Off topic, but I'm glad the New Orleans are changing their name because it leaves open the possibility that the name "Hornets" could be returned to Charlotte. "Hornet's Nest" is one of Charlotte's nicknames dating from the Revolutionary War and the name "Charlotte Hornets" has been used by both a minor league baseball team (dating from 1892) and a WFL football team from the 1970's. And, of course, the original NBA franchise. The name has a history in the city as opposed to self-aggrandizing "Bobcats" (named after then owner Bob Johnson.) Much like the Cleveland Browns leaving their name on their move to Baltimore to become the Ravens, George Shinn never should have been allowed to take the name out of the city in the first place. Back on topic...I like "Solons."
Solon was a lawgiver and Sacramento is the home of the California legislature and full of lawmakers (i.e. Solons.) Sort of their version of the Washington Senators. And there is precedent for soccer teams using old Pacific Coast League names-- such as the San Francisco Seals .
Hmm, not many come to mind - at least none that would inspire or strike fear as a team name.. Lots of species which occur in Sacramento are migratory like fish and birds (salmon, steelhead, cranes, geese). Various species of hawk and eagle occur here, though not really original. Basically the rare cougar (our UFL team is named the Mountain Lions), fox, racoons, possums, wild boars, rabbits, deer (no elk), snakes.. You'd have to make a stretch for other species like bears. What does work with our city name and is a notorious sight around any part of town is squirrels. Sacramento Squirrels is kind of funny, but is almost to cutesy or kiddie to be taken seriously. The political thing is okay, just kind of overdone and bland. Senators, Capitals, etc. (Our World Tennis team is called the Capitols) I'd like them to stick with something bold and simple. City of Trees FC Sacramento Gold FC Golden State FC Awesome!
But first thing first. Staff. Coach, trainers, etc. What kind of coaches does USL Pro attract? Assistants from higher levels? College coaches? JC coaches? And, as far as exhibitions in 2013, who are we rolling out there? A long list of trialists? Can't imagine there is much pay for a USL roster with limited revenue streams (exhibitions vs. regular season).
A mix. Some guys who played for a club and eventually ascended to the head coaching position (like Mike Anhaeuser in Charleston, Leigh Cowlishaw in Richmond and Justin Evans in Pittsburgh), some guys who've been with their club or in the area forever (like Mark Steffens in Charlotte, Bill Becher in Harrisburg and David Irving in Wilmington), a longtime assistant with another club who got a shot (Jesse Myers in Rochester). Most played the game professionally (Irving and Orlando's Adrian Heath, both English, Irving played in the old NASL) and they have varying degrees of coaching experience. You don't usually see college coaches move into the DIII level, as a rule, because the jobs are less stable and often less lucrative. It seems as though local ties are important to clubs at this level, so if you have someone who's been a "name" in coaching in Sacto, and if they have a bit of a pro resume (like, and just throwing it out there because he would fit the description, whether he'd be hired or not, a Troy Dayak), all the better. I wouldn't expect they'll conduct a nationwide search or poach someone from another club or get someone to drop down like an MLS player at the end of his career or an assistant at the MLS or NASL level. It just doesn't seem to work that way most of the time.
Then give us a better suggestion. The Magpies? they are cool birds and they're all over Sacramento, and not common elsewhere in NorCal, like, not at all in the Bay Area. GO QUAKES!! - Mark
Dayak is with the Quakes again right now. So it's not likely that he'd do it. Also, he wasn't really successful with his indoor team. But there are some ex-Quakes around that might go for it. I'd like to see Rod Underwood get a shot, but that's not likely either. No ties to the area either. Assistant coaches at local community colleges might be a possibility. There was a PDL team in the Sacramento area, the Knights I think? Don't know if they are still around or not. (Not.) My guess is that they have someone in mind already. Wouldn't that have to be part of the pitch to USL? "Hey, we've got money, a place to play, a head coach, and a GM." I would think you'd need those just to get approved in the first place. Oh wait, this is USL right? I see there's a LowCal PDL team named the Seahorses. Wow. That's not intimidating. So maybe Magpies, or Herons, or Egrets, or what kind of cranes are common in Sacramento? Could call themselves the Sacks too, but that would be rude. sorry. Sacramento Gold is a good call too. Simple, relates to the city history. I hope they don't go with Prospectors. OK, looking forward to more news and more progress, and no Elks! GO QUAKES!!! - Mark
Wow, a Coach Troy Dayak would be fun to see! Maybe they will tap UC Davis players/coaches, or a coach from USL PDL move up, like from the Fresno Fuego?
If only I'd thought to say something like "just throwing it out there because he would fit the description." My bad. You never know what people's motivations are. Because, God knows, if you weren't really successful once, you'll never ever get another shot at coaching. As if NASL teams bring all those things to the table at launch.
Kenn, don't be such a twit. I understood you were just throwing Dayak's name out there, so I added a couple of more factoids to the equation. Still, he might do it. He does fit the pattern, and he might want another shot at his own team. And you're right, just because he wasn't good in the indoor game (one season startup? maybe two?) doesn't mean that he wouldn't be good with an outdoor team. I actually think that he is a possibility. Of course, there are other guys they might get too. Whether or not NASL teams do bring all of those things to the table (clearly, not for the Cosmos), they ought to. Adding a new team to your league is a little like agreeing to a business partnership with another company. You ought to do your due diligence, but it seems that these lower leagues don't. Go Sacramento! - Mark
Sacramento Gold is the current name of a NPSL team. I think it is an amateur league, so I don't know if the name would really be considered "fair game" or not. http://sacramentogoldfc.org/
Appreciate the input. I'm not that familiar with the Sac soccer scene so I don't know what kind of names are available. There are several very competitive travelling youth clubs and a very active amateur scene. Ashley Yudin has run the Davis club teams for years (Jalil Anibaba of the Chicago Fire is an alum) and won several sectional titles at Davis High. He just retired so, who knows, maybe it would be an intriguing final challenge for him.
Ah, bummer. Doesn't matter if it's "fair game" or not, it would be nasty to steal their name, and it would earn the new club some ill will out of the gate. No reason to go there. I'm sure they'll come up with a decent name, logo, and team colors. The real issue of course, is a decent coach and roster. - Mark
Let's hear some more suggestions for club names! Supposedly, the organization will let us vote on the name, so this is not just silly conjecture. We may end up picking your idea!
I'm surprised the Anglophiles haven't spouted off much about Sac City or Sac Town or FC Sacramento or anything like that...
Team Colors I've been thinking about possible colors for the team. As an expansion starting from scratch, it makes sense to look at what's currently around the league. Here's my assessment as a league outsider: 6 Teams - Some variation of Blue(s)/White (Antigua, Harrisburg, LA, Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay, Wilmington) 2 Teams - Orange/White (Charlotte, Dayton) 2 Teams - Red/White (Richmond, Phoenix) 1 Team - Yellow/Black (Charleston) 1 Team - Purple/Red (Orlando) 1 Team - Green/Black (Rochester) (plus misc third and fourth colors) I don't see them going with blue as there's enough in the league, and there are already a couple of orange and red primaries. I'm thinking the Sacramento team would go with a primary like a yellow, purple, or green. Personally, I think green would be a good choice, especially considering Rochester really use black/white kits with green/yellow as their third/trim colors (correct me if that's wrong). That would go great with a City of Trees theme! Or go with the California flag for inspiration.. Green, red, brown, white. Likewise, we could go "gold" like our bridge and history. Sacramento is already used to purple with the Kings around, but not my first choice. What does everyone think they will/should do? Some of my ideas: Green/White/Red/Brown (State flag inspired) Green/Blue (inspired by our trees and rivers) Gold.. (gold) I wouldn't mind seeing the use of some more muted tones or grey in there. (the grey would go well with the winter fog).
As far as team names that are traditionally associated with soccer, City is my personal favorite and provides a nice tie-in to Sac City, a commonly used nickname. But, Orlando already uses that. We still could with our MLS aspirations (not that I think that will happen). Personally, I like the idea of Solons. Capitols is already used by the pro tennis team. Athletic Sacramento may be to similar to the A's, but we could do AS Sacramento Real Sacramento is a nice play off of the Sacramento Kings. Or, instead of the royal angle, we could use it as "road to" and incorporate a railroad theme with train whistles at games and similar. Ah, if only a soccer-specific stadium and the rail yards were in the cards. To tie in to the American and Sacramento rivers, we could do something like Del Rios Sacramento (by the rivers) or just Rio Sacramento. Bundesliga teams incorporate the year of their founding, so Sacramento '14 is an option. If you want to relate that to the city's founding, then '39 for the building of Sutter's fort. The city's official founding is 1849, but some American football team somewhere already uses that. The city motto is the Latin for the Indomitable City. I'm not suggesting the Indomitables (would sound like a Pixar movie) but Spirit Sacramento, Sacramento Spirit or IS Sacramento (indomitable spirit) would be fairly unique.