Around the Hood: 2024 Prep Sports Style Awards!

Editor’s Note: Semi-weekly, Rio Rancho Observer sports and education reporter Taylor Hood looks at one of the main news items in sports around Rio Rancho, Bernalillo, and Sandoval County. From NM Runners soccer to prep cheer to club sports, Taylor will dive in as he takes a look, “Around the Hood.”

As the years go by and marketing strategies evolve, sports teams are getting savvier when it comes to their branding; i.e. logo, team colors, team nickname, etc.

League expansions, growing interest in non-traditional sports, and just plain ol’ rebranding have drawn extra attention to team aesthetics over the last decade or so.

On the good side, we have many of the women’s professional sports leagues. Women’s leagues crush it in this regard in general. The best example in my opinion is the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL).

The NWSL always breaks out creative kits and their players bring plenty of personality to the game, but even if you aren’t a soccer fan, just go to your ESPN (or whatever) app and take a look at the team names and logos in that league.

The San Diego Wave? The Seattle Reign? Is there a more perfect name for a Los Angeles-based women’s soccer team than “Angel City”? And please, someone explain to me how it took so long for a New York-based team to be nicknamed “Gotham”.

Getting creative with team branding isn’t just a new American thing, by the way. In fact, having 4,000 different teams named the “Eagles” and another 4,000 named the “Lions” and so on, seems to actually be the exclusively American thing.

Internationally, soccer teams (at least) have absolutely fantastic and outrageous names.

Take Ghana for example. They have a small but popular league that has a team called “Cape Coast Mysterious Ebusua Dwarfs”.

Or how about the “Dandy Town Hornets” out of Bermuda?

Can I interest you in a little Bolivian soccer courtesy of “Salsa Ballers FC”?

My point is, names and colors and logos can be fun and new! (So, how did it take the Washington Football Team two years to land on “Commanders?” And you’re not much better, Major League Baseball. “Guardians” isn’t exactly setting the world on fire with its creativity.)

Now I’d like to apply that lens to prep sports teams in the metro area. Heck, maybe I’ll make it a tradition and put it to a public vote next year.

So, on the off chance this becomes a regular thing, I’ll play it safe and say:

Welcome to the 2024 Observer Sports Style Awards

Team logo

WINNER: Highland Hornets – Classic. This isn’t likely to change unless they do something silly like rebrand.

Runner-up: Sandia Prep Sundevils

Honorable Mention: NACA Eagles

Outside-metro: Carlsbad Cavemen (guys... you need to go look this one up... like, now.)

Team nickname

WINNER: Cleveland Storm – Perfect. It’s unique. It’s creative. It adds all sorts of opportunities for new puns and headlines. I love it.

Runner-up: Sandia Prep Sundevils

Honorable Mention: Sandia Matadors

Outside-metro: Santa Fe Demons (just please stop referring to the girls’ teams as “Demonettes”.)

Team colors

WINNER: Cleveland Storm – Again, CHS nailed it. Despite the rumors that their unique sky-blue color is a tribute to the hapless Carolina Panthers, it pops and makes them stand out at every athletic event.

Runner-up: Sandia Matadors

Honorable Mention: Cibola Cougars

Outside-metro: Organ Mountain Knights

Team kits/uniforms

WINNER: Volcano Vista Hawks – In all honesty, Volcano’s kits/uniforms are the whole reason I decided to write this column. They are always the most stylish ones out there. (They have specialty kits that look like white paint splatters on black! That’s how that’s done. And their Marching Band uniforms were worth the price of admission all on their own.)

Runner-up: Rio Grande Ravens

Honorable Mention: Cleveland Storm

Outside-metro: Centennial Hawks

Time for a brand refresh:

Eldorado, La Cueva, Rio Rancho, Valley, Manzano – All of these teams, save Manzano, have mascots and team names that are outdated and overused. Their colors are neutral and tend to blend into the crowd.

I’ll give credit to Rio Rancho, who does great with their already-established brand. For example, the basketball coaches all sported RRHS-themed Christmas sweaters during the recent Holiday Hoops tournament at Rio Rancho High School.

Manzano has good colors, but that lion logo of theirs just doesn’t work.

La Cueva needs to get on it. They are the cream-of-the-crop in New Mexico high school sports. The dark blue and silver, combined with the generic “Bears” nickname isn’t exactly grabbing anyone’s attention. The logo rocks though.

Valley and Eldorado need total overhauls. They are both NFL team names and logos with slightly changed colors.

Start brainstorming! Come on, it’ll be fun! Go get some community input and please, for the love of god, do better than the “Commanders.”