SEC Helmet Makeover

As expected, last weeks B11 helmet make-over project generated a lot of opinions. It was by far the biggest visit generator since T9 launched this blog into the interwebs. Once the post was picked up by the popular UNIBLOGWATCH - the discussion on which designs were good and which designs sucked took place in several other places. It is pretty cool to watch something you created spawn all over the place.

I make no claim to be a credible graphics designer. I am just a guy with an internet connect, photoshop, a cool helmet template, and an obsessive personality. As the opinions flowed in, I decided to take a stab at our friends in the Southeastern Conference.

As I stated on the B11 project... the SEC has some great helmets and an actual change is ridiculous. This is simply a fun off season conversation starter -- and infinitely more enjoyable and productive than talking about recruiting. If you hate one or all of them, that is fine -- I will be happy to refund any money you paid to me to design these.

	South Carolina: This one is easy. I have a soft spot in my heart for the Gamecocks because I met my wife in Columbia while she was a student at TheUSC. When Lou Holtz took over the program in 1999 he put them in the current fUGLY white helmets. Make the bad man stop.
	Auburn: The current with Auburn helmet, while not as bad as South Carolina's is still white and boring. Especially when you consider the existing alternate logos they have to work with. I went with the orange face-masks as a tribute to Bo Jackson. Without question, he is the best athlete I have ever seen in my life.
	Georgia: This is one of those cases where the existing design is perfectly fine, but in this project everyone has to participate. I know UGA wore something similar to this in 2009 against Florida. I considered using one of the many Bulldog logos they have, but knew I was going to use a one for Mississippi State, so I just stayed with the Packers "G".
	Mississippi State: I have never seen this particular Bulldog logo before I started this project. Not too bad. Certainly an improvement over the generic M with a state ribbon they use today.
	Mississippi: Working with a southern school that calls themselves the "Rebels" is a mine-field I would avoid in real life. I originally placed stars on a block M, but decided it looked too much like the stars and bars for my taste. Before the hate mail starts flowing in from Ole Miss fans... you are right, I don't understand. I never will.
	Arkansas: I think the running pig logo is so cool I wanted to keep it. I realize silver is not an official school color, but is an acceptable neutral color when you don't want to use black or white. Plus, anything I can do to throw off Ryan Mallett off his game is alright in my book.
	Kentucky: Yes, this one looks similar to the basketball schools in my B11 project. Their current alternate logo is far too busy, so I decided to come up with a whole new look.
	Vanderbilt: I was planning the standard star with a block V on a black helmet. Then I found this alternate Commodore logo and absolutely fell in love. This one is far and away my favorite in this make-over project.
	Tennessee: Because the Tennessee shade of orange is so much like sherbet, this could potentially look very humorous on TV. However, if it works for Florida, it should work for Tennessee. That being said, the UT logo with the state outline is much more distinctive than the current block T.
	Louisiana State: The current LSU design is a classic, but when they wore gold throw back helmets this year, and it also looked great. In addition, I tinkered with a purple version of this design, but decided I liked the gold model much better.
	Florida: For years I have wondered why Florida does not use that fierce looking Crocodile Gator logo on their helmets. Moving to a blue helmet is s far better option than those white things they wore against Florida State and the SEC championship game.
	Alabama: This is the design I expect to generate the most response. Yes, I understand there is no reason to change the classic look of the Crimson Tide. This is just for fun. I really wanted to work in the elephant here, and I even tried a scary houndstooth design. But the traditional A looked best to me.

I will restate this so my intention is clear: I DO NOT think that the teams from the SEC need to change their helmets. This is nothing more than an conceptual off-season conversation starter.

Which one do you like the best? Which one is the worst? What ideas do you have to improve any of the current or proposed helmets?