's a solid branding project, with the alternate helmets being the true hero of the ensamble. Makes me want to do my own!

thats a lot of good info there. i will take this into consideration if i do any updates.

@Flying Lamprey - for helmet finish i was thinking gloss on the blue and Thunderbird helmet and satin, or "HydroSkin" for the other two. it would be the same as the Vikings, Buccaneers, Texas A&M, etc. i think that would be an appropriate finish for an aircraft inspired helmet

[FlyingLamprey]

Ah okay that makes sense. That would probably work better come to think about it.

[Blackhawks#9]

This all looks really good, but I wonder if you could add some more to it and sumblimate this pattern in certain spots.

this might be a bit of an overkill, but it would certainly be interesting.

[FALCON6]

As an air force fan, I think this is great in many ways. The logo looks like a fighter plane decal, and that is a wicked font. I would drop the stylized football in the falcons beak. The new blue helmet is great, I would try a different colored facemask and a white helmet. The lightning bolt is now much better, less box like. The grey helmets are great, my favorite being the f 16. Add more grey to the unis. I would drop the officer uniform style shoulders and the medal on the collar. I do agree with JJhoser, you should look at their current uniforms more, I am very loyal to that look.