Logo of a college football team, the San Jose State Spartans, who play in the Mountain West Conference and have fielded a program since 1893. This logo was used in the 1950s. The Spartans have won 16 conference titles over the years, and the list of SJS alumni who have gone on to play pro football is extensive, and includes Steve DeBerg, Kim Bokamper, Gill Byrd, Stacey Bailey, Dan Colchico, Charlie Harraway, James Jones, Art Powell, Mel Tom, Louis Wright and Jeff Garcia.
Logo of a small college football team that plays in the Football Championship Subdivision, the Marist College Red Foxes. The school’s gridiron program has existed since 1978, and they currently play in the Pioneer Football League. The Red Foxes have claimed 4 conference titles in that time, the most recent in 2013. Despite their small college status, the school has had a couple of players move on to play in the NFL – Terrence Fede and a current player, placekicker Jason Myers.
Logo of a Western New York high school football team, the West Seneca West Indians, who won the New York State Class A championship in 2017, led by quarterback Matt Myers, who is now enrolled at the University of Buffalo. Notable WSW alumni include Olympic volleyball player Matt Anderson, former NFL players Jeremy Kelley and Matt Strzelczyk and famed video journalist Josh Pohlman. The 2018 Indians’ club also has high hopes, and their roster includes Juston Johnson, Liam Scheuer, John Speyer, Bryan Ball, Kyle Haettich, Jeb Braunscheidel and Connor Pohlman.
Logo of the Brooklyn Bolts, a football team that was a charter member of the Fall Experimental Football League, a defunct league that had hoped to be a developmental system for the NFL. The Bolts played from 2014 until 2016, and won the league championship in its’ first 2 seasons. Serving as consultants or coaches for the team were former NFL players and coaches like Rod Rust, Don Strock, Marvin Jones and Nate Poole. Their most recognizable player was quarterback Josh Freeman, who had a stint in the NFL.
Logo of a small college football team, the North Carolina Central University Eagles, who play in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. They were the Historically Black Colleges national champions in 2005 and 2006, and Eagle alumni who have gone on to play professional football include John Baker, Louis Breeden, Doug Wilkerson, William Frizzell, Chuck Hinton, Ernie Warlick, Robert Massey and Charles Romes.
Logo of a small college football team that plays in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association, the Bowie State Bulldogs. They are a Division II team so their contribution to pro football is minimal, with the most notable alumni being Isaac Redman and current player Khari Lee.
Used from 1953 until 1955, this is a logo of a college football team from the Pacific 12 Conference, the Washington State Cougars. The school’s football program has existed since 1893, while they began play in the Pac 12 in 1962 (it was the Pacific Eight Conference at that time). The Cougars’ list of alumni who played pro football includes Hall of Famers Mel Hein and Turk Edwards, as well as Keith Lincoln, Gail Cogdill, James Hasty, Joe Danelo, Rian Lindell, Drew Bledsoe, Mark Rypien, LaVern Torgeson, Harland Svare and the unforgettable Ryan Leaf.
Logo of a small college football team, the Morehouse College Maroon Tigers, whose alumni list of former players includes NFL referee Jerome Boger, former NFL players Kalvin Pearson and Isaac Keys, John David Washington (actor Denzel Washington’s son) and former major league baseball star Donn Clendenon, who was the 1969 World Series MVP. While at Morehouse, Clendenon’s graduate “Big Brother” mentor was Martin Luther King Jr.
Logo of the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders, a college football team that plays in the Eastern Division of Conference USA. The program has been in existence since 1911 and has sent numerous players on to careers in pro football, including Erik Walden, Kelly Holcomb, Dwight Stone, Ray Oldham, Mike Caldwell and Don Griffin. Current Tennessee Titan safety Kevin Byard is also a Blue Raider alumnus.
Logo of a football team that played in the now-defunct XFL, the Las Vegas Outlaws. The team had a ferocious defense that was nicknamed “The Dealers of Doom”. The league lasted only a single season, in 2001, and some notable Outlaw players included future NFLers Mike Furrey, Kelly Herndon and Rod Smart, who became famous for wearing the name “He Hate Me” on the back of his jersey.