Be creative with Veterans mascot

This state is filled with high school football teams with unimaginative mascots and nicknames.

Bulldogs. Check.

Tigers. Check.

Eagles. Check.

Trojans. Check.

Wildcats. Check.

Oh my.

Veterans has a chance to do something different when it joins the high school athletics landscape next year. And let’s hope it does.

We’ve heard talk of Patriots as the mascot for the new Warner Robins high school, and while that sounds quite American, it’s also not very original.

Houston County already has GHSA teams with mascots of Eagles (see above), Bears (not great), Panthers (a little better) and Demons (now you’re talking). And Veterans needs to amp up its mascot to improve that lineup. It certainly can by coming up with something much better than Patriots to make a splash.

Telegraph high school editor Jonathan Heeter caught my attention with his choice for the mascot: Jets. That certainly has a wow factor to it with Robins Air Force Base having such a dynamic effect on the county. The Veterans Jets. Now that has a ring to it.

It’s different. It’s unique. It gives the school an identity, and that’s exactly what a new high school needs, especially in a county that has such a rich high school sports tradition.

There is plenty Veterans could do with a mascot of Jets. It could come up with nice helmets for football and interesting color schemes for all of its uniforms, and having Jets as a mascot would certainly put Veterans on the map.

There are other possibilities, as well.

We’ve heard Bombers or Pilots thrown out there, and those follow along the same line as Jets. They tie the new program to the Air Force base and give Veterans’ sports team’s a unique identity, and both of those things are a big plus for the new program.

A glance through the GHSA’s directory reveals there is not another team in the state with the mascot of Jets, Bombers or Pilots. There are plenty of Patriots or Falcons, another choice that has been floated out there by fans. On the flip side are the Syrupmakers of Cairo and the Atom Smashers (of Johnson-Savannah), and those schools certainly stand out in the state with their mascot.

Veterans has a chance to do that, as well, and it needs to take advantage of that to make a statement. The Veterans Jets would do just that.

Contact Daniel Shirley at 744-4227 or dshirley@macon.com