Raider Nation

Yesterday I was lucky enough to get seats on the Oakland Raider's sideline and despite the rainy weather, there wasn't an empty seat in all of "The Black Hole".  The fans were as rowdy as ever and the victory in OT was sweet. While on the outside I was screaming and high 5ing left and right, I could not help but think a little about the emblem that represents the Raider Nation. After a bit of research I found that when the team was first established in 1960 there was a "name the team" contest.  The winner was the Oakland Senors. After being the brunt of a million jokes, the team changed it's name to the Oakland Raiders and adopted the now popular emblem.  Little has changed about it since, and yet it has become a symbol of fans who pledge allegiance to the Raider Nation. These are footballs most notorious fans. Shirts, ponchos, hats, and tattoos have been made in the likeness of this design and yet no one knows or cares much about the person who designed it.  I could not even find, with the help of Google, any designer given credit for the emblem. And yet, it is iconic, a symbol that could make a grown man cry. Whoever this mystery designer is, I want to salute him on behalf of the entire Raider Nation, as well as designers worldwide for giving us something that we can all appreciate. Great design.