13 rare high school mascots you had no idea existed in Ohio

Across Ohio, schools are back in session, and that means at least one key thing — Friday night football.

Players will be cheered on by parents, classmates ... and mascots.

» HIGH SCHOOL: Dayton area sports 

Here are some of the most unique high school mascots in Ohio:

Arcs

Charles F. Brush High School, located just outside of Cleveland, is named after the man who created an electric lamp that burned as brightly as four thousand candles. On April 29, 1879, Brush presented 20 arc lamps to Cleveland residents in the city’s Monument Park to market his invention to the city. Cleveland is now known as the first city to have street lighting in the United States.

Ceramics

Crooksville High School, located east of Columbus, named its athletic teams the Ceramics. Crooksville is known as Potteryland U.S.A. and hosts a summer pottery festival with the neighboring village of Roseville. The festival celebrated its 50th year in 2015.

Freddies

Fredericktown High School, located south of Mansfield, named its athletic teams the Freddies. The name itself is self-explanatory, but the animal — a cardinal — is still a mystery.

After doing his own research and searching through year books, Superintendent Matt Crispin told this newspaper the school switched their mascot from the Redbirds to the Freddies nearly 80 years ago.

Lawyers

John Marshall High School named its athletic teams the Lawyers. John D. Marshall, born March 14, 1885, was a Cleveland councilman for 12 years before becoming the mayor from 1925 to 1933. Marshall retired from politics in 1933, returned to his law practice and served as secretary of the Ohio Brewers Association, according to Case Western Reserve University.

» MORE: Who are the best football players ever from the Dayton area?

Sherman Tanks

Unioto High School, near Chillicothe, adopted the name of the Shermans when former Army General C.L. McMahon took over as superintendent of the district. The Union-Scioto School District lies just opposite of the former site of World War I-era Camp Sherman, and when it came to a vote, the student body unanimously voted in favor of the Shermans. A tank emblem was added as it was thought to be a fitting symbol, according to a 1962 Chillicothe Gazette article.

Stockaders

Old Fort High School is located just north of the former site of Fort Seneca. During the war of 1812, the fort was a stockaded supply depot built and used by General Harrison.

Unicorns

The Columbus School for Girls named its athletic team the Unicorns. In 1970s, the school decided with the increase in women's athletics it needed an active mascot which they created from the school's crest, three roses and a unicorn, according its website.

Credit: BEN SIMON STUDIO

Credit: BEN SIMON STUDIO

Other unique mascot names:

  • 76'ers, Indpendence High School
  • Battling Bees, Medina High School
  • Electrics, Philo High School
  • Scarabs, East Technical High School
  • Whippets, Shelby High School
  • Zeps, Shenandoah High School

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