New helmet stickers unveiled for every game, celebrating history

Stickers on football helmets introduced each game to raise awareness for school history

Charlie Burton, Sports Editor

For the first time in school history, New Trier football will be wearing nine different historic logos on their helmet for every game this year.

The different logos range from the Porta Nigra symbol to the cowboy star and the Indian arrow for New Trier West and East.

“I think the logos create new enthusiasm for the games,” said senior wide receiver Jack French. “It is cool to learn about the history of New Trier. It’s like going through a time machine.”  The throwback logos were varsity head coach Brian Doll’s idea in order to bring some fun energy to the game. The logos were made into thick stickers that can be peeled off every week.

The Trevians opened their season displaying the Porta Nigra logo on their helmets. The Porta Nigra sign is the the original school logo dating all the way back to the school’s opening in 1901. The symbol contains an image of the Roman gates in Trier Germany.

In the Trevians home opener against York, they debuted the iconic Indian arrow which represents the 1948-1949 season when New Trier East officially became the Indians.

The Indian arrow not only teaches players and fans about New Trier history, but also about the history of the North Shore. New Trier East became the Indians because of it’s location, but also representing the origins of Native Americans in Winnetka.

“We wanted to create an exciting atmosphere around the school on game days,” said senior safety Aris Loukis, “and I think the different logos just give the people another reason to come to the games.”

The next week the Trevians did not wear a logo representing the history of New Trier, but rather a patriotic logo honoring the victims of September 11. The sticker is a normal New Trier logo except that the colors are red, white, and blue.

For the next two weeks, the Trevians will replace the patriotic logo with two different cowboy logos in honor of the New Trier West Cowboys.

New Trier West became a four year high school in 1967 and lasted until 1981. The Trevians helmets displayed a star when the played Palatine on Friday September 16 and the next week they traded a star out for a cowboy riding a bronco.

Coach Doll thought it was important to teach the players about the logos and the history of New Trier so he had Assistant Principal Peter Tragos talk to the players about the history of every logo.

“It was much more interesting to learn about the school’s history than I thought it would be,” said French, “New Trier has a pretty fascinating past with the rivalry between the Cowboys and the Indians.”

After the Trevians pay homage to the New Trier West Cowboys, the team will return to being the Trevians.

On Friday, Sept. 30 the team will wear the Trevian logo of a roman soldier from Trier, Germany. This is the logo that was used for a period of time between 1981-1990 when the two schools combined to become the New Trier Trevians.

The team will also wear a pink ribbon to raise awareness for breast cancer in the month of October. The team will return to the Trevian head that the fans saw all last season.