Southern Athletic Association

BERRY BIRMINGHAM
SOUTHERN		 CENTRE
"Vikings" "Panthers" "Colonels"
Mount Berry, GA Birmingham, AL Danville, KY
HENDRIX MILLSAPS RHODES
"Warriors" "Majors" "Lynx"
Conway, AR Jackson, MS Memphis, TN
SEWANEE SOUTHWESTERN TRINITY
"Tigers" "Pirates" "Tigers"
Sewanee, TN Georgetown, TX San Antonio, TX

Southwestern will be a new member of this conference in 2023.

Historical Helmets

BERRY COLLEGE

2013 - 2017 2018 - 2020* 2021 -

2013 was the first year of the Berry football team.

BIRMINGHAM SOUTHERN COLLEGE

2007 only? 2008? - 2016 2017 -

BSC had a football team in 2007 for the first time since 1939.

CENTRE COLLEGE

? - 2001 2002 - 2004 2005 - 2007
2008 - 2014 2015 -

HENDRIX COLLEGE

? - 1960 2013 - 2015 2016 - 2018
2020* 2019; 2021 -

Hendrix did not have a football team from 1961 through 2012.

MILLSAPS COLLEGE

? - 1992? 1993? - ? ? - 2003
2004 - 2006 2014 (first 5 games) 2007 - 2019
*see note 1 below
2020* -
*see note 2 below

*1 During Millsaps' first five games in 2014 the team used a helmet design whose left and right hemispheres were completely different. The left side was purple with white uniform numerals, while the right side was white with the team's primary "M"/sword logo; a wide gray stripe seperated the two sides. The team switched back to the "normal" white helmet beginning with game #6 (October 25 vs Sewanee) and used that design for the remainder of the season.

*2 Uniform numbers are present on the left side only of this design; the "M"/sword logo adorns the right side (as represented below).

RHODES COLLEGE

1960 - 1963 1964 - 1967 1968
1969 1970 1971 - 1975
1976 - 1979 1980 1981 - 1983
1991 - 1993 1984 - 1990; 1994 - 1995 1996 - 1999
2000 - 2008 2009 - 2010 2011 - 2012
2013 - 2015 2016 - 2019 2020*
2021 -

Rhodes College was previously named Southwestern at Memphis (from 1945 to 1984). Southwestern's football team had a few additional helmet designs for which only partial information has been located.

Apparently during at least some games in 1963 (possibly later in the season) a "lynx head" logo was worn on the team's black helmets. The clearest photograph yet found showing this logo is the one below, which appeared in Millsaps College's 1964 yearbook.

No color photographs have been found of the 1968 and 1969 helmet design, but their appearance in monochrome photographs is consistent with the actual color being either silver or gold. There were "plain" in 1968 aside from the presence of a single dark center stripe (presumably either black or cardinal), but in 1969 the college football centennial "100" logo was added to both sides of the helmet, again in presently-unknown colors.

An apparent switch to white helmets was made in 1970. On these was worn a "lynx head" logo of which no decently-clear photographs have yet been located. The white helmets were replaced after one year with red helmets on which was worn possibly the same lynx logo - again no good photographs have been found. Below are some of the "better" known photographs of these, plus what may be the correct logo, as seen on an article of clothing in another yearbook photograph.

SEWANEE University of the South

? - 2005 2006 2007? - 2013
2014 - 2017 2018 - 2020* 2021 -

SOUTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY

2013 - 2016 2017 - 2020* 2021 -
*see note 1 below *see note 2 below

This team played its first season of football in 2013; the university also had a team during an earlier period (c.1908 - 1950).

*1 The "SU" logo is worn on the left side only of this design; uniform numerals are worn on the right side (as represented below).

*2 Uniform numbers are worn on the left side only of this design; a "pirate" logo is present on the right side (as represented below).

TRINITY UNIVERSITY

c.1980 ? - 2013 2014 - 2015
'A' 'B'
2016 - 2017 -

During recent years Trinity has used the following sequences of helmet designs:

  • 2022: A-A-B; B-B-?; A-?-A; B-A-A (the last two games being NCAA Division III playoff games vs Hardin-Simmons and vs Mary Hardin-Baylor; no information for October 15 at Rhodes and October 29 at Centre)
  • 2021: B-B-B; A-A-A; B-B-B; A
  • 2020*: B-B-B; B? 2019: B-A-B; A-A-A; A-B-B; B
  • 2018: A-B-B; A-A-A; A-B-B; A
  • 2017: B-B-A; A-B-B; A-A-B; A

In 1972 Trinity used white helmets; a curious feature is visible on most of these helmets in most of the photographs I have encountered from among the opposing teams' 1973 yearbooks (see below). The feature almost looks like a "shark" or "fish" and is oddly placed somewhat towards the back side of the helmet. Does anyone know what this is, and why it was worn? (The one photograph in Trinity's own 1973 yearbook is useless, by the way.)