High School Logos

[KennyRock]

It's my college's logo - not that great, but it makes a good segway into how much our football team looks like the Green Bay Packers!

Packers:

C.W. Post Pioneers:

[markanthony]

My BIZ 2 cents.

We all have had to line our portfolios with free concepts we have done in the past and the Designs that have only brought in a small amount of cash when we started. Thats just the way it works. Yeah, some of us get spoiled of the fact that our logos are true art. But The truth is, The IMPRINTED SPORTSWEAR INDUSTRY is flooded with stock art that fits the high school markets VERY WELL.

And these "CLIP ART" packages they sell at the ISS trade shows and the like are actually getting very nice... nice mascots, great design templates. I know that doesnt help us very much, But if us as designers come out of the BOX a little and start thinking about the whole package that should come out of your designs. In other words, if you are designing for a baseball jersey, it would be nice to get the whole quote down for your design, the actual materials of the jersey and the Marking (DECORATION) costs to present. If you start aligning yourselfs with the MARKING shops, as a good designer, print shops always welcome a "subcontractor" to go and get outside sales and produce designs. Most of these MARKING shops dont even have quality designers, they rely on the Stock art stuff.

And its the Marking shops that have the PULL, because its their final cost that the schools are more worried about. Not JUST the LOGO. I have always integrated my Design costs I require into the whole MARKING order. Your pricing scale isnt my pricing scale and that designer is better than I am and he's cheaper, WHY?

There is no INTERNATIONAL LOGO STANDARD PRICING SCALE(except for the book I will sell you). The Schools wanna know the end price TOTAL. Sure you have to present them and sure you have to get their juices flowing. And that still doesn't answer the problem at hand....CAN THEY AFFORD IT? NO. THEY NEED FUNDRAISING....Guess what, I take the first step in telling them how they can raise money. Give them solutions like printing that logo on a crap load of cheapo TEEs for their budget and having their students selling them with the intent of raising the cash for their new PRO PRINTED, CUSTOM CUT UNIFORMS I will sell them after they're done. I give them ways to turn CHEAPO TEES, CHEAPO MUGS, CHEAPO PENDANTS in to super expensive CUSTOM SPORTSWEAR. Believe me, the parents and all their co-workers would love to see JONNY playing in nice unis too.

I usually strike a print contract with a school in that I will give them cost plus a certain percentage on White CHEAP tees with another quote for the intended UNI. I usually give the design upfront as good faith. I Print the design (COSTS ARE DIRT CHEAP), extend that price to them knowing that they will make 600%-700% off the CHEAP TEE. And the students go out and sell them. If the logo is Awesome, and the students are fired up about wearing that "concept" you drew up, they WILL sell the shirts. Its worked for me so many times. Then they have the cash to pay you your $1000 for your logo and your $250 per Uniform. SHEESH, if their that excited about the concepts, they will sell Chocolates. If they fail at raising the cash, then that should be a sign that maybe your logos arent worth the $1000 you think they are.

Best thing for a designer of QUALITY, is to align yourself with a good print shop. And actually become a subcontract saleman for those companies. If you are having a hard time aligning with print shops, then your should carefully re-value your thinking about your LOGO pricing structure.

I operate 2 MARKING shops in Hawaii and have a UNIFORM assembly production in Japan. I rely day and night on SUB-CONTRACTORS to bring the orders. I give the designers a totally different pricing structure so they can make money too.

I give them all they need(BIZ CARDS BROSHURES) so they can make the sale AND make that $1000 per logo they want. They make money with the logo, I make the money printing it. I was in this position for many years; Not quite a SUPER SPORTS DESIGNERS but good enough that I couldnt except less than $500 per logo. Thats why I built my own shop. If those who like this Idea and have a hard time finding print shops in your local area to let you subcontract out of, PM me. I will be expanding into the US with a Production Facility in Colorado Springs. We will handle all types of output from actual custom uniforms(all sports) to plain old screen printing and Vinyl Cutting.

I have contracts with serveral MARKING MATERIALS companies. We will be building the facility in the late summer. I can help you, the designers to help me, the printer. And you might learn a bit on the way so you can build your own shops and hopefully buy your raw goods from me. Its not for everyone. Just another choice that floods our minds. Even in the Uniform Manufacturing Sector, I dont have the MLB contract or the NBA contract. But I can print new, different, HIGH TECH materials that these manufactures cannot print. Different Materials, Different Technique. And I do, I do See a huge market for High Schools... If done right. Those who dont want em, thanks. Ill take em. LOOK OUT MITCHELL AND NESS!

[rtrich11]

We're the Stevenson Patriots of Adlai E. Stevenson HS in Lincolnshire, IL , our colors are green and gold.

My wife went there and we live in the area. Weird.

Anyway, I always thought Stevenson should get a new look, particularly the football helmets, which are green and yellow OLD hiking Patriot. There is a lot more one can do with that mascot, (and I've love to do it). Even the S with the standing patriot could get a cool revamp.

[rmackman]

We were the Stoneman Douglas Eagles, and when I was there (and playded) we just had SD on our helmets. I recently saw a game of theirs, and they have the entire Philadelphia Eagles uniforms in the Douglas colors of Cardinal and Silver. Go figure. I think most high schools are now mimicing the pros or college teams.

[gbasalmon]

My old high school, the Starpoint Spartans, used to use, at least when I played (1996 season), what I found out was an old logo that Michigan State had used in the past recolored to the red that my school uses.

Now, if you take a look at gdffl86's NYS High School project under Niagara County (look for the URL in any of his posts - cheap plug), they've switched to a lame script Spartans in red on a grey shell. The only upgrade is possibly the grey shell.

[sacker12]

The logo for the Prattville (AL) High School Lions, my high school alma mater.

[sacker12]

It's my college's logo - not that great, but it makes a good segway into how much our football team looks like the Green Bay Packers!

Packers:

C.W. Post Pioneers:

My high school's biggest regional rival had the Green Bay look also. So did one of the nearby private schools. The name of the school is Edgewood Academy, and they had basically the same uniforms as the Packers, except they had a lower case "e" in the oval instead of the "G" the Packers have.

[mac]

You seem to be talking about two specific sports. No matter how successful the basketball team is or how much its boosters donate to fund coach buses, is there enough money to fund new uniforms for the gymnastics, soccer and baseball teams as well? You mention the adidas sponsorship, but does adidas supply the uniforms and equipment for all sports, or just the basketball team?

I'm not trying to rain on your parade..it would be nice if opportunities like this were more prevalent. But the reality is, something like this is very unlikely to happen unless you're creating the identity for one specific team, or you approach a private (think rich) school with your new identity proposals. While a basketball or football team might have donated money spilling out of their new uniforms, the wrestling, swimming or even band (they need snazzy uniforms too) might not have enough in their own budgets to pay for travel expenses.

very few high school sports uniforms use a logo, the only two I can think of are football and baseball, the rest can just use the old fashioned wordmark, and as long as you keep the colors the same not every team's uniforms would have to be replaced. The only change a new logo might bring is a mural in the cafeteria and logos on previously logoless football helmets. I don't see it as being that expensive.

[Ez Street]

Nice Temple Owls ripoff

That head is ginormous

Looks like they changed it. Maybe the other version was something that the Topeka Capital Journal made because they didn't have a good quality image of the logo. I dunno, but for some reason I never realized that is was exaclty the same logo, just a different head.

[markar14]

We're the Stevenson Patriots of Adlai E. Stevenson HS in Lincolnshire, IL , our colors are green and gold.

Anyway, I always thought Stevenson should get a new look, particularly the football helmets, which are green and yellow OLD hiking Patriot. There is a lot more one can do with that mascot, (and I've love to do it). Even the S with the standing patriot could get a cool revamp.

Recently. more and more extracurricular clubs have used a green version of the NE Pats' Flying Head, which looks weird. They're trying to avoid the soldier logo from the shoulders down because of the gun he's holding. Personally, I think SHS should adapt the Fayetteville Patriots Logo (NBDL), and just add some green & gold and just take out the basketball if necessary. I would reccomend it to the school, but I am but a wee freshman among 4500 other students. Oh well.

[KCScout76]

markar14

Speaking of the Patriots logo you all use, a school in the MRVC here in Missouri is the the lexington minutemen. They have the same logo, except red, white & blue.

They use the old New England "Pat" (Patriot snapping the ball) logo on a silver helmet

Every thing else has the same Minuteman/Patriot painted every where in the school.

Truman HS in Independence, MO (Harry Truman's home) is the Patriots. They have the same statue and logo, exception is the football team uses a Patriot that is similar to that of the current New England Pats, but a bit different.

The Patriots is just a cool logo and a lot you can do with it.

[Cyclopsis Joe]

markar14

Speaking of the Patriots logo you all use, a school in the MRVC here in Missouri is the the lexington minutemen. They have the same logo, except red, white & blue.

They use the old New England "Pat" (Patriot snapping the ball) logo on a silver helmet

Every thing else has the same Minuteman/Patriot painted every where in the school.The Patriots is just a cool logo and a lot you can do with it.

Heritage Hills High School in Indiana (whom everyone hates) has the exact same Pat the Patriot helmet.

[BucsBoy02]

This is the logo my high school is useing. Remind you of anything?

My School's logo

And this one is out school rival's logo.

School Rival

[markar14]

markar14

Speaking of the Patriots logo you all use, a school in the MRVC here in Missouri is the the lexington minutemen.  They have the same logo, except red, white & blue.

They use the old New England "Pat" (Patriot snapping the ball) logo on a silver helmet

Every thing else has the same Minuteman/Patriot painted every where in the school.The Patriots is just a cool logo and a lot you can do with it.

Heritage Hills High School in Indiana (whom everyone hates) has the exact same Pat the Patriot helmet.

thanks for the reasearch, guys.

Earlier today I found out that the minuteman is based off a mascot of Continental Insurance Co. from the 60s 70s:

SHS uses the snapping Pat from the early NE Patriots, but we have the green and gold for a kinda wierd reason-- 40 yrs ago, when the school was founded and had no money whatsoever, they needed to hire teachers for cheap. So, they went up to the Wisconsin-Illinois border to look for (Wisconsinites?) who would work for less. When the school administrators had the faculty vote on colors, the majority of the WI teachers voted for GREEN and GOLD. This should't need further explanation.

[KCScout76]

WI teachers voted for GREEN and GOLD.

Green & gold minutemen/patriots . . . I was wondering about that. I saw a site yesterday, the high school (Illinois) colors are purple and silver/white and they are the patriots. Yuck.

I have seen several schools around the Kansas City area, who's mascot is the panthers use the Carolina NFL logo - with the exception of the football team, most use a paw print, but all thier merchandise has the Carolina logo.

[Gothamite]

There's been a lot of talk about bad high school logos lately ? and, after seeing a few of the examples given, justifiably so ? but I figured there must be some good HS logos out there to balance out the bad.

Here's one from Fernie Secondary School:

I figure they must have gotten it fairly recently, though, as it hasn't been integrated into many of their uniforms. The apostrophe kinda bugs me, but overall this is one of the most original logos I have seen period.

If anyone else has got a photo of a good HS logo, post 'em here. Show 'em some DAP, as Mike Wilbon would say.

Nice logo, but the apostrophe jumped out at me as well.

Shouldn't a school avoid these sorts of errors? Or are the mascots really the "Fernie Falcon" singular?

[devilray2k1]

Good advice in here!

No hard feelings taken

I didnt mean to come off so "non-chalant" about getting paid but it's just a frustrating process! By the end of the whole ordeal, I was in "just hurry up and fluffing pay me" mode...all internal of course not like I actually gave off that vibe during the ordeal.

I know there's a lot more involved in this type of thing than meets the eye, too...but what am I supposed to do? I just got an idea and have been brainstorming how to execute it that's all.

Hey I just turned 22...I don't have 15 years of industry experience behind me...I don't know all the ins and outs of the business!

So I'm glad to get the feedback and everything I really appreciate it.

but that's my problem with established designers...they act like you're supposed to already know the stuff they know and when you come with some idea or something they treat you like some kind of idiot. NOT YOU GUYS (for the most part) I'm just venting here...

Oh and another question when a high school uses a pro or college logo, they still have to pay royalties or something like that right? Is it unregulated? Do they get away with it by doing something like changing the Packers' "G" logo by putting an "L" in it? Just wondering because the widespread football / basketball high school teams ripping off the pros is done way more than what is necessary in my opinion.

[swisherHOU]

Unless a scholastic athletic program's identity package is being (1) introduced on behalf of a brand new school, or (2) unveiled as part of a mandated image overhaul (i.e. in the wake of a decision that the current name/logo is somehow offensive), the odds of a school being given the okay to purchase brand-new, logo-emblazoned uniforms and equipment for each and every team, or being permitted to decorate all sports fields and facilities with a new logo, is "slim and none". It's just too expensive an undertaking for most local governments/school districts to undertake.

I assume most of you don't live in Texas.

The schools I've been to here all get new uniforms every year. Football, basketball and baseball. The football teams usually wear similar designs year to year with small changes just because the designs change from the people they order them from...but basketball at the high school I work at now have new designs each year.

They even painted the midfield of our stadium with the two helmets of teams playing there for a single playoff game.