By Ron Hadf ield
W
ith a stirring video, light show, floor-shaking music and several thousand students cheering, the first new athletics graphic identity in 16 years for Abilene Christian University was successfully launched Feb. 15 in Moody Coliseum.
Daniel Gomez
But what should a That’s three years longer 21st-century Wildcat than ACU students had to look like? wait before the university ACU’s first semblance of decided on a mascot name a recognized athletics logo in 1919. From its founding was actually the idea of in 1906, teams competed forward-thinking head without one until a social track and field coach club won a fundraising Oliver Jackson (’42). In contest to buy land for 1958 – thanks to sophomore a place for baseball and Bobby Morrow’s three gold football teams to play, and medals in the Melbourne with the victory, earned Olympics two years earlier naming rights. Shalaina Lakey (track and field) and Jesse Harper (football) were – he believed his team Wildcats beat out two of the student-athletes who helped with the logo reveal Feb.15 in deserved a memorable Antelopes in the club’s Moody Coliseum. symbol to wear while name-that-mascot derby, competing in the nation’s top meets. Jackson teamed and before long, Wildcat Park was built near North First with art professor Norman Whiteside (’47) to create a Street, Wildcat Gym was constructed, Wildcat Band five-point shield with the acronym ACU inside. With a (forerunner of the Big Purple) was playing to rave reviews few exceptions, the mark was largely used by track and and, well, the beat went on. field and cross country teams for the next 40-plus years, A Felis silvestris (wildcat) is native to Asia, and adapted for a few seasons by men’s head basketball Africa and Europe. In North America, however, a coach Dee Nutt (’50) for his team’s travel blazers. wildcat is a common name representing the lynx But no widespread Wildcat was in sight. (Lynx canadensis) and the bobcat (Lynx rufus), among Several Wildcat illustrations appeared on uniforms others. This identity crisis has never held ACU’s Wildcat and on the court at Bennett Gym and Moody Coliseum teams back, considering they’ve won the fourth most through the decades, none especially memorable nor NCAA national team championships in history, behind easily transferable to other uses. In 1997, alumnus only UCLA, Stanford and USC. Rubén Santiago (’80) helped ACU create its first set of Sports marketing is so prevalent, it seems it has professionally designed athletics marks for all teams to been around forever. Actually, most college football use, including the “interlocking ACU” that is part of the teams didn’t put a logo on their helmets until the 1960s university’s academic logo today. (and some, like the Alabama Crimson Tide, still don’t). The marketing of intercollegiate athletics has ACU didn’t deploy a logo on a helmet until 1965, and a become big business in the past two decades. Today, Wildcat didn’t appear on one until 1968.
ACU Today
Spring-Summer 2013
11