Recap: AUDL Team Logos

The series evaluating the 8 team logos and nicknames of the professional Ultimate league is complete. A compilation of final grades for the AUDL teams' design are below.

Philadelphia Spinners: A-

Indianapolis AlleyCats: B

Columbus Cranes: C

Detroit Mechanix: C

Bluegrass Revolution: D

Rhode Island Rampage: D

Buffalo Hunters: F

Connecticut Constitution: F-

View full reviews and critiques for all 8 teams.

Final thoughts from Jeremiah: In this day of sublimated jerseys, there may be less consideration for this, but none of these designs would be able to be printed on a disc without some considerable alterations, which I think could be a big miss in marketing terms.

In designing a brand or logo for a sports club/team if you can figure a way to incorporate the ball or in this case, the disc into the logo, it better be rendered well. Not necessarily photo realistic, but at least representative of a Discraft Ultra-Star 175g Ultimate disc, not a 99¢ beach disc.

If you are interested in creating logos for sports teams, take a few minutes and look at the work of Fraser Davidson. This guy is at the top of the game when it comes to sports branding.

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Many thanks to Jeremiah Boncha [founder threadsUltimate.com + rimagives.org & also at bonchadotdiscs.tumblr.com] for contributing to this series.

Review: AUDL Philadelphia Spinners

Next in the series evaluating the 8 AUDL team logos and nicknames.

Team: Philadelphia Spinners // Website: http://philadelphiaspinners.com

Colors: Red, Blue, White // Representation: City

Disc within logo?: Yes. //  Ultimate element in team name?: Yes. (spins)

History/Research: The Spinners are a soul music group from Detroit with hits like "I'll Be Around". There's a minor league baseball team (Boston Red Sox affiliate), whose location - Lowell, Massachusetts - is known as a textile mill town. Less than 10 tornadoes have been seen in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania since 1958.

First impression(s): Could be a freestyling group from Philly, or disc golfers - as in Arizona. The starred disc resembles the shield for Captain America...

Jeremiah's Eval: Not great, but this is probably the most successful design of the bunch. It is not the best illustration of an Ultimate disc, but I think the overall simplicity of the design is its biggest strength.

Jeremiah's Grade: A-

What are your thoughts on this AUDL's team name & logo?

Review: AUDL Bluegrass Revolution

Next in the series evaluating the 8 AUDL team logos and nicknames.

Team: Bluegrass Revolution // Website: http://bluegrassrevolution.com/

Colors: Green, Black, Grey // Representation: State

Disc within logo?: Yes. //  Ultimate element in team name?: Yes. (disc spins)

History/Research: Formerly named "River City" (a nickname for Louisville), bluegrass refers to the geographic region in the state of Kentucky. The fleur-de-lis (flower of lillies) is the Official Seal of the City of Louisville representing French aid given during the Revolutionary War. Lexington - about 75 miles east of the 'Ville - is the location of the team's home field.

First impression(s): Logo could be an Irish bar in New Orleans; or, a Québec spin class. Apt Ultimate team, as it is for a song (Beatles), a remedy (Che), as well as a California band playing alt-country, gypsy jazz, blues & progressive acoustic music.

Jeremiah's Eval: The Fleur-de-lis could very well be clipart. The font is unidentifiable, but looks threatening. Although the outline of the font is done poorly. Some serifs have white outlines that are pointed and others that are flat, it might be nice if they were all pointed to enforce the aggressive feeling of the font. There is a sliver between the "T" and "I" that could easily poke an eye out. The black outline has a few misguided spikes that need to be looked after above the "N".

Jeremiah's Grade: D

What are your thoughts on this AUDL's team name & logo?

Review: AUDL Rhode Island Rampage

Next in the series evaluating the 8 AUDL team logos and nicknames.

Team: Rhode Island Rampage // Website: http://www.rirampage.com/

Colors: Black, Orange, White // Representation: State

Disc within logo?: No. //  Ultimate element in team name?: No.

History/Research: Rhinoceros are knee-less animals with poor vision (nearsighted), yet have excellent senses of smell and hearing. Though large (5,000 lbs), a black rhino can thunder at 40 miles per hour! A group of rhinos is sometimes called a "crash".

First impression(s): Portland called...they want their mascot idea returned. Shaped like an oval bumper sticker for a town in the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. The alliteration is cute, even for serious softball.

Jeremiah's Eval: Is the oval supposed to represent a disc? The illustration of the rhino head is an interesting stylization, but I am not sure it has the right feeling for any sports team. I am wondering if the stencil font was chosen to allude to going on safari... like we are going hunting. But the ball, or is it disc(?) was dropped with the stencil font and it was given a drop-shadow. Listen up... stencils are cut out of paper and most often spray paint is used to fill in the holes on the surface behind the stencil. Now go think about that for a few minutes.

Jeremiah's Grade: D

What are your thoughts on this AUDL's team name & logo?

Review: AUDL Buffalo Hunters

Next in the series evaluating the 8 AUDL team logos and nicknames.

Team: Buffalo Hunters // Website: http://www.thebuffalohunters.com/

Colors: Blue, Red, White // Representation: City

Disc within logo?: Yes. //  Ultimate element in team name?: No.

History/Research: The former bison population probably helped name the city of Buffalo, just as its famous food, Buffalo wings, has been embraced. In 1877, there was a conflict called Buffalo Hunters' War where a band of Comanche (Plains Indian) warriors attacked a group of buffalo hunters and stole their stock. Currently, hunting of wild bison is legal in some states & provinces where public herds require culling.

First impression(s): On par with a high school Ultimate logo. Looks like a winged plaque flattening a plate; or, a beer can with wings atop a cracked disc. The wings are reminiscent of Harley's, & seem gratuitous unless they are on the menu...

Jeremiah's Eval: Not an Ultimate disc. Font BAD. Buffalo BAD. Snort BAD. Wings BAD.

Jeremiah's Grade: F

What are your thoughts on this AUDL's team name & logo?

Review: AUDL Detroit Mechanix

Next in the series evaluating the 8 AUDL team logos and nicknames.

Team: Detroit Mechanix // Website: http://detmechanix.com/

Colors: Burgundy, Black, Grey // Representation: City

Disc within logo?: No. // Ultimate element in team name?: No, not really; Yes, in an abstract way. (motion)

History/Research: Detroit, dubbed the Motor City, because of being the center of American automotive industry.

First impression(s): Though misspelled, team name has interesting double meaning: 1) those who fix autos [whom I generally distrust]; 2) physics (velocity, acceleration & momentum). Design resembles the Fling A Ring toy. No actual hurricane has ever been observed in Michigan under the true definition of a hurricane.

Jeremiah's Eval: "MECHANIX" appears to be on two different planes because the outside letters have a thicker outline than the inside letters. With the apparent auto theme, the gear seems to make sense, but the "hurricane" behind the gear seems a bit out of place. The outline on the gear is not connected on the top section, leaving artifacts that look like tiny spikes and are a sign of amateur work. The font used for "MECHANIX" appears to be from a tech company, in 1999.

Jeremiah's Grade: C

What are your thoughts on this AUDL's team name & logo?

Review: AUDL Columbus Cranes

Next in the series evaluating the 8 AUDL team logos and nicknames.

Team: Columbus Cranes // Website: http://www.columbuscranes.com/

Colors: Blue, White, Orange // Representation: City

Disc within logo?: Yes. //  Ultimate element in team name?: Yes. (flight)

History: The sandhill crane is an endangered species within the state of Ohio. Among the oldest living species of birds, dating back 2.5 million years. Perhaps the most unique characteristic of the sandhill crane is its tendency to dance. Although an integral part of their courtship, they can be seen dancing any time of the year.

First impression(s): A conservancy group for egrets. Stork delivery service of baby discs. Kinda like CRANE Plumbing logo...

Jeremiah's Eval: Using Arial as the typeface makes me think there was not much thought put into font choice in addition to the bad letter spacing. "AUDL" is placed on the disc so there is a sliver of color after the "L"... why not make it look centered on the disc with good spacing all around. Some of the lines in the wings of the crane are too scribbly to be read as feathers.

Jeremiah's Grade: C

What are your thoughts on this AUDL's team name & logo?

Review: AUDL Indy AlleyCats

Next in the series evaluating the 8 AUDL team logos and nicknames.

Team: Indianapolis AlleyCats // Website: http://myalleycats.com/

Colors: Green, Black, Red // Representation: City

Disc within logo?: Yes. Tho, looks like a hockey puck. //  Ultimate element in team name?: No.

History/Research: There was a CBA/ABA basketball team - Indiana Alley Cats. Further, stray & feral ("alley") cats are the greatest source of cat overpopulation. Indianapolis Animal Care and Control (IACC) can't save and support the overwhelming number of accidental litters, stray and family cats brought to the shelter doors everyday. Nearly 72% of the cats that enter government-run city shelters are killed due to lack of resource. There is a national advocacy group for Alley Cats (two words)...

First impression(s): Better a feline > canine so as to not feed into the stereotype that Ultimate includes dogs! Looks like a Cat Rescue League logo that uses large collars.

Jeremiah's Eval: Is it windy in Indy? Or maybe they are just prickly. Good illustration of the cat, it could be simplified for better reproduction, but it looks like it has a tire around its neck, I am not sure if that is supposed to be a disc, if it is maybe the cat just got decapitated. I am ambivalent about the font, nothing special. But the knockout between the two "L"s needs to be resolved, if the kerning is reduced the sliver of space between them is gone.

Jeremiah's Grade: B

What are your thoughts on this AUDL's team name & logo?

Review: AUDL Connecticut Constitution

First in the series evaluating the 8 AUDL team logos and nicknames.

Team: Connecticut Constitution // Website: http://www.ctconstitution.com/

Colors: Red, White, Blue // Representation: State

Disc within logo?: Yes. //  Ultimate element in team name?: No.

History: The original constitutions of Connecticut state influenced the US Constitution, as one of the leading authors was from New Haven (CT).

First impression(s): Could be a British army soldier (red coat) with a wicked inside-out throw; or, a patriotic reenactor who tosses vinyl records. The state name in and of itself relates to Ultimate more than the team name [Connect (when) I Cut]. Similar to old NE Patriots logo...

Jeremiah's Eval: Illustration is bad, although a good attempt for someone's first try at using Adobe Illustrator (I assume). Because of where the throwing hand is, it looks like the follow through for a flick, but the rough curved lines make it look like the "disc" was coming from across the front of the body indicating backhand. The whole design is very goofy. Whatever is being thrown is not a disc, especially not an Ultimate disc. I am trying to figure out what is going on with the malformed grey area inside the oval red shape. The typography leaves a lot to be desired.

Jeremiah's Grade: F-

What are your thoughts on this AUDL's team name & logo?

AUDL "Curb Appeal"

Quite an evolution for the inaugural 8 AUDL teams since the pro ultimate league announcement. From selecting cities, organizing tryouts, selecting rosters, to selling tickets and merch. The first pull is April 14, 2012!

One of the more fascinating aspects of the AUDL is the team names. So important that "Ultimate - The Greatest Sport Ever Invented by Man" dedicates one chapter ['Choosing a Name for Your Ultimate Team'] on this subject.

Think about professional leagues and how certain team names would be received if released today...
White Sox! Really, Chicago? Lions! Why in Detroit? Wild! Most abstract, Minnesota. Jazz! Doesn't sound right Utah. Of course, history can explain team names, a relocation may influence given names, an update may occur based on the newest trendy color, marketing/branding advice may get in the way, etc...

Ultimate has an awesome opportunity to display itself as: 1) a top-level sport & 2) a professional sport with the American Ultimate Disc League. Knowing the importance of first impressions, I'd rather opinions be influenced by the display of on-field athleticism and competition; not by the team's image. So, COMING SOON...an insight/critique of nicknames & logos for the eight AUDL teams.

from the AUDL Webpage 'Teams'

Thanks in advance to the review panel: Sludge teammate RacHel, and Jeremiah Boncha [founder asteriskthreads.com + rimagives.org & also at bonchadotdiscs.tumblr.com].

RECAP of the 2012 AUDL logos.