Coach came to us and asked us if we liked the logo and uniform, recalled senior Addie Lernihan, a co-captain of the girls varsity basketball team. But then a letter landed on the Ridgefield athletic director s desk last week asking the town to change the logo. Atlanta-based Collegiate Licensing Company, which does licensing with 185 college teams and the NCAA, says the tiger paw looks too much like the University of Cincinnati s Division I symbol, the bearcat. Our primary goal would be that they change the marquee in a way that eliminates any confusion, said Bruce Siegel, vice president and general counsel for the company. The company reportedly learned of the Ridgefield logo from an alumnus of the university.
Money is at the heart of the matter.
While the tiger in Ridgefield is a symbol of pride, its marketability is limited to booster clubs and other grassroots fund-raisers. We re very concerned that it remain the trademark that will provide some benefit to our libraries and scholarship programs to which much of the revenue goes, said Greg Hand, a University of Cincinnati spokesman. But some in Ridgefield say the request is draconian, even absurd. But we think it s kind of ridiculous. And lawyers for the school board believe the town did not violate the law.