Humble Observer - Sports
Lack of variety in school mascots alarms this reporter
 |
| Whitfield |
The more things stay the same, the more they never change.
Over the past two weeks, I’ve become quite acquainted with the local high school football teams. I have visited practice after practice, watched scrimmage after scrimmage, pored over Dave Campbell’s “Texas Football” so many times that I’ve darn near memorized it.
And you know the one thing I’ve noticed the most during these past two weeks?
Every school has the same mascot.
Well, maybe that isn’t exactly the case, but it’s pretty close. Kingwood, Westfield and Aldine are all the Mustangs. Atascocita, Eisenhower and New Caney are all the Eagles. Humble, Dekaney and Splendora are all the Wildcats, and Nimitz’s mascot is the Cougar, which is so close to “Wildcats” in its banality that I might as well lump the two together.
Need I go on?
Oh, and while we’re at it, could someone please tell me what on earth a wildcat is? I’ve heard of many different cats that live in the wild, but never a wildcat. Who came up with that one?
I know that all of these schools were constructed at different times over the course of human history and that coming up with a suitable mascot isn’t too high on the list of priorities.
But as a sports fan, it gets a little mind-boggling when I see just how little variety there is on that front. One might think that the University Interscholastic League forces new schools to draw names out of a hat. Where, I ask, is the originality?
I think it’s high time that UIL designate a new “commissioner of school nicknames” to help deal with this unfortunate situation. This person should not only have the power to decide mascots for new schools, but should also be able to
And since I’m the person writing this column, I’ll throw my name into the ring. I think I’d make an excellent commissioner.
If I was in charge of school nicknames, I would just outright ban “Eagles” and “Wildcats” from ever being used again. Honestly, I think every single district in Class 5A has at least one team with at least one of those nicknames. I know the eagle is a national symbol and wildcats sound menacing, but can’t we come up with something else?
Also, I would put a halt to this disturbing trend of schools ripping off National Football League and major college logos as their own. I’m sure we have some talented artists around here. Surely they can design better logos.
But alas, there will never be a “commissioner of school nicknames.” I’ll have to settle for being a humble sports reporter for now.
In the meantime, here are some schools from Texas Class 5A that I think merit an honorable mention for thinking outside the box.
Deer Park Deer: The name “Deer” doesn’t exactly inspire athletic greatness, but the name rolls off the tongue so well. The Deer Park Deer? It’s so obvious, yet so completely out there. I love it.
San Antonio MacArthur Brahmas: Not exactly sure what a Brahma is? Well, get in line. At first I thought they were referring the Hindu god of creation, which automatically put them at the top of my list. But I think the folks at San Antonio MacArthur were referring to a type of bull.
Austin Westlake Chaparrals: Growing up in north-central Austin, I came to despite those preppy rich kids from Westlake and their fancy-pants football stadium. But I have to admit that the old-school “Chaparrals” is pretty cool.
Southlake Carroll Dragons: Dragons is a nickname that I thought I’d see more frequently, but not too many schools use it. Given Southlake Carroll’s success on the football field, I’m surprised more schools don’t copy it.
Weatherford Kangaroos: The Kangaroos? Yes! Yes! YES! That beats Eagles any day of the week and twice on Sundays.
Over the past two weeks, I’ve become quite acquainted with the local high school football teams. I have visited practice after practice, watched scrimmage after scrimmage, pored over Dave Campbell’s “Texas Football” so many times that I’ve darn near memorized it.
And you know the one thing I’ve noticed the most during these past two weeks?
Every school has the same mascot.
Well, maybe that isn’t exactly the case, but it’s pretty close. Kingwood, Westfield and Aldine are all the Mustangs. Atascocita, Eisenhower and New Caney are all the Eagles. Humble, Dekaney and Splendora are all the Wildcats, and Nimitz’s mascot is the Cougar, which is so close to “Wildcats” in its banality that I might as well lump the two together.
Need I go on?
Oh, and while we’re at it, could someone please tell me what on earth a wildcat is? I’ve heard of many different cats that live in the wild, but never a wildcat. Who came up with that one?
I know that all of these schools were constructed at different times over the course of human history and that coming up with a suitable mascot isn’t too high on the list of priorities.
But as a sports fan, it gets a little mind-boggling when I see just how little variety there is on that front. One might think that the University Interscholastic League forces new schools to draw names out of a hat. Where, I ask, is the originality?
I think it’s high time that UIL designate a new “commissioner of school nicknames” to help deal with this unfortunate situation. This person should not only have the power to decide mascots for new schools, but should also be able to
And since I’m the person writing this column, I’ll throw my name into the ring. I think I’d make an excellent commissioner.
If I was in charge of school nicknames, I would just outright ban “Eagles” and “Wildcats” from ever being used again. Honestly, I think every single district in Class 5A has at least one team with at least one of those nicknames. I know the eagle is a national symbol and wildcats sound menacing, but can’t we come up with something else?
Also, I would put a halt to this disturbing trend of schools ripping off National Football League and major college logos as their own. I’m sure we have some talented artists around here. Surely they can design better logos.
But alas, there will never be a “commissioner of school nicknames.” I’ll have to settle for being a humble sports reporter for now.
In the meantime, here are some schools from Texas Class 5A that I think merit an honorable mention for thinking outside the box.
Deer Park Deer: The name “Deer” doesn’t exactly inspire athletic greatness, but the name rolls off the tongue so well. The Deer Park Deer? It’s so obvious, yet so completely out there. I love it.
San Antonio MacArthur Brahmas: Not exactly sure what a Brahma is? Well, get in line. At first I thought they were referring the Hindu god of creation, which automatically put them at the top of my list. But I think the folks at San Antonio MacArthur were referring to a type of bull.
Austin Westlake Chaparrals: Growing up in north-central Austin, I came to despite those preppy rich kids from Westlake and their fancy-pants football stadium. But I have to admit that the old-school “Chaparrals” is pretty cool.
Southlake Carroll Dragons: Dragons is a nickname that I thought I’d see more frequently, but not too many schools use it. Given Southlake Carroll’s success on the football field, I’m surprised more schools don’t copy it.
Weatherford Kangaroos: The Kangaroos? Yes! Yes! YES! That beats Eagles any day of the week and twice on Sundays.
Copyright © 2009 - Houston Community Newspapers Online