Which high school sports mascot is most popular in southcentral Pa.?
Former Dover High School Eagles fullback John Kuhn (33), shown here playing for Shippensburg University against Shepherd University in 2005, is a fullback for the NFL’s Green Bay Packers. He is one of many former PIAA stars who have played professional sports, and many others are hoping to impress with the upcoming prep football season. His team’s mascot, the Eagle, is the most popular area sports team mascot. (See a photograph of a young Kady Schrann below.) Also of interest: York County high school grads teach lessons in achievement on national stage and Olympic gold medalist Scott Strausbaugh another Dover product and Names of stars from York County with pro sports links just keep increasing .
George Trout, veteran observer of the York County sports scene, posed a question yesterday.
How did the William Penn Senior High School team come up with the Bearcats.
It came from the Stutz Bearcat, a sports car popular in and around World War I and the Roaring 20s, he said.
That could answer that, but how did all those other schools come up with their mascots?
And what are those mascots in the first place?
A Gametimepa.com poster lists them all in an attractive graphic. That graphic appeared in the York Sunday News, 8/29/10. (See image below.)
Here’s the summary of most popular names from the gametimepa.com prep sports website that is populated by the efforts of the York Daily Record/Sunday News, Hanover Evening Sun, Chambersburg Public Opinion and Lebanon Daily News sports staffs:
A young Kady Schrann, right, is seen in action as a seventh grader. The York Catholic senior York Catholic scored 571 points, averaging 17.84 points per game. She will enter her senior season with 1,629 career points. She plays for the Fighting Irish and her teams figure prominently in gametimepa.com’s history section.
Cats rule the animal kingdom, at least when it comes to high school mascot nicknames for PIAA District 3 football teams.
Of the 101 regional teams that will take the field this week, 16 are of the feline variety — be they Lions, Tigers, Panthers or Wildcats.
There are also 26 warrior-themed mascots — from Spartans to Raiders to multicolored Knights. There are meteorological mascots (Thunderbolts), mechanical mascots (Rockets) and botanical mascots (Shamrocks).
But the most popular mascot of all is that soaring symbol of liberty — the Eagle. Seven schools boast the bird as their nickname.
Also of interest:
– The opportunity to download a just released free gametimepa.com app for smartphones.
– A local history section that includes records and team information covering a variety of regional prep sports. For example, here is a list of District 3 football champions.
– In Thursday’s (9/2/10) York Daily Record, watch for the 64-page YIAA football section, the newspaper’s largest such section. To view it only, visit: Football 2010.
Other posts of interest:
– Red Lion’s Scott Fitzkee ranks as York/Adams Greatest Athlete.
– Story answers much about great athlete Hinkey Haines, including origin of his nickname.
– Who were most prominent 20th-century sports heroes in York and Adams counties?
– Lineup full of sports stars with York County links.
The mascot tree available in enlarged form at gametimepa.com.
