Yesterday's Legends, Today's Heroes

The 1955 Crispus Attucks “Flying Tigers” were the first all-black state basketball champions in the United States. Basketball Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson headlined those championship teams alongside a number of all-time Indiana basketball greats. Unfortunately, after years of still being a segregated school, even into at least the late 1960s, and declining enrollment through the 80s, Crispus Attucks became a Junior High and then Middle School in 1986. The legendary basketball team was shelved. The High School returned in 2006 and basketball restarted in 2008. To honor its first matchup against longtime rivals Washington, the 2009 game was played at Conseco Fieldhouse (now Bankers Life Fieldhouse) in an event titled “Yesterday’s Legends, Today’s Heroes.” At halftime, the team members of that 1955 team and other greats from both schools were honored. I designed the logo for the event, along with the banners that hang in the school’s rafters honoring those great players. I focused on the era of those teams, along with the Fieldhouse’s architecture for the identity. Crispus Attucks returned to its previous glory by winning the 2017 State Championship.