I currently play for the Austin Copperheads and I can say that although they are one of several animal mascots around the league, there was actual thought put behind their mascot. Let's start with the competition first:
Hawks are a generic animal in sports and aren't really indigenous to the eastern harbor;
Fire Salamanders is a unique twist and pays great homage to the German geography but Fire Salamanders really doesn't roll off the tongue, like some of those European football clubs that people rather refer to only by their location and never their nickname;
are the Yeti even real? And if so, what part of the Rocky Mountains did they terrorize? Plus, are they even that scary when a dog took over their land;
the Sailfish are used for alliteration purposes as the team owners seem to not know the difference between sailfish and marlin --- and there's already a marlin team in Florida, like there is already a bird team in Maryland;
Hahalua are another alliteration accident as Maui Manta Rays would be more apropos and easier to pronounce. Did you not Hahalua Manta Rays are basically off-brand stingrays;
Sabrecats ---- not even worth discussing since there is, or was, an actual pro team named the San Jose Sabrecats.
Ergo, the Copperheads, the big venomous pit vipers that can actually be found in Texas(whether in the east Texas swamps and forests or the Chihuahuan Desert out west) are the best mascot. They are sleek, dangerous, mobile, and hard to properly catch and handle, much like their ISFL counterparts.
Hawks are a generic animal in sports and aren't really indigenous to the eastern harbor;
Fire Salamanders is a unique twist and pays great homage to the German geography but Fire Salamanders really doesn't roll off the tongue, like some of those European football clubs that people rather refer to only by their location and never their nickname;
are the Yeti even real? And if so, what part of the Rocky Mountains did they terrorize? Plus, are they even that scary when a dog took over their land;
the Sailfish are used for alliteration purposes as the team owners seem to not know the difference between sailfish and marlin --- and there's already a marlin team in Florida, like there is already a bird team in Maryland;
Hahalua are another alliteration accident as Maui Manta Rays would be more apropos and easier to pronounce. Did you not Hahalua Manta Rays are basically off-brand stingrays;
Sabrecats ---- not even worth discussing since there is, or was, an actual pro team named the San Jose Sabrecats.
Ergo, the Copperheads, the big venomous pit vipers that can actually be found in Texas(whether in the east Texas swamps and forests or the Chihuahuan Desert out west) are the best mascot. They are sleek, dangerous, mobile, and hard to properly catch and handle, much like their ISFL counterparts.
