Southside mascot committee selects logo that mimics Dallas Desperados logo (Updated)

Editor’s note: Story updated with info about logo connection to the Dallas Desperados.

Less than one month removed from the Southside High School Mascot Committee’s selection of Mavericks to replace Rebels as the school’s mascot, SHS has a new logo.

Jeff Williams, Southside’s Head Football Coach and a member of the 29-person committee appointed by the School Board, brought a handmade logo design forward at Monday night’s (Nov. 2) meeting.

Williams said the logo was created by a former Southside graduate, who brought the design to him. The person has a child attending the school. Neither Williams nor SHS Principal Wayne Haver would reveal the individual’s identity at the meeting. Haver told The City Wire he would like to confirm with the individual before releasing that information to the public.

However, the logo is very similar to a logo version used by the Dallas Desperados arena football team (see inset logo). The Desperados were part of the Arena Football League between 2002 and 2008. Jerry Jones, who owns the Dallas Cowboys, still owns trademark and other rights to the Desperados. As of the posting of this story, it was unclear if the committee was aware of the logo’s history, or if using the logo would present a legal problem.

The logo beat out 149 other designs with a unanimous vote following about 40 minutes of discussion from the SHS Cafeteria. Those in attendance acknowledged that the logo would still need to be finished and cleaned up before reaching its final form, but they appreciated the fact the mascot is “racially neutral” and that its location within the star is versatile.

Another plus cited by members of the committee was that the logo lends itself to multiple uses with the “maverick” character, the star only, or a combination of the two, while capturing the essence of the high school’s history.

Student representatives on the committee said in discussions with their classmates, there was “little interest in being an animal,” with most preferring a human mascot. Coach Williams said many of the other coaches at Southside had come to him with the same desire for a human mascot, and all of them had liked the human-star combo when they’d seen it.

NEXT STEPS
Haver said in comments after the meeting that the next steps would be to present the logo to the individual who submitted it, and see if he would be willing to make a few tweaks to “clean up the image.” If he isn’t willing to do so, Haver said, there have been “three or four individuals who’ve offered to help us with a logo for free.” It’s possible that one of those volunteers could end up doing the final edits if the original submitter defers.

Once the final design is locked down, Haver added, coaches will be able to use their discretion when selecting logos and styles for individual uniforms and apparel.

“The coaches don’t have to follow a strict framework for that, but I do have a few rules for what I will and won’t allow,” Haver said, naming his refusal to allow black jerseys in lieu of school colors as one.

LONG ROAD
In July, the School Board voted unanimously to end the use of the longstanding Rebels mascot and “Dixie” fight song.

Since that decision, there have been meetings and protests and court challenges. There was even one last ditch effort to save the Rebels name post-School Board election when new members Bill Hanesworth and Wade Gilkey brought a vote to rebrand the Rebels nickname while removing Confederate references. It failed 3-3 (and likely would have failed 4-3 had School Board member Susan McFerran been in attendance).

Haver served as head of the 29-person committee to find a new mascot and logo that emerged from that fight. The mascot search came to an end Oct. 12 when a unanimous vote selected “Mavericks” as the new name. Since then, Haver has been collecting suggestions for the school’s new look.

Of the total submissions displayed at Monday’s meeting, 25 were received through a suggestion box, Haver said, while “four or five” were submitted through email. The rest – around 120 – came from the school’s art department and EAST lab (or Environmental and Spatial Technology) students. There were many duplicates, Haver said, as students were “using Google to get ideas and present variations.”

Committee members arrived about 20 minutes prior to the start of Monday night’s meeting to view the logos — many for the first time — but the winning selection was presented for the first time by Williams after the meeting had come to order.

To close the meeting, Haver acknowledged the headaches that had gone into the ordeal.

“I want to thank all of you for helping us find a name and a logo that is fitting for Southside High School,” he said shortly following the committee’s vote. “It has been a privilege and an honor to serve, and I’m glad it’s over.”