USF Hockey Needs a Logo
The University of South Florida has a hockey team — it's true. They're actually quite good. This coming season they're celebrating their impressive 20th anniversary. They want to introduce a unique, new look that will make them stand out. Naturally, they came to Icethetics.
Designers, this is your opportunity to help rebrand a real team — the USF Ice Bulls. The Ice Bulls play in the American Collegiate Hockey League's Division III and are a small, non-profit organization and as such cannot afford to pay a big marketing firm for a new identity. It also means no monetary compensation for Icethetics designers. However, that doesn't mean there won't be swag for the winner. Read on.
The Project Guidelines: Your task, should you choose to accept it, is to create a new visual identity for the USF Ice Bulls. You may NOT use elements from the official university logos, seen below. Your logos must be original and stick to the team color palette — green, gold, white and black.The new logo will appear on the team web site, T-shirts, hats and other items.
Creative Direction: The organization is looking for a distinctive, professional-grade logo to represent the team on and off the ice. The design will be part of a larger marketing effort to help the team stand out apart from the university. I posted the university's official athletics logos for inspiration, but they may not be part of your final designs.
The team would like a distinguished look, recognizable as a hockey team. This means no goofy characters or eccentric artwork. To aid in establishing the new identity, they are not opposed to using the team name as well as hockey paraphernalia such as sticks or pucks in the design.
Minimum Requirements: Submit an original primary logo using the predefined color palette, below. If text is included in the logo, Serpentine font must be used. (Similar Babylon 5 font available for free online.) The team name isn't a requirement but would be useful in terms of establishing the new identity.
You may also submit secondary marks but these are not required.
Color Palette: You may use black, white, green (PMS 343 or RGB 0,87,60) and gold (PMS 4515 or RGB 203,182,118). Black is the only optional color, the rest are required.
The Reward: Unlike our other competitions, these logos will not go up for a vote initially. Finalists will be displayed on the blog but the winner will be chosen by the Ice Bulls organization.
The designer of the winning logo will be given an official team jersey as well as a T-shirt featuring the logo. Scroll down for full prize list! Other items may be announced at a later date.Since the season is beginning soon, the new logo will not be featured on the uniforms this year, but could be in the future.
As if that weren't enough, think about how great a college hockey team identity would look in your portfolio!
Bonus: You might increase your odds at winning if you create a 20th Anniversary logo to match your primary mark. Same rules as above. Just saying.
Submissions/Legal: By submitting your artwork to icethetics@gmail.com, you are freely relinquishing rights of the design to the University of South Florida Ice Bulls hockey club for the purposes of marketing the team. The Ice Bulls organization will choose the winning logo and reserves to right to make alterations as needed. The creator of the winning logo will be compensated as previously stated.
So have fun with this project, guys. There isn't really a set timeline for this project but I would like to take some designs to the team within the next couple of weeks. As always, questions can be directed to me by email or in the comments.
Chris
The USF Ice Bulls are now giving you an even better reason to help recreate their visual identity — a cash prize! I just got word from the team that they're going to offer $100 to the winning designer. As if that weren't enough, they're now confirming that the winning logo will be the crest on the home jersey THIS season!
So many great submissions have already come in, but the Ice Bulls are hoping to ramp up the efforts by sweetening the pot a little. So let's say your design wins, allow me to recap your reward:
- Official Ice Bulls home jersey featuring your primary logo as the crest
- Your 20th anniversary logo as a patch on the jerseys all season
- Ice Bulls hockey t-shirt featuring your logo
- $100 in cash
- Visibility of your work by more than 30,000 USF students and staff via a variety of on-campus marketing materials as well as the team's official web site
- ACHA Division III team visual identity in your portfolio
So if that doesn't make you want in, I don't know what will. Once the Ice Bulls have made a decision, I'll start posting the designs I've received on the Concepts page — liven that up a little bit.
By the way, if you've already submitted artwork you're still eligible for all of the aforementioned prizes. Good luck to all!
Chris
The Ice Bulls have made a final decision on their new logo and the winning design will be unveiled on their web site tomorrow. I'll be sure to let you know when that happens.
Reader Comments (46)
This is really cool, for a couple reasons. First, it's a great opportunity for designers here to actually brand an ACTUAL team, not a fictitious one. And second, to have a university turn to this website (even a small one like USF) is a great acknowledgement of Icethetics.
Unfortunately, I'm not a graphic designer, and couldn't create a look to save my ass, but should be fun to see what guys can come up with, knowing that their design could be seen by people other than Icethetics readers. Good luck, guys.
Hi Kevin. It's worth noting that while you may not hear much about it, USF is far from a small school. The hockey team may be small, but the university boasts over 30,000 students on its primary campus alone.
In other words, this isn't small time for designers.
This is Insanely cool. I will definitely be working hard to try something.
It's actually USF has the single largest undergraduate program in the United States of America, and I think the world, but I'd have to check that out.
Which, in short, is freaking AWESOME! To have the largest school in the US come to your website to ask for a rebrand of your hockey team? Amazing. You've officially arrived Chris!
I hear Six Zero has submitted 14 designs already!! ha. kidding.
Too bad they're not NCAA.
Hey Chris, can you elabourate on what you meant by not taking any elements from the original logos?
USF is an American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) team. Its a parallel league to the NCAA run by USA Hockey for club-level college teams (I say parallel, but NCAA hockey is obviously of a higher caliber). As an ACHA alum myself, I think this is awesome and I encourage anyone to assist ACHA teams when it comes to this kind of stuff whenever possible. The teams are usually student-run (including most of the funding) and yet turn out an awesome product in terms of professionalism and quality of hockey, but its always with the help of great volunteers.
Gonna give it a shot! Are multiple submissions allowed Chris?
The Ice Bulls have to pay a fee to the university to use the official athletics logos. They'd like to avoid that by creating their own individual identity. You can use the same colors and I would even encourage you to design in the same style as the university logos, but the U, the USF and the bull in the shield... all of those elements need to stay out of your design. Does that answer your question?
Absolutely! The more the merrier!
Yeah, Thanks.
I have some ideas but I do not have a great deal of graphic design skill, if I rough some things together could someone help refine the idea?
i would Kent
Kent Take Roccot up on this! He's a great designer!
I'm all for you guys teaming up on this project! There are definitely people out there with ideas unable to put them on paper. Just be aware that if you submit work as a group, you may have to share in the prizes if you win.
I am a current ACHA player (Hofstra University) and can attest to USF being a perennial contender out of the South. Whoever designs the winning selection, will have their logo on a great student run club and team. The ACHA, while not NCAA caliber (ACHA D1 is roughly equal to NCAA D3), provides a great opportunity for thousands of students and the winning designer should be proud to be involved with such an organization.
WOW.
Not that I'm going to actually design something (I'm not exactly a star designer), but wow.
Couple things:
Why can't a university afford to pay a professional to design stuff? I'm sure a couple students' worth of tuition fees would come close to covering the costs.
I teach in a public school in Ontario: imagine if each school caught wind of this and started asking all you guys to start making logos for us...I'm loving the work I see here and am positively salivating at the idea of our whole school board rocking hip new team logos
Hi bawb. Please read the post fully before commenting. This is not an official university sport at USF. Hockey is a club sport and therefore the team must pay for itself. It's a non-profit organization and needs to save money wherever possible.
Also, I don't plan on doing this type of thing on a regular basis. But every once in a while, it's fun to allow our designers flex their creative muscles for something worthwhile.
Just wondering Chris.
Do we give up all rights to our work if the Design is picked or just send it in. meaning that at any point in time they will have a load of logos they can use when ever they want?
damn that griswold... (also kidding)
Good question Mike. The team is only asking that you give up the rights if your logo is selected. If they don't select it, it's yours.
Stupid question but... a picture of a bull in the logo is allowed, right? It just can't be the the ones currently used?
Wow, what a compliment to this site, its owner, and the community! Way to go, Chris!
I'll help anyone out if they want. And no I don't need the swag or the credit. If you send me something to polish up it is still your concept and you can take all the credit. Thanks for the kind words Ivall.
To Kris: Yes, you can use the image of a bull — I would encourage it. Just has to be an original design.
Also, the 20th anniversary logo should be a patch. I know the team is shopping for new jersey's, so the logo would be good there with a patch on the jersey
Sorry, didn't realize USF was as big as it is. Everybody always talks about Miami University, Florida or Florida State, and USF probably doesn't get the nationwide attention it deserves.
Any chance we could see the submissions on the site? I'd love to see everyone's designs.
Hey Roccot, I have a very crude version. If you send me an e-mail I can get you the file and talk about it.
Thanks
Kent
So when will this close, I can have concepts by Monday Aug. 17th...
im not a great computer designer as well, could someone help me refine and make it professional and whatnot?? I really want to do this thing and got a idea drawn on paper... could someone please help me?
It's sad they won't use an actual designer or design firm for this - they will end up with subpar work. Aaand they are taking advantage of designers. This is speculative work and it is bad for both designers and clients. The client/designer don't have a way to communicate and hone in on a good concept... this ends up being a crap shoot - emphasis on 'crap' - it's sad. They could probably end up with a great mark if they hire a designer. Designers taking the time to work on this won't be paid for their work - which is also bad. Design contests are a bad business practice that is spreading like wildfire.
Im sad to see Icethetics support this kind of business practice.
Spec work is bad for both parties. :(
http://www.no-spec.com/ for more information on why spec work is bad.
Spec work is fine. I'm sure they understand that they'll get mostly amateur submissions. It sucks that it takes work away from paid designers, but the team probably doesn't have it in the budget to hire a real designer anyway.
Hey guys. Just wanted to address Ricky and digitaljohn. I understand Ricky's opinion and he's entitled to it. However, as digitaljohn points out, no one's losing any money here. The Ice Bulls were never going to hire a design firm. They were basically going to ask somebody's sister's cousin's best friend to draw something on a piece of paper for them. I actually suggested they tap the enormous talent found amongst Icethetics readers.
I understand why some designers feel threatened by something like this, and I have to wonder if the issue isn't as much about losing money as it is giving a talented amateur a chance to shine. The team didn't have a specific direction to take with this new logo so they wanted lots of different opinions and points of view. And they got that with this "spec work."
What's more is that the artist whose work they choose isn't being cheated at all. For one thing, the team is a non-profit organization and will never use the logo to make more money than they spend. This artist knew he was volunteering his time and work and freely chose to do so. Not to mention there are several prizes as well as invaluable exposure to gain from the effort.
I apologize to be long-winded with this but there's no reason for Icethetics to not be supporting the efforts of artists, professional or otherwise. In fact, because of the nature of Icethetics, I'd make the case that we should be doing it more!
Could all of you "nospec" people please take your commi propaganda elsewhere. North America is a free society where people are allowed to commission whoever they would like to create their artwork. Just because you with your fancy art degree think you're better and more deserving than other artists who didn't go to school doesn't make it true.
If USF wants to "hire" someone here at icethetics, that's their choice. So quit whining and go design a logo for some teamster style union.
I agree with Ian. they could have just gone to the art department at the school, asked a bunch of students for submissions, and nobody here or the "arteests" lobby would have likely even heard about it. luckily, there's $100 in it for what they deem to be the winning submission from the Icethetics community here. club hockey is ridiculously expensive, so their organization was never going to have extra money (on top of buying new uniforms and everything else) to hire a real artist anyway. therefore Ricky, thou doth protest too much.
I am in no way shape or form even an amateur designer, and won't be submitting anything. just a recreational hockey player and fan of uniforms in general, but that's my take.
also can someone explain what the existing USF "U" logo represents? because I've never really figured it out and feel like I'm missing something.
hopefully shedding a bit more light on the "no spec" argument:
http://www.no-spec.com/articles/design-contests/
sure it makes some sense, in a business context. the USF club hockey team is NOT a business (not even a not-for-profit business) so it would really never apply. they just need a new team logo so they don't have to keep paying their university for one. thanks for trying.
@ Brianguy
I think the "U" logo is supposed to be a hoof print that forms a "U" and just happens to have horns as well. Not 100% on it though
Sounds cool! I can't wait to see the designs, sadly I don't have the ability to make my own. With very skilled guys like SixZero designing, there's no point for me anyways....
@ Brianguy
Or possibly, a bulls head, with a section cut out to make it look like a "U" I think that's probably more likely, cause if you look you can sort of see the snout at the bottom and where the eye sockets would be.
I have been actively involved with ACHA hockey teams before. They're run by the students. These guys are trying to cut costs but have a cool look at the same time. Given the results from the IceHL I think they'll get what they want. I am still trying to refine my design, but either way I think this is great all around. This isn't the school asking for spec work, this isn't a school funded program asking for it either. It is a group who is not allowed by the school to use their marks.
PS anyone out there willing to help me refine my submission?
Yes, the Bulls have a hockey team. I'm fairly certain they are an ACHA Division III team, as my FAU Owls hockey club are.
The Owls are a team that needs a new logo!
What and awesome contest. I see how this benefits everyone involved. The winning designer gets great exposure from the team. The team gets a professionally designed look without having to spend a ton of money on it. Thus using the saved money on buying the best actual uniforms. I can't wait to see what people will come up with. My parents live north of Tampa and just a few miles from USF so they are like a second college team that I follow after my alma mater VA Tech. Now that I know they have a hockey team, I will have to make an effort to watch them next time I visit the folks.
If anyone can make the logo, I have some design ideas. Email me at whereisharoldminer@yahoo.com.
If this turns out to be really successful. I hope more teams take this approach to getting fresh, innovated design ideas for their jerseys.