University of Oregon - “O” (with a story about the shape)
Notre Dame - “ND” monogram, with an honorable mention for the “surly Irishman”
University of Miami - stylized “U”
Those are all big sports schools with high visibility and big merchandise sales, but others like Bowdoin, University of Hawaii, and Hofstra also made the list.
Overall, it seemed a bit random to me… I was surprised to find that the dated-looking Bowdoin bear is only seven years old. Apparently they wanted a traditional, timeless look. There’s definitely nothing there that suggests the 21st century.
I find the Hofstra logo interesting. One problem with a lion mascot is that it’s one of the few mascot animals in which the male and female of the species look very different. Perhaps in an effort to be inclusive, they put both genders into the logo. It turned out better than one might expect.
What’s your favorite college logo? And which university logos are overdue for a refresh?
From a graphics design perspective, whoever wrote this doesn’t have great taste. I agree that it seems pretty random. I definitely wouldn’t have included Ohio, Clemson, Bowdoin, or Hofstra on that list. But I will agree that University of Texas’s is very good. Don’t know what else I would include, but my list would definitely not look like this one.
I like FSU’s also, @moscott. Unlike just about every other mascot related to Native Americans, it’s respectful and apparently has the approval of the real Seminoles.
A lot of logo appeal isn’t the design, it’s the association in our mind. To someone from another country, the Michigan “M” barely resembles a logo. But, many of us here associate it with the school’s rich tradition and its brand colors.
The CocaCola logo resonates with people globally. That has more to do with decades of advertising and promotion than a brilliant logo design. The color of a brand even by itself can be significant. There’s no Marlboro logo on the red Formula 1 cars these days, but the color alone has been shown to make smokers crave a cigarette.
Having said that, a good logo is still better than a bad one.
I still haven’t quite forgiven Tulane for retiring in the mid 1990’s the logo I use as my avatar. It is of course still my favorite. The story behind it is also fairly cool, in that it reminds people that for several decades in the first half of the 20th century, Tulane was actually a football power. The team was described by a well known sports writer as a “Green Wave rolling down the field”, which got incorporated into a fight song as well. Needless to say it is unlikely those days will ever return. Before that they were simply known as “The Green” ala Harvard and The Crimson.
My dad almost always wears burnt orange Texas shirts when he travels. People give him the “Hook 'em Horns” sign all over the world - even in remote parts of Africa.
These rankings are subjective, but gotta give some love to PSU in this thread. Like with Texas, Penn State has a sleek logo that is easily recognizable by most people.
@MaineLonghorn Same thing is true for Penn State. Doesn’t matter where I am, seems like every time I wear a Penn State shirt in public, I meet another Penn Stater and get a, “We Are…Penn State”.
Why does everything seem to like Clemson’s? It looks like an elementary school logo from the 90s. Also, as a Wisconsinite, I can’t support Georgia’s because they just recolored the Packers logo.
