The panther-head logo emblazoned on the field at Whitmer High School's football stadium is said to be Ohio's largest high school field logo.

The only problem is the growling panther image - stretching 20 yards across the center of the $600,000 field - belongs to the University of Pittsburgh, according to the Pennsylvania school.

The university contacted Washington Local Schools earlier this month and ordered the high school to stop using it.

Superintendent Patrick Hickey said a Whitmer student since has created a new panther logo and the district plans to trademark it. But to remove the existing logo from the 3-year-old football field, its basketball hard court, and from the back stadium wall would mean "enormous dollars."

That's because the brilliant yellow panther head isn't just dyed or painted onto the football field; it's "sewn" into the state-of-the-art, synthetic FieldTurf, Mr. Hickey said. And, he added, painting over the logo or otherwise covering it might void the warranty.

Mr. Hickey said he hasn't added up the potential expense. He said the school system asked the university for mercy in an April 15, four-page letter, which outlines a remedial course of action for withdrawing the logo from use. Washington Local hasn't heard back, Mr. Hickey said.

He agrees the logo looks virtually the same as the one the university owns and has used in the past. But he said he doubts the university would want to financially harm a local school district.

"If they come back and say, we want it removed, then I don't see any way we wouldn't have to replace it," Mr. Hickey said. "If they were to do that, I would call the [university] president. I just don't see it going that far."

It's unclear how the university learned of Whitmer's logo or why it decided to contact the high school, which is about 250 miles northwest of campus.

A university spokesman, Madelyn Ross, said in an e-mail yesterday that the university was "unable to comment on this situation."

There's a tradition of high schools and their sports teams using images, letter configurations, and color schemes that mimic pro and collegiate sports team logos and other markings, several high school sports experts said.

"It probably happens more than people realize," said Bob Goldring, associate commissioner of the Ohio High School Athletic Association.

But he said protection of collegiate trademarks has become more focused and aggressive in recent years, and local school systems could run afoul.

"I know trademark and licensing is something that has come to the forefront in the past 10 years," Mr. Goldring said. "That is a concern. We would just have words of caution for high schools to make sure they're not infringing."

Recent court decisions have given universities greater latitude in trademarking their identities, including a July, 2006, decision upholding a trademark for Ohio State's scarlet-and-gray color scheme.

And the schools say they're aggressively guarding brands and images built up over decades or even centuries. The universities have trademark offices geared toward monitoring who might be using logos and other protected images and phrases without permission.

Ohio State sends out cease-and-desist letters, said Jim Lynch, director of media relations for the school. But he said he's never heard of the university sending such a letter to a high school, although, he wouldn't rule it out.

The University of Toledo and Bowling Green State University have trademark offices to protect their logos and other trademarked images. Neither university has targeted or needed to target a high school, representatives said. UT did ask a local bar to stop using its Rocket logo, and the bar complied.

Whitmer High football hadn't planned for the panther head to become such a prominent symbol of its program.

About five years ago, the school started using it as a minor, secondary logo, Whitmer High Athletic Director Tom Snook said.

But he said its use blossomed, and it was drawn into plans for the new football stadium and its fancy new turf. The school sealed the image into its hardwood basketball court, and it appeared on billboards, posters, and even on the high school's Wikipedia entry, Mr. Hickey said.

"We were really victims of our own success," he said.

The team has been on a roll, winning the City League championship last year in its third season in its new $1 million football stadium.

A law firm representing the school system drew up a letter dated April 15 and sent it to the university's legal department. It asks for special permission to use the logo on the Whitmer football field, basketball court, and stadium wall until they can be removed when the facilities are updated or replaced. In exchange, Whitmer will give credit to the university in written sports programs.

Mr. Hickey said yesterday that he was still waiting for a response but is moving ahead with the plan of action, which includes stopping use of the logo on its Web site, on uniforms and helmets, and ordering new stationery.

School officials also found a student to rework the panther head and is asking the university to sign off on it. Mr. Snook, the athletic director, said he likes the new panther head better.

"It's cleaner," he said. "It's not as busy."

Contact

Christopher D. Kirkpatrick at:

ckirkpatrick@theblade.com

or 419-724-6134.

First Published April 23, 2010, 7:36 p.m.