Located just outside Dallas, the Frisco RoughRiders have been reliably holding down their corner of the Texas League for years. In 2014, they asked us to reboot their franchise’s brand with a fresh look that embraced their connection to one of America’s most iconic Presidents, Teddy Rosevelt.
The RoughRiders are a unique franchise. From their whimsical ranch-like ballpark that feels like it was pulled straight out of Disneyland to their iconic outfield wall made up of video boards stretching from foul-pole to foul-pole, everything about the RoughRiders screams “EVERYTHING’S BIGGER IN TEXAS”!
The town of Frisco, Texas embodies much of what the world thinks of Texas: Big blustery opinions, Texas pride oozing out of every citizen’s pores, and a glitzy cowboy style more akin to Cadillacs with longhorns bolted to the hood than dusty nights on the range.
The RoughRiders’ original brand avoided any associations with Teddy and his band of horseback fighters. Our approach was to embrace Teddy as the icon that he is, fully embodying his bravado and bluster. It’s always fun to design a brand for a place with a ton of character like Frisco, Texas, and with our first round of pencil concepts, we attempted to pack in as much Americana, country-western, and “Yee Ha” we could into every design.
At Brandiose, we like to leave no stone left unturned. So when some members of the staff expressed concerned around building a brand around Teddy and how that might not be relatable to modern audiences, we enthusiastically hit the drawing-board for a Round 2 that revisited more horse-centric themes.
Ultimately, the staff decided to return to the Round 1 concepts and embrace Teddy as a brand icon. We were happy to show what non-Teddy designs might look like, but we were even happier the club decided to fully embrace Teddy.
The final set of logos for the brand put Teddy and his demonstrative spirit on full display. From his iconic laugh to his impeccable posture, our goal was to embody Teddy within the brand. And here’s a piece of irony for you: Did you know Teddy hated baseball? Yep, as American as Teddy was, baseball was just too slow for him. That left us at an impasse, we knew we wanted at least one logo that referenced baseball in some way. Our solution? Take a closer look at Teddy’s batting stance. Teddy may have known his way around a hunting rifle, but we’re pretty sure he didn’t know how to swing a baseball bat.
“Food Fight” team identities have become big business in MiLB. It’s a pretty simple concept, take an iconic food item from the region and build a brand around it that celebrates every delicious aspect of that culinary icon. The RoughRiders had a real humdinger of a food icon in the Corny Dog that’s consumed each year at the Texas State Fair. A cowboy hat, bandana, and mustard mustache help bring this beloved food item to life.
Long gone are the days of Minor League Parks with dusty concourses and bleacher seating. Modern ballparks are more closely related to something Disney would build than a small-town ballpark from the 60s. That’s why we love creating theme-park quality ballpark maps and theme night icons like we designed below for the RoughRiders to show off all the family fun experiences the Frisco fans can enjoy at Dr. Pepper Ballpark.
We’re constantly impressed by how clubs like the RoughRiders are evolving the fan experience and business of Minor League Baseball. And the RoughRiders have completely reinvented the ballpark experience with their “Party @ the Yard” concept. They have replaced their grassy outfield berm with a lazy river, full bar, and DJ booth creating a legendary party destination for Frisco residents.
While we’re pretty sure Teddy never rode a tamed moose, as legend may tell. However, his nickname, “The Bull Moose”, is cool enough to inspire the RoughRiders very own Bull Moose mascot, and we were thrilled to help bring him to life.
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