Seventeen teams sponsored by the University of Houston compete in the NCAA Division I as participants in the American Athletic Conference. The sports program is officially called Houston Cougars. This nickname was coined by John Reinhold “Chief” Bender, one of the school’s faculty members and former Washington State Cougars football coach. There are also unofficial aliases: Houston, UH, and Coogs. The mascot of the teams is a cougar named Shasta, and the main colors are scarlet and white.
Meaning and History
Some early logos are dedicated to the symbol of the sports department – the wild cougar. On the emblem of 1951, the cougar is depicted in a jump. The drawing looks like a sketch and consists of red strokes and lines. In the upper right corner is the word “Cougars,” at the very bottom is the phrase “U of Houston.” In 1962, the multicomponent image was replaced by a monogram of the red letters “U” and “H.”
The 1995 variant again pleased the fans with its colorfulness. The logo consists of three elements: a crouching cougar, a large Houston inscription, and a white rectangle with the word Cougars. True, this logo did not last long: in 2003, the classic monogram “UH” returned. Its final version was presented in 2012. Designers made the letters three-dimensional, combining two shades of red, and circled the image with a scarlet stripe.
1951 – 1961
1962 – 1994
1995 – 2002
2003 – 2011
2012 – today
Houston Cougars Basketball
The debut match of the men’s team took place in 1946. The University of Houston women’s basketball program at that time already existed. Cougars participated in the NCAA Men’s Division I Tournament twenty-one times and five times in the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Tournament.
Houston Cougars Football
The first team appeared in 1946 – after students signed several petitions demanding to join the intercollegiate football competitions. The program was successful: athletes unconditionally won in eleven conference championships and two division championships.
Houston Cougars Baseball
The University of Houston has been sponsoring the baseball team since 1947. Success came to it in 1950, when Lovette Hill took over as a coach. Under his leadership, players competed in several NCAA Regional and first participated in the College World Series. Todd Whitting now coaches baseball players.