2009 Scrapbook - Antelope Valley College

WHAT IS A MARAUDER? -- And other Frequently Asked Questions
WHAT IS A MARAUDER?
A marauder is one who marauds (I know, the Language Arts
folks are rightly peeved by now, read on). The term has been
attached to several peoples over
the years, but especially the
Marauding Hordes and Bedouin
Marauders. Both groups attacked
from the north and looted
and pillaged (a good definition
of maraud) whatever civilization
they might run into. Since the
Marauding Hordes came from
the northern Asian areas and
the Bedouin Marauders were the
dwellers of the northern African
deserts, AVC has decided to
honor those of the desert nature,
while Compton College (Tartars) decided to identify themselves
with those of the Asian group.
WHY IS IT ANTELOPE VALLEY COLLEGE’S
MASCOT?
The Marauder was selected as the mascot for Antelope Valley
College some time during the 1938-39 academic year. However,
the exact origins of the mascot and its development over the
years have apparently been lost beneath the dust of the years.
“I’ll be damned if I can understand now or remember how
we came up with the name,” says Walt Primmer, a former athlete
from AVC’s class of 1940. Other college graduates from that time
were equally at a loss as to the origins of the name.
The earliest written mention of Marauders that can be located
by researchers is from the 1939 Antelope Valley High School
Yucca yearbook. The yearbook, which included a special section
for what was then known as Antelope Valley Junior College, made
reference to the “Maroon Marauders.” Previously, college students
who shared facilities with the high school were simply referred to
as “JCs” in the Yucca yearbooks.
One thing for certain is that the Marauder image certainly fit
in well with their namesakes - the marauding desert dwellers of
Africa and Asia from earlier times. Some of the students from the
early days of Antelope Valley College must have felt like marauders
as they left their homes in distant reaches of the region to live
in dorms at the college.
At the time the name “Maroon Marauders” surfaced, so did
a “Maroon Marauders” emblem that appeared on some sweaters
ordered by the mother of student Jack Reynolds, according to
Primmer. The emblem consisted of a large circle with a scimitar -
a curved saber used mostly by Turks and Arabs - running through
the center of the circle. The college’s initials of “A.V.J.C.” appeared
on the scimitar.
The Marauder name quite possibly served as motivation for
a play written and produced by the college students in 1940. The
play, “A Knight in Baghdad,” also known as “Harem Scarem”
was described as an original musical comedy. Photos from the
play show one performer in Middle Eastern dress and carrying a
scimitar. Another performer was dressed in armor, thus the play
actually had a “knight, to fit in with the title.
WHAT ARE THE SCHOOL’S COLORS? HOW DID
AVC COME BY THEM?
Maroon and Silver. As discussed above, the Marauders were
once known as “Maroon Marauders,” though through the years,
“maroon” was dropped from “marauders.” Maroon remains one
of the school’s colors, along with silver. Over the years gold has
been added to the color scheme, but that has been phased out
over the last 10 years. White and black are now used to help accent
the maroon and silver.
OK, IF THE MARAUDER AT AVC IS FROM THE
DESERT, WHY DOES THE MARAUDER MASCOT
THAT DANCES WITH THE CHEERLEADERS LOOK
LIKE JACK SPARROW?
A mascot was eventually developed. What is believed to be
the original official Marauder was depicted as a chubby-cheeked,
comic character with a handlebar moustache and goatee. The
character was dressed in baggy pants and pointed-toe shoes,
like one would envision a genie. The Marauder also had a turban
with a scimitar running through it, in the same way an old cowboy
would wear a hat with an arrow running through it.
Attempts had been made to upgrade and toughen the Marauder
mascot image for more than 10 years before 1990. At least
one student contest was held to develop a new mascot and various
artists have left their mark in coming up with new Marauders.
However, some have lost sight of the original desert dweller in
favor of a swashbuckling high seas marauding pirate. Because of
that, AVC’s mascot was represented first as a duck, then a parrot
and now -- the popular Jack Sparrow.
WHAT IS THIS “NEW” LOGO?
It’s not a logo at all. Athletic departments require different
looks for different purposes.
The circular trademarked
logo developed 15
years ago (top left on this
page) reamins the Marauder
logo. But like most
athletic departments, AVC
has another “identifier”
-- in this case AVC being crossed by a simitar -- which is used to
represent the department when the logo does not make graphic
sense.
ARE THE WOMEN’S TEAMS CALLED
“LADY MARAUDERS?”
No. Marauder Athletics chooses to differentiate only by sport,
not by sex. Therefore, Marauder Athletics uses the nomenclature
“Marauder” before any of their sports (i.e. Marauder Football, Marauder
Soccer, Marauder Women’s Basketball). If Marauder Athletics
hosts the same sport for both sexes, the correct use is to use the
genderal description before the sport (i.e. Marauder Men’s Track,
Marauder Women’s Track). If only one sex is offered participation
in a sport, the genderal description is dropped (i.e. Marauder Volleyball,
Marauder Soccer, Marauder Baseball). AVC’s logo image is
unique in that it is a silhouette, thus it can be identified with either
men or women athletic teams. The old Marauder was strictly seen
as a male figure, which was acceptable 40 years ago when there
were no women athletic teams at the college.
2009 MARAUDER FASTPITCH 31