This is a newer logo, from 2014, of a major college football program, the Stanford Cardinal, a member of the Pacific 12 Conference, North Division. Their program first came into existence in 1891. The school produced only one Heisman Trophy winner – Jim Plunkett – but has churned out some of pro football greatest players, including John Elway, Andrew Luck, Ernie Nevers, John Brodie, James Lofton and Richard Sherman.
This is a “script” logo of a team that played in the National Football League, the Baltimore Colts. It was used from 1972 until 1983, until the franchise relocated, secretly with moving vans in the middle of the night, to Indianapolis. There were quite a few disappointing seasons in the era leading up to the move. However, in the mid-1970s the club had a stretch of success under coach Ted Marchibroda and behind players like Bert Jones, Lydell Mitchell, Roger Carr, Stan White and Roosevelt Leaks.
This is an “alternate” logo of the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks, used from 2002 until 2011. It looks somewhat similar to a logo used by the Philadelphia Eagles over the years. The first year (2002) this logo was used coincided with the year the franchise was moved into the National Conference of the league, after having been in the AFC since their inception in 1976, and was also the year they moved into their current home stadium, CenturyLink Field. During these years, the team was coached by Mike Holmgren (until 2008) and reached the Super Bowl in 2005, losing a close contest to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Logo of a major college football program from the Southeast Conference, the University of Mississippi Rebels. The school, affectionately known to its’ fans as “Ole Miss”, is one of the country’s oldest programs, having been founded in 1893. They’ve played in the SEC since 1932, and over the years have claimed a number of conference titles and 4 national championships. The list of famous former Rebel players includes Bruiser Kinard, Archie Manning and son Eli, Charlie Connerly, Jim Dunaway, Patrick Willis, Larry Grantham, Ben Williams and Hall of Famer Gene Hickerson.
Logo of a college football team, the University of Houston Cougars, used from 1951 until 1961. At the time, they played in the Missouri Valley Conference and in ’51 played in their first bowl game, following that up with a conference title the following season. Some former Cougars who’ve gone on to play in the NFL include Pat Studstill, Elmo Wright, Antowain Smith, Dickie Post, Riley Odoms, Warren McVea and Robert Newhouse.
This is an alternate logo of a team that plays in the National Football League, the Washington Redskins, used from 1960 until 1965. Although the team has been a fairly successful NFL franchise, they did not manage a winning season during this era, and in fact had the worst record in franchise history (1-12-1) in 1961. They also were involved in a controversy involving the integration of the team, as owner George Preston Marshall, an avowed racist, had refused to allow a black player on his roster. Under pressure from the U.S. government, Marshall finally relented in 1962 and traded with the Cleveland Browns for Bobby Mitchell, a halfback who played wide receiver for the ‘Skins and wound up having a Hall of Fame-caliber career.
Logo of an old team from the National Football League, the Chicago Cardinals, used to commemorate the team’s 1947 championship season along with their Western Division title the following year. Players who starred for the Cardinals in that era include Paul Christman, Charley Trippi, Pat Harder, Red Cochran and Buster Ramsey. Incidentally, 1947 was the last year the Cardinal franchise, which relocated to St. Louis in 1960 and later to Arizona, won an NFL title.
An alternate logo of a team from the National Football League, the St. Louis Rams. It was first used in 1995, when the franchise moved from Los Angeles to the Gateway City, and included the city’s famous Gateway Arch in the team’s colors. St. Louis had been attempting to reacquire an NFL team since the Cardinals left for Arizona in 1987, and were finally successful in doing so by convincing the Rams’ owner Georgia Frontiere to move.
Logo of another team from the Ultimate Indoor Football League, the Lakeland Raiders. They lasted two seasons, 2012 and 2013. Following the 2013 season, they announced they would be joining the newly-formed X-League, changing their name to the Florida Marine Raiders.
This classic team logo is a special one that was used in 1997 to celebrate the Cincinnati Bengals’ 30th anniversary as an NFL franchise. The team actually started in the old American Football League, but team founder Paul Brown had only agreed to join the AFL after he was assured the league would merge with the established NFL, since he was convinced that the AFL was an inferior product. The start of that ’97 season was disastrous for the team, as they lost seven of their first eight games. The Bengals then inserted Boomer Esaison, whom they had re-acquired in the off-season even though he was in the twilight of his career, at quarterback and then won 6 of 8 to finish the year at 7-9.