Chicago State Cougars is the name of an athletic program from the Chicago State University, which was established in 1867 in Chicago, Illinois. The program is composed of 15 men’s and women’s teams, which are all members of the Western Athletic Conference
Since 2013, Chicago State Cougars teams are all a part of the Western Athletic Conference, which is a sports organization, established in 1962 and affiliated with the First Division of the National Collegiate Athletic Association. In the season 2022/2023 the athletic program of the Chicago State University starts its membership in the NCAA Division I Independent.
What are Chicago State Cougars?
Chicago State Cougars is a collegiate athletic program of the Chicago State University, which is composed of seven men’s and eight women’s teams, which compete in various sports disciplines including Basketball, Cross Country, Tennis, Volleyball, and others.
As for the visual identity of the Chicago State Cougars teams, its history is a nice depiction of the progress the program has made throughout its history. The badge, introduced in 1963 was strong and modern for its times but lost its power and style over the years, and its modernized successor, designed in 2009, is just a perfect transition from the past to the now.
The Chicago State Cougars logo, created in 1963, was composed of a circular structure with the contoured drawing of a wild cat in the center, enclosed into a frame with the ¾ of its length formed by a narrowed uppercase inscription with the full name of the athletic program, written in a classic sans-serif typeface. The cougar was drawn in bold sleek lines, and the animal’s opened mouth was reflecting the fighting spirit of the program’s teams and their commitment.
With the redesign of 2009, the Chicago State Cougars badge became more modern and minimalistic. The lettering was completely removed from the composition of the logo, keeping only the graphical element, depicting a head of the wild cat, cougar, drawn in profile, facing to the right. The animal was executed in solid dark-green color, with all the contours and details in black, and only eyes and teeth — in white. The cougar looked even more dangerous than on the previous badge, with its sharp fangs slightly enlarged and outlined in thick black lines.