Which logo do you prefer?

[SACCAT]

We are now on page 4 about logo's...God I wish football would start.

[CelticCat]

Conceptually, I really like the M.

Had we thought of it 100 years ago, that would have been awesome.

But when we adopt a logo that looks very, very similar to another school's long-held logo, it really complicates things.

If we could just convince Michigan to abandon the M, I think it would be perfect for MSU. But absent that, it really does come off as us copying Michigan ... and that's not great marketing.

That's just like uhh... your opinion, man.

[John K]

I am a huge fan of the 'M' on the helmets. It looks clean and just makes us look like a big time program. I don't really mind the other logo's on hats and fangear, but I really like the M on the helmet. I buy lots of hats with the M on them and it gets confused with Michigan(usually by someone who doesn't like Michigan) and I politely inform them that it is for THE MSU Fighting Bobcats. I'll usually get a blank expression but that's ok with me. The truth is Michigan's 'M' looks different than ours and if people can't tell the difference, I'll explain it and send them on their way. I think if we changed logo's most people I meet outside of Montana wouldn't know what it was anyway and I would have to explain it.

You're exactly right about that....most people outside of Montana won't recognize any of the three logos, so I'm not sure that should really be much of a consideration. I've always liked the script "Cats" but there are tons of schools that go with the script option for their helmets, so that's really the least unique of any of them. I didn't like the helmets from 1997-1999 with the old version of the Cat head on them, although the new version of the Cat head wold probablly look much better. But people outside of Montana aren't necessarily going to recognize the head as being a Bobcat head, let alone a Montana State University Bobcat head. I agree with you that I probably still prefer the block "M", even if people do confuse it with Michigan.

[kmax]

I am a huge fan of the 'M' on the helmets. It looks clean and just makes us look like a big time program. I don't really mind the other logo's on hats and fangear, but I really like the M on the helmet. I buy lots of hats with the M on them and it gets confused with Michigan(usually by someone who doesn't like Michigan) and I politely inform them that it is for THE MSU Fighting Bobcats. I'll usually get a blank expression but that's ok with me. The truth is Michigan's 'M' looks different than ours and if people can't tell the difference, I'll explain it and send them on their way. I think if we changed logo's most people I meet outside of Montana wouldn't know what it was anyway and I would have to explain it.

You're exactly right about that....most people outside of Montana won't recognize any of the three logos, so I'm not sure that should really be much of a consideration. I've always liked the script "Cats" but there are tons of schools that go with the script option for their helmets, so that's really the least unique of any of them. I didn't like the helmets from 1997-1999 with the old version of the Cat head on them, although the new version of the Cat head wold probablly look much better. But people outside of Montana aren't necessarily going to recognize the head as being a Bobcat head, let alone a Montana State University Bobcat head. I agree with you that I probably still prefer the block "M", even if people do confuse it with Michigan.

In reference to the idea that they wouldn't recognize the other logos anyway...this is exactly why I see a problem with the 'M'. No they may not recognize the cat head or the cats script, but the problem is that if they do not know about Montana State, then when the see the MSU 'M' logo they will THINK they recognize that logo as the Michigan logo. If you are trying to brand anything, you understand that recognition may not come immediately (or ever) but default recognition as a "competing" brand is way worse.

[HelenaCat95]

If I didn't know better, from just reading this thread I'd think that FB was just a game for people to wear fashionable and matching outfits.

[AlphaOAlum]

If I didn't know better, from just reading this thread I'd think that FB was just a game for people to wear fashionable and matching outfits.

I'm pretty certain we should settle this argument with a walk off, Zoolander style. Show me a field house event with football players and different styles of helmets.

[GOKATS]

If I didn't know better, from just reading this thread I'd think that FB was just a game for people to wear fashionable and matching outfits.

I agree as far as uniforms go, but I do have a preference about what's on the helmet. It's all up to the HC anyway, but makes for discussion during the dead season.

Now, go find a dull hearing to sit in on.

[HelenaCat95]

If I didn't know better, from just reading this thread I'd think that FB was just a game for people to wear fashionable and matching outfits.

I agree as far as uniforms go, but I do have a preference about what's on the helmet. It's all up to the HC anyway, but makes for discussion during the dead season.

Now, go find a dull hearing to sit in on.

Who says I can't do both - gotta love technology.

AlphaO....love the Zoolander reference. I've gotta dust off that DVD and watch it again soon
Maybe our new "fashion" colors can be Blue Steel and Gold.

[GRZSLAYER]

If I didn't know better, from just reading this thread I'd think that FB was just a game for people to wear fashionable and matching outfits.

I agree as far as uniforms go, but I do have a preference about what's on the helmet. It's all up to the HC anyway, but makes for discussion during the dead season.

Now, go find a dull hearing to sit in on.

Who says I can't do both - gotta love technology.

AlphaO....love the Zoolander reference. I've gotta dust off that DVD and watch it again soon
Maybe our new "fashion" colors can be Blue Steel and Gold.

But will our players be able to turn right??

[AlphaOAlum]

But will our players be able to turn right??

Or stop the run?

Bobcatnation: Solving the world's problems big and small since 2004 (?)

[CelticCat]

That helmet is going to have to be... at least 3 times bigger.

[Wrangler]

Maybe we should just put this picture on the helmets, so that we can feel right at home in the "CASE IH RED ZONE!!!"

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3575/341 ... z.jpg?zz=1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[John K]

I'm amazed that with about 100 total votes cast, the results are practically dead even between all three logos. I never would have guessed that it would be that close.

[GFCatFan]

Why do we care if a few idiots who don't follow Bobcat football think the M is for Michigan. Let it go people.

[John K]

Why do we care if a few idiots who don't follow Bobcat football think the M is for Michigan. Let it go people.

I could not agree more. It doesn't seem to bother Memphis, that their logo is so similar to Michigan's. I'm sure some people might think the script "Cats" is for some big-time school with Wildcats as their nickname, of which there are several. And the Cat head logo could be misinterpreted as representing any one of a number of "Cat"-nicknamed schools....Bobcats, Cougars, Panthers, Wildcats. So you're going to have that issue to some degree, no matter which logo is selected.

[SonomaCat]

Why do we care if a few idiots who don't follow Bobcat football think the M is for Michigan. Let it go people.

We care because we want MSU to be able to successfully market the program throughout the nation in order to make MSU athletics and Montana State University the strongest they can possibly be. That happens by having strong branding and successful marketing.

If a person doesn't care about the "idiots" whose first impression of our logo is that it is Michigan's logo (a statement that suggests that about 99% of American sports fans are idiots, including most of our potential out-of-state recruits and their families and potential out-of-state sponsors/contributors), that's fine. But for those people who understand the importance of effective marketing for MSU beyond the borders of Montana, it's something that is quite important.

[BozoneCat]

Why do we care if a few idiots who don't follow Bobcat football think the M is for Michigan. Let it go people.

We care because we want MSU to be able to successfully market the program throughout the nation in order to make MSU athletics and Montana State University the strongest they can possibly be. That happens by having strong branding and successful marketing.

If a person doesn't care about the "idiots" whose first impression of our logo is that it is Michigan's logo (a statement that suggests that about 99% of American sports fans are idiots, including most of our potential out-of-state recruits and their families and potential out-of-state sponsors/contributors), that's fine. But for those people who understand the importance of effective marketing for MSU beyond the borders of Montana, it's something that is quite important.

Disagree (respectfully, of course!). Strong branding is developed by sticking with the same product/logo over the course of time. MSU has struggled mightily in this area - we have seen the school colors change, we have gone through several versions of different logos and uniforms, etc. over the past 10-20 years. We now have 3 logos that I consider to be really great, and I think we should stick to what we have. The current Bobcat head is a much-improved version of the 90's cat head, we all love the script Cats because it is classic and emblematic of a historical year in MSU's history, and I personally have LOVED the "M" since Kramer brought it on board in the early 2000's. I love his thinking and reasoning for why he did it, I think it is a classic logo that will stand the test of time, and I think it looks great on hats and our helmets. Putting the Bobcat head on our helmets would make our uniforms look to high-school-ey or XFL-ey.

And I understand what you're saying about MSU developing a nationally recognizable brand, but let's be realistic here. Michigan football is an institution in this country, which MSU never will be. That's not disrespectful to MSU, it's just reality and knowing your place in the food chain. I have had my "M" ballcap recognized as Bobcat gear several times down here in Boise. I don't think we should strive to be a "national" brand, but more of a strong Northwest brand. Sticking with the same thing over more than 5-10 years is how you make that happen, IMO.

[SonomaCat]

Just to illustrate this on a really simple level for compare/contrast purposes.

Let's say there are a couple thousand die-hard Griz and Bobcat fans that live in Denver and wear their gear proudly on a regular basis.

Let's say there are about a dozen recruits out of Denver that both the Cats and Griz are targeting.

The recruit and all of his family/friends go through their lives in the years up to his/her recruitment, and they come into contact with lots of the Cat and Griz fans (walking by them in a mall, seeing them on the street, seeing them at local football games, etc.).

But when the time comes for the recruit to make up their mind between UM and MSU, the recruit and all of his family and friends talk about it.

Well, they all say, I see Griz alums all over the place. They wear their gear and seem pretty proud of their school. They must really have it going on. But I can't ever remember seeing an MSU alum around town, so they must not be much of a program. So the recruit signs with UM, and we miss out on a great recruit.

The cruel twist? Of course, they all HAD seen a lot of MSU alums sporting their gear over those years, and they had actually been quite impressed by the cut of the jibs of all of those awesome MSU alums ... except that they thought they were instead seeing MICHIGAN alums ... so the awesomeness of all of those MSU alums and fans instead got credited to the University of Michigan.

[SonomaCat]

And honestly, the M that shows up on the helmets isn't really a problem in terms of the Michigan thing ... the Blue and White M looks good and is relatively distinctive.

It's the M gear that has the yellow in it (that really is almost identical to Michigan's logo) that I see as a problem.

So if we were to consistently use the blue and white, I think that would solve a lot of problems.

I actually like our helmets and hope they stay the same as they are now. I just don't like a lot of the M gear that has variations made to it that looks just like Michigan's M.

[Hawks86]

Not every piece of clothing has the "M" on it. In my opinion, that is the least used for merchandise out of the three. I have lots of stuff and I prefer to have the Cat logo on them. Of all the griz gear is the griz logo used more often ?