We recently featured the logos of the Army and Naval Academies, so it made sense to also feature the logo of the Air Force Academy. This logo was used by the Falcons from 1955 until 1972. The team currently plays in the Mountain West Conference, and has won the “Commander In Chief’s” Trophy, signifying the top service academy program, the last 2 seasons. Air Force has sent numerous players on to the NFL, the most notable being defensive linemen Bryce Fisher and Chad Hennings.
Logo of the Washington Ambassadors football team that was slated to join the newly-formed World Football League in 1974, but never got off the ground. The prospective owners couldn’t work out arrangements to share RFK Stadium with the Washington Redskins (not surprising since the new league was formed to compete with the NFL). The team then looked at possible sites in Baltimore and Norfolk, Virginia but found nothing there either. By the time the league started play for its’ inaugural ’74 season, the Ambassadors were sold and relocated to Orlando, Florida and renamed the Florida Blazers.
Logo of the Nashville Kats football team, who played in the Arena League in 2 different versions. Named after the Lovin’ Spoonful song “Nashville Cats”, the original franchise played in the AFL starting in 1997 until moving to Atlanta in 2002. They were coached their first 2 seasons by former NFL player Ed Khayat, and played in 2 Arena Bowl title games, although they lost both. The franchise was reborn in Nashville in 2005, and played 3 more seasons before disbanding.
This is a logo, used from 1995 until 2004, of a Canadian Football League team, the Toronto Argonauts. The Argos, on Sunday, celebrated the 100th anniversary of the CFL’s championship game – the Grey Cup – by winning the title in their home city. The team has won 16 Grey Cups in all, including 3 during the era this logo was used, in 1996, ’97 and 2004. The two-time champion teams of the ’90s included Doug Flutie and Mike Vanderjagt, while the ’97 team was the only team in football history to feature 2 former Heisman Trophy winners at quarterback – Flutie and Andre Ware.
This is a memorial logo used as a patch on the uniforms of the Dallas Cowboys to honor their former coach, the legendary Tom Landry, following his death in 2000. It featured his trademark fedora hat, and was a fitting tribute to the man who built the team from an expansion franchise in 1960 into “America’s Team”, one of the most successful sports franchises of all time.
This logo looks very familiar to Buffalo football fans, but it’s actually the logo of a college football program, the Howard University Bison. The school plays in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, and won small school national championships in 1920, 1925 and 1926. The small historically black college, located in Washington, DC, has actually been open to both genders and all races since its’ founding shortly after the Civil War ended. The school has sent 20+ players on to the NFL, including Marques Douglas and Antoine Bethea.
Logo of the Kansas State Wildcats, who are a member of the Big 12 Conference. This logo was used by the school from 1975 until 1985, when the conference they played in was the Big Eight, and featured “Willie The Wildcat”, a character designed by art department students in the 1950s. K-State’s football program is a candidate for the national championship this season, but overall has a losing record for its’ history. A list of the top football players from the school’s history includes Steve Grogan, Lynn Dickey, Terence Newman, Martin Gramatica and current NFL players Josh Freeman, Jordy Nelson and Darren Sproles.
Logo of a college football program that plays in the Big Ten conference, the Wisconsin Badgers. This logo was in use from 1967 until 1990, and features school mascot Buckingham U. Badger, AKA Bucky Badger. The Badgers play their home games at Camp Randall Stadium, the fourth oldest stadium in college football. The program has produced a pair of Heisman Trophy winners – Alan Ameche in 1954 and Ron Dayne in 1999. Perhaps the best known alumnus of the Wisconsin football program is Pro Football Hall of Fame end Elroy “Crazy Legs” Hirsch.
Logo of a college football program that has been a powerhouse for a long time, the University of Alabama Crimson Tide. This logo is from the 1950s and ’60s, an era that saw the beginning of the long-time coaching career of the legendary Paul “Bear” Bryant, who won 6 national championships. Also during this era, some famous future NFL players suited up for the Tide, including Hall of Fame quarterbacks Bart Starr and Joe Namath, and long-time Dallas Cowboy linebacker Lee Roy Jordan.
Logo of another top college football program, the Arkansas Razorbacks. This logo was used from 1955 until 1963, a time frame that saw the beginning of the Frank Broyles coaching era, which lasted 19 years and was one of the most successful in school history. The Razorbacks played in the old, now defunct Southwest Conference at the time, winning conference titles and a national championship in ’64. Two well known players who starred as Razorbacks during the era of this logo are Lance Alworth and future coach Barry Switzer.