Opinion BY Armin

Leave it to Beaver (and Nike)

Playing in the NCAA’s Division I tier through the Pac-12 Conference — sorry non-Americans, I know that means absolutely nothing to you (not that I blame you and in the bigger picture it doesn’t really matter other than you should know that’s the higher echelon of college sports) — the Oregon State Beavers are the sports team of Oregon State University. They haven’t been overly successful in terms of winning — only three NCAA national championships in Wrestling, Cross Country, and Baseball — but they have big followings in their football and basketball programs. Yesterday, the Beavers introduced a new logo, identity system, and uniforms designed by Nike’s Graphic Identity Group. The new beaver and block typography will replace the old beaver (obviously) as well as the well-known “OS” monogram and typography (all shown in animated GIF form above).

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A B-Side BY Armin

Nebraska Huskers (Secondary Logo)

About: (Est. 2013) “The Nebraska Cornhuskers (often abbreviated to Huskers) is the name given to several sports teams of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The university is a member of the Big Ten Conference. The Cornhuskers compete in NCAA Division I, fielding 21 varsity teams in 15 sports.” (Source: Wikipedia)

Design by: Design department at The Collegiate Licensing Company.

Ed.’s Notes: This is ONLY for the secondary logo, not the main Nebraska university logo nor the main Huskers logo.

Relevant links: In-depth article from the Huskers about the change.

Thanks to Jim Kosmicki for the tip.

A B-Side BY Armin

FIT Athletics and Recreation

About: FIT Athletics and Recreation, as described by Pentagram: “FIT, the Fashion Institute of Technology, is an internationally recognized college known for its exceptional curriculum in art, design, communications, business, and fashion, of course, but not for its sports teams. Over the years, however, FIT has developed a first-rate athletic program. The school fields 13 intercollegiate teams in such sports as volleyball, soccer, tennis, track and field, half-marathon, cross country, swimming and table tennis, plus a dance company.”

Design by: Pentagram partner DJ Stout

Ed.’s Notes: Sample uniform and logo extensions below (or after the jump). The team is known as FIT Tigers, hence the tiger.

Relevant links: Pentagram case study (plenty more images).

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Opinion BY Armin

ESPN College Football Buffs Up

For some people the end of Summer is a bummer. It’s back to work and back to school. For a whole bunch of other people — in this case Americans to be specific — it’s the beginning of their obsession. College Football. Bars are full. Conversations are about nothing else. Men scream at TVs wearing faux uniforms whose colors does not befit their skin tones or physiques. But it’s here. And bringing these seemingly life-or-death matches to the screen is ESPN through its ESPN College Football (ESPN CF) programming, which has the rights to air games from the major divisions. To add a little oomph to this season’s package ESPN CF turned to brand agency Troika to overhaul the on-air package.

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Opinion BY Armin

A Fierce Blue Camel

Let’s be perfectly honest here. The only reason we are talking about this is because it involves camels. Specifically the “before” camel. Look at it and tell me you don’t want to learn more? Why is it so complacent? Who is it waiting for in such relaxed repose? Is it smiling at me? Can I take it home and feed it blue food? Okay, maybe I’m getting carried away and we should just state some facts. The adorable camel is the ex-mascot of the Connecticut College Camels, the 28-team athletics department of this small liberal arts college in New London, Connecticut, with a petite student body of 1,900. The Camels compete in the NCAA Division III but are also part of the exclusive New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC), a fact worth pointing out as it is a conference that features athletic departments with a chicken, a cow, a donkey and a polar bear as their mascots — needless to say, they are not the fiercest teams in U.S. college sports. Earlier this month, the Camels unveiled a new camel, created by sports-branding-machine Rickabaugh Graphics. (Sadly, their web site has been the same since 2006).

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