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

From Capers to Howlers to Shipbuilders, meet the best high school mascots in Maine

Maine has no pandas in the wild, but one high school has them. / Brian Blueskye, Palm Springs Desert Sun via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Only one state offers the opportunity to see the Red Eddies play the Red Riots, and die-hard high school mascot fans might know that state is Maine.

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 Kansas

Vote: Best high school mascot in Kentucky

Vote: Best high school mascot in Louisiana

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 Maine (vote in the poll below to pick your favorite):

The poll will close at 11:59 p.m. ET Friday, Oct. 18.

1. Blue Blazes (Westbrook HS)

The only explanation we could find for why Westbrook is the Blue Blazes (the only one in the country) came from the Westbrook Historical Society, and it's a little confusing: "Col. Westbrook's men would stamp trees with this mark to signify that the tree belonged to the King and would be cut and sent to England for use for ships' masts. Of course these were the best trees with the largest diameters, 24" or larger, and selected for the King's Navy. This is the significance behind the Westbrook schools' teams being called 'BLUE BLAZES.'"

2. Capers (Cape Elizabeth HS)

Cape Elizabeth has the only Capers in U.S. high school sports, and they can’t be pickled and eaten, nor are they illegal escapades. These Capers merely refer to being "of the Cape."

3. Golden Bucks (Bucksport HS)

The name itself is unique (among a whole lot of Bucks, Bucksport has the only Golden Bucks in the country), but wait till you see thephysical mascot’s dance moves.

4. Howlers (Penobscot Valley HS)

Penobscot Valley High School is the Howlers because they're from Howland, Maine, and their logo is a pretty sweet-looking wolf.

5. Pandas (Lee Academy)

Five other high schools across the U.S. sport a panda as its mascot, but Lee Academy gets the nod thanks to the fierce-looking Panda in its logo. It looks much more like Kung Fu Panda than Panda Asleep in the Corner at the Zoo.

6. Red Eddies (Edward Little HS)

Philanthropist Edward Little founded this school in the 1800s, and the mascot is the ghost of Edward Little (yep, it’s red). The school nickname was originally the Red Ghosts, but it evolved into the Red Eddies in the 1940s. Solid choice.

7. Red Riots (South Portland HS)

The nickname has nothing to do with an actual riot. Local legend suggests a sports reporter back in the day described a South Portland team as coming out of halftime looking like a red riot, and the name stuck.

8. Shipbuilders (Morse HS)

Bath, Maine, home of Morse High School, became a haven for shipbuilding in the early 1600s, so the choice of Shipbuilders for Morse's mascot was an easy one.

9. Shiretowners (Houlton HS)

The Shiretowners chose a new physical mascot a few years ago, moving on from its penguin and going instead with a judge, which the school felt was a much better representation of its nickname. Merriam Webster’s dictionary defines a “Shire Town” in New England as “a town where a court of superior jurisdiction — such as a circuit court or a court with a jury — sits.”

10. Windjammers (Camden Hills HS)

Maine was the Windjammer Capital of the World from the 18th century to 1920. Despite the steamship coming along and taking the wind out of shipbuilding’s sails, Camden, Maine, has kept the state’s windjammer heritage alive via tourism and high school sports.

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-- Mike Swanson | swanson@scorebooklive.com | @sblivesports