University of North Alabama athletics announces brand enhancement

FLORENCE, Ala. (WAFF) - The University of North Alabama athletic department announced a brand enhancement after the school reached full Division I status in the NCAA.

The athletic department partnered with the university’s Department of Visual Arts and Design and Joe Bosack & Co. to get an updated design strategy for the school’s athletics. Through the partnership with Bosack & Co., an internship program was created that included five UNA graphic design students to work through the process.

Athletic Director Dr. Josh Looney said updating the look was important for the school at this time with reaching full Division I status.

“Modernizing our visual identity in parallel with this momentous accomplishment recognizes a pivotal moment in UNA Athletics history and is important to our continued growth at the Division I level,” Dr. Looney said in a statement. “As North Alabama enters a new era of athletics competition and proudly represents the fastest growing University in the state of Alabama, we will do so with an overall athletics brand strategy that is consistent, bold and distinctive across each of our 14 Division I sports.”

“Our student-athletes and coaches have expressed their desire to energize the athletic department’s identity with an updated Lion logo and other marks for athletic competition,” Dr. Looney added. “Evolving the UNA athletics identity in a familiar, yet much more functional, manner was a core focus of this project. These enhanced logos are homegrown, with current UNA visual arts students partnering with the most respected brand identity company in the collegiate sports landscape. Student contributions were a powerful piece of the process that led to overwhelming support from our student-athlete focus groups.”

The university was told on Aug. 3 that it had successfully completed all reclassification requirements and that it was advanced to active Division I status for 2022-23. All 14 of UNA’s athletic teams will compete in the ASUN Conference.