Top 10 high school mascots in Florida: Vote for the best

From Atomics to Conchs to ThunderWolves, meet the best high school mascots in Florida

The Charlotte Fightin' Tarpons sport a one-of-a-kind logo. / SBLive archives

If you're in the Fightin' mood in Florida, try a Tarpon on for size while honoring the Sunshine State's rich high school mascot history.

Or if you prefer Spongers, Conchs or Dreadnaughts, Florida has those too.

Over the next couple of months, SBLive/SI will be featuring the best high school mascots in every state, giving readers a chance to vote for No. 1 in all 50.

Vote: Best high school mascot in Colorado

Vote: Best high school mascot in Connecticut

Vote: Best high school mascot in Delaware

The winners and highest vote-getters will make up the field for our NCAA Tournament-style March Mascot Madness bracket in 2025. The Coalinga Horned Toads (California) are the defending national champions.

Here are High School on SI's top 10 high school mascots in Florida (vote in the poll below to pick your favorite):

The poll will close at 11:59 p.m. ET Wednesday, Sept. 25.

1. Atomics (Poplar Springs HS)

Named by a sports writer, Poplar Springs' name Atomics was adopted in 1948, just after the U.S. dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The school chose the name to describe its athletes as explosive, and its logo today shows a PS in the center of an atom. 

2. Blue Darters (Apopka HS)

From a 2001 Orlando Sentinel article describing Apopka's mascot: “A Blue Darter is a small, agile raptor about the size of a crow, sometimes known as a Cooper's hawk, and it is the perfect symbol for our football team and school. Unlike larger raptors that spiral lazily in the sky, the Blue Darter flies low and swiftly through woods, rarely seen. It prefers understated displays of power and will pounce on unsuspecting prey before they know what hit them.” 

3. Conchs (Key West HS)

Key West is the farthest-south high school in the continental United States, and it has the only Conchs in the country in high school sports. Featuring an area rife with that seashell on local beaches, the mascot is a big hit with locals.

4. Dreadnaughts (Lakeland HS)

Lakeland’s unique mascot dates back to 1923, when Principal I.G. McKay made a speech to the football team, comparing them to a mighty dreadnaught (a battleship typically spelled “dreadnought”) that rolls over its opponents like a massive ship navigating stormy seas. He ended the speech suggesting the team should be called the Dreadnaughts from that day forward, and it stuck.

5. Fightin' Tarpons (Charlotte HS)

Just minutes away from the school, you’ll often find hundreds of fishermen out angling for the popular game fish. Tarpons are the mascot choice for three other high schools in the U.S. (two in Louisiana, one in Texas), butCharlottehas the only Fightin’ Tarpons, and its logo is the only one with a tarpon wearing boxing gloves.

6. Flying L's (Fort Lauderdale HS)

At the 1917 state track meet, a reporter reportedly remarked, "Look at that L Fly,” as Fort Lauderdale track star Charlie Rhodes ran to victory in numerous events. The following week, the town of Fort Lauderdale voted on nicknaming all of the school's sports teams "The Flying L’s,” and over 100 years later it’s still a hit.

7. Grenadiers (Colonial HS)

This mascot is a literal tip of the cap to the highest-ranking regiment of infantry in the British Army and refers to the fur caps worn by the guards at Buckingham Palace. Colonial’s football team plays its rival, University, every year in "The Boot Game.”

8. Kowboys (Osceola HS)

Osceola's mascot is named for real-life cowboy and Kissimmee native Otis "Pete" Clemens, who died in 2018 at the age of 91. Why Kowboy with a K? It comes from a cartoon portrayal of Clemons that was put on a pickup truck and dubbed "Kowboy Jake.”

9. Spongers (Tarpon Springs HS)

This is as good as it gets when it comes to geographically specific mascots. Tarpon Springs is the sponge capital of Florida, so it’s fitting that the high school’s sports teams are called the Spongers. Just visit the Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks one time and you’ll get the picture.

10. ThunderWolves (Oxbridge Academy)

Oxbridge Academy opened in 2011, and with the birth of the school came the birth of a high school mascot never seen before — the ThunderWolves. The school’s logo sports a wolf carrying a lightning bolt like a deer bone. Barron Trump, youngest son of Donald Trump, graduated in the Class of 2024.

-- Mike Swanson | swanson@scorebooklive | @sblivesports

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