When you walk into the entrance of your school or athletic facility, do you have an ugly, blank wall staring back at you? If so, what do you do? After being in thousands of high schools, colleges, field houses, stadiums and other athletic facilities over the years, we have found that most people choose one of three options:

It’s game day, homecoming, tournament time. Die hard student-fans are going all out for their spirit week costumes and the entire campus is buzzing with excitement. The streamers are strewn and the pom-poms are off. It’s all great fun, but like anything vicarious thrill that excites passion and pride in its onlookers, someone always tends to get a little...carried away.

Sports equipment is designed to fit the needs of the sport. You wear kneepads in volleyball, shoulder pads in football, cleats in soccer and a swimsuit for swimming so you can compete to the best of your ability. Before that equipment ever made it to the courts, fields and pools, there was someone asking, “What’s the end goal, and how are we going to get there?” They knew having the right equipment is part of the key to your team’s success.

At some point in most of our lives, each of us has probably been a lion or a wildcat, maybe a viking. According to CheatSheet.com, the top three most common athletic team names - from the high school to the pros - are 1) Eagles, 2) Tigers and 3) Bulldogs. To celebrate the not-so-common mascots, we’ve gathered a handful of our favorite but oft-overlooked uncommon mascots from across the country. Enjoy!

Building a new athletic facility is a lot like moving into a new house. It can take a while to feel like home. When you invest the time and money into a new gymnasium, pool, stadium or any athletic facility, you want the first impression to wow your athletes and fans. So after you’re finished laying the bricks and mortar, don’t forget to add the final touches.