Spirit of the Bull Monument outside Reliant Stadium
As I was going through my daily news alerts yesterday, I ran across this article by Mary Dearen of the Midland (TX) Reporter-Telegram on the origin of the names of NFL teams.
Naturally I scrolled down to read the Texans entry and was quite disappointed to read this:
"The name was selected by focus groups charged with coming up with a name."
Huh?
I realize that more than eight years have passed since the official announcement of the Texans name and logo on September 6, 2000, but I remember that process fairly well and recall how Bob McNair and Texans management (then called Houston NFL 2002) used input from focus groups to help them make decisions for the name, logo, and colors.
Dearen's comment makes it sound like Houston NFL 2002 invited a few groups of people over to the Ramada Inn for a Saturday morning get-together and quickly came to the conclusion that, "yeah, Texans sounds good. Now where are the donuts and koozies?"
But after reading the source info, I can understand where the poor explanation came from because it basically says the same thing.
This rant has nothing to do with Dearen because I understand Midland is closer to Albuquerque than it is to Houston, and you'd probably be hard pressed to find anyone there outside of Eric Winston's family who could tell you anything about the Texans.
But I think it's important to draw a distinction, especially in the Texans case, between how the team got its name and what the name represents.
The Steelers and Packers are classic names of franchises that took their names from local industry.
Bob McNair selected the name "Texans" to pay homage to the great people from our great state, both past and present.
During the unveiling ceremonies, McNair explained the rationale behind the naming decision.
"I'm proud to be a Houstonian, and I'm proud to be a Texan," McNair said. "When I think of a Texan, I think of someone who's powerful, independent, courageous and hard-working. When people came to this part of the country, they had it tough, but they overcame a lot of obstacles to make Texas what it is today."
It's similar to the 49ers concept in a small way, although the Gold Rushers brand is based on one era in that state's history, wheras McNair's vision which was to honor all great Texans from Amarillo to Anahuac and from the Alamo to Apollo and beyond.
Another key aspect of the naming of the Texans is that the team name, logo and colors were all carefully integrated in theme.
"We think the spirit of the bull reflects Texas -- bold, proud, strong, courageous, independent," said McNair. "Red, white and blue are the colors of our state flag [although] our scheme differs from the state flag in that we're using a darker blue and a lighter red."
By the way, the Texans logo and mascot is a Spanish Fighting Bull. It's not a longhorn, not a cow, not a steer. It's a mean machine with all of its original equipment. I know Toro can come across all cute and cuddly at times, but you better not cross him or he might go WWE on you.
The Texans keep the "Spirit of the Bull" alive in the form of an annual award to the Texans player who exemplifies outstanding leadership, sportsmanship, work ethic and commitment to his teammates.
And from what I've witnessed over the years, the Spirit of the Bull Monuments outside Reliant Stadium (shown above) are one of the most popular destinations for visiting fans to stop and snap a souvenir picture on game day.
I thought it was important to remind everyone that the "Texans" didn't come about because of some willy-nilly fan vote, online poll, or breakfast meeting at Denny's. This was a carefully orchestrated process that produced a name and logo that stands tall and represents pride, courage, strength, tradition and independence.
And for those who are thinking about dragging out the old 'Los Angeles Californians,' and 'Cleveland Ohioans' analogies, save it because you don't understand.
We're Texans, and only we can get away with stuff like this.
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