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This a very rare pennant featuring the logo of a football team that played in the Continental League from 1965 through 1969, the Orlando Panthers. They had a history playing in other cities and in various minor leagues before joining the COFL and settling in their home at the Tangerine Bowl. The league was trying to rival the NFL. Their first head coach in ’65 was Hall of Famer Steve Van Buren, and despite financial woes they were one of the league’s more successful teams, winning titles in 1967 and ’68.

Logo of a pro football team that began life in the old American Football League, the Cincinnati Bengals. Founded in 1967 by legendary coach Paul Brown, they first played in the AFL in the ’68 season, and although they won only 3 games, they boasted the AFL’s Rookie of The Year in halfback Paul Robinson. Brown built the Bengals into a winner rather quickly, as they won the AFC Central Division title in their third year of existence, and their first in the newly merged NFL. Players on those early Cincinnati teams included Robinson, Lemar Parrish, Ken Riley, Bill Bergey, Bob Trumpy and future Bengal head coach Sam Wyche.

It’s December, and we’re headed into prime college bowl game season, so this is not a team logo, but the logo of a bowl game, courtesy of SportsLogos.Net, the Pop Tarts Bowl. Played annually in Orlando, Florida, the game has existed since 1990 under different sponsorships, most recently the Cheez-It Bowl. 2023 is the first year under the Pop Tarts name. The game has conference tie-ins with the Big 12 and Atlantic Coast Conference.

Logo of a football team that played in the old Continental Football League, the Montreal Beavers. The team began play in the league as the Ft. Wayne Warriors but was sold and moved to Montreal in 1966. The franchise lasted 2 seasons there before folding prior to the 1968 season. Some former Beavers include Mike Hafner, Jim LeClair, Ronnie Lamb and Bob Brown, all of whom went on to play in the AFL or NFL.

Logo of a pro football team that lasted less than a full season in the old defunct World Football League back in 1974, the New York Stars. The WFL wanted a team in the Big Apple, but this franchise was woefully underfunded. They used the New York market to bring in a pair of former New York Jets players, George Sauer, who was lured out of retirement, and Gerry Philbin. Their first head coach was Joe Namath’s former backup quarterback Babe Parilli. Despite compiling a winning record of 8-5, the team failed at the box office and was moved to Charlotte for the rest of the season, eventually morphing into the Charlotte Hornets.

Older logo of a college football team that plays in the Pioneer League, the Drake University Bulldogs. Their gridiron program began play in 1893 and they’ve been a Pioneer League member since 1993. The Bulldogs have won 14 conference titles and a national championship in 1922. Drake alumni who have enjoyed pro football careers include Billy Cundiff, Karl Kassulke, Felix Wright, Dan Turk, Pug Manders, Jerry Mertens, Eric Saubert and Dennis McKnight.

Used from 2003 until 2014, this is an alternate logo of a storied National Football League team, the Cleveland Browns. The logo is part of the resurrected franchise that came into existence in 1999 as an expansion team after the city had lost the team to Baltimore following the 1995 season. The Browns currently are members of the AFC North division of the league, and although in their early years they were a powerhouse, they are one of a handful of clubs that has never reached the Super Bowl.

Logo of a small college football team that plays in the Big South Conference, the Robert Morris University Colonials. They are a relatively new program in that they began play in 1994, but have won 6 conference titles in that span. They are coached by former NFL player Bernard Clark, and former Colonials who have played pro ball include Hank Fraley, Robb Butler and Tim Hall.

Logo of a college football team that plays in the Southland Conference, the Lamar University Cardinals. They began play in 1923 and have racked up 5 conference titles. The school has made 3 bowl appearances and won 2 of them. Former Cardinals who have gone on to play pro ball include Wayne Moore, Dudley Meredith, Johnny Fuller, Bobby Jancik and Eugene Seale.

Logo of a team that plays in the AFC South division of the National Football League, the Tennessee Titans. Born in 1960 as the Houston Oilers, original members of the American Football League, the franchise moved to Tennessee in 1997. They played in Memphis as the Tennessee Oilers until their new stadium in Nashville was completed. They began play there in 1999 and rebranded as the Titans, reaching the Super Bowl that year, where they lost to the St. Louis Rams.