Ranking all 27 U Sports football team logos (part two)

We’re back for the second half of our U Sports football logo rankings, which started yesterday with part one. Click here to check out the first half of the list.

3DownNation’s contributors graded each logo independently on a scale from one to ten. These scores were then averaged out and ranked from worst to best with a high score of 7.4 and a low score of 2.5. CFL podcaster Greg McCulloch, who is a professional graphic designer, was also given a vote.

For programs with multiple logos, the one featured most prominently on the team’s website was chosen for this ranking. The images below are the same ones voters were provided to cast their ballots. All logos were presented on plain white backgrounds in order to remain consistent between schools.

13. McMaster Marauders

The ‘M’ is big and bold, proudly establishing maroon as the club’s primary colour. The bird, an eagle reportedly named Mac, is a nice addition, though its proportions seem a little bit off. The logo is clearly going for realism but it would be nice if the depiction of the eagle focused more on the eyes and beak rather than its feathery neck. Birds attack with their beaks, not their feathers.

12. Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks

The profile of the hawk is pretty sleek, though it seems odd to place it at the back of the logo behind a relatively bland wordmark. There’s a ton of potential here given Laurier’s brilliant colour scheme and undeniably cool name but for now, this isn’t enough to crack the top ten. Our voters want to see something more bold and a little less corporate-looking from the Golden Hawks.

11. Alberta Golden Bears

GUBA the bear will haunt your dreams but wasn’t quite able to crack the top ten of our list. Alberta’s logo was the most divisive for our voters as it received multiple scores of one out of ten and ten out of ten. Fun fact: GUBA was named by former CFL linebacker Dave Zaharko who, during his tenure at the school, submitted it during the school’s name-the-bear contest as an acronym for “Great University Bear of Alberta.”

10. Concordia Stingers

The Stingers have an alternate logo featuring a cartoonish wasp, though our voters seem to be fans of this one that’s a little more polished. The stinger protruding out the left side of the logo is a subtle hint at the team’s name, as are the yellow stripes adjacent to it. Concordia wears a slightly different version of this logo on their helmets that omits the word “Stingers,” though it’s just as sharp as this one here.

9. York Lions

Enjoy this moment, York fans: this might be the only time your football team cracks the top ten. This logo was introduced in 2018 and is a significant upgrade over the outdated one it replaced. The placement of the ‘YU’ wordmark seems a little bit random, though the lion itself strikes a nice balance between feeling simple yet detailed. A lot needs to change at York but this logo deserves to remain unchanged.

8. Regina Rams

The ram could probably use a bit of a refresh, though one could argue this logo is as classic as any in all of U Sports. The ‘R’ is clean and timeless, while the club’s secondary colour is nicely represented outlining the ‘Rams’ wordmark. The only shame with this emblem is that we rarely see it given that Regina doesn’t wear it on their helmets and their other sports teams are called the Cougars.

7. Windsor Lancers

A lance is a weapon with a flared bottom that comes to a narrow and sharp point, four of which have been used cleverly here to form a ‘W.’ The Lancers wear a variation of this logo on their helmets with the ‘W’ placed atop the lid in gold, creating a look similar to that of the Michigan Wolverines. The shape of the logo is obviously popular on campus as the school itself modified its logo in 2013 to form a shield, just like its sports teams.

6. St. Francis Xavier X-Men

The X-Men is one of the coolest names in all of collegiate sports and our voters clearly feel the team’s logo does it justice. Slapping a few letters onto a shield is hardly the most creative approach to logo design but it’s a tried and true method that’s executed well here. The ‘X’ in the centre of the shield is strong and iconic, while the navy blue and white colour scheme plays well into the region’s nautical ties.

5. UBC Thunderbirds

You can’t go wrong with a blue and gold colour scheme and this logo does a great job celebrating it. The bird’s beak is sharp and imposing, while the wordmark beneath it is strong and classic. The Thunderbirds were dominant on the field this past season and the team has a logo worthy of the program’s strong on-field play. UBC used to have a lighter shade of blue but our voters seem to like to change to a darker colour.

4. Manitoba Bisons

This logo features a surprising amount of detail, though that clearly didn’t turn off our voters. The bison looks intimidating and the workmark behind it is clean and sharp. Manitoba’s primary colours of brown and gold are pretty uncommon, yet this emblem balances them well alongside black and white. The Bisons need to upgrade their defence but there’s nothing wrong with their logo.

3. Saskatchewan Huskies

Unlike their counterparts in Halifax, the huskie in the University of Saskatchewan’s logo sits proudly front and centre. The image is flanked by offset letters representing the team’s primary colour and looks clean. Unfortunately, the Huskies don’t wear this logo on their helmets, opting instead for a bland, lifeless letter ‘S.’ If they were smart, they’d opt for this emblem. It’s one of the best in the country.

2. Toronto Varsity Blues

It’s been a long time since the Varsity Blues were this close to the top of the standings but here they are, placing second among our voters. The ‘T’ is boldly displayed in a classic font, while the maple leaf sits atop it at a clever angle. The team’s colours are super sharp and this logo is timeless, having remained unchanged for well over a half-century. It’s easy to see why Toronto hasn’t changed anything: the emblem simply looks too good.

1. Carleton Ravens

There’s no other way to say it: this logo is badass. Carleton’s old emblem was perfectly good but there’s no denying that this one, introduced in 2013, is a substantial upgrade. It’s imposing, dark, and has super clean lines. The eye of the raven cleverly forms a ‘C,’ while the beak is made to look like a swooping motion the bird uses to attack its prey. Our voters feel this logo is a home run.