Cincinnati threatens to sue middle school over copyright, Xavier campaigns to replace mascot

Cincinnati is threatening to sue a Tennessee middle school over copyright. The school will have to change its mascot as a result – and Xavier has started a campaign to replace UC.

In a message Friday, the Cheatham County School District said it received a cease-and-desist letter from Cincinnati about copyright infringements. After the school proposed to remove its logo and create a new one, UC denied it, meaning Cheatham Middle School can no longer be the Bearcats.

“We have been left with no reasonable choice but to rebrand and choose a new Cheatham Middle Mascot,” the message read. “The transition will begin quick, so we would like to start the rebranding process by gathering your opinions.”

A Christian County Middle School is having to change their nickname from “Bearcats” because Cincinnati threatened legal action saying they own the nickname and mascot pic.twitter.com/4CaWPpfoH5

— Matt Jones (@KySportsRadio) November 22, 2024

As the school weighs its options, a PR firm run by a Xavier grad threw its hat in the ring to help. Syngergistic, led by CEO Anthony Breen, is working in cooperation with XU and offered to help the school rebrand and redesign if it agrees to become the Musketeers.

In addition, Xavier is offering to sell t-shirts for the school – branded as the Cheatham Musketeers – to raise funds. It’s quite the rivalry twist in the situation.

“I look forward to Cheatham rallying around their new mascot with more energy and excitement than ever before,” Breen said. “As D’Artagnan from the Three Musketeers said himself: Forward! Still forward!”

Cheatham Middle School is located in Ashland City, Tenn. – more than four hours away from Cincinnati. UC released a statement on the situation to FOX 17 in Nashville explaining its decision to send the cease-and-desist.

“A few months ago, we were alerted to the use of the University of Cincinnati’s trademarks by Cheatham Middle School,” the statement read. “When we or our licensing agency, the Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC), identify infringing activity, the other party is contacted to educate them about the University’s rights and request they stop using the marks. As part of this process, we requested CMS to identify the various ways in which they have adopted UC’s identity so we can understand the full scale of what is involved to address the matter.

“We appreciate Cheatham Middle School’s interest in using UC’s iconic trademarks, which are recognized both nationally and globally. But CMS never requested permission to do so. Just as many other universities and recognizable brands make significant investment to protect their own marks, we reserve the right for exclusive use of the UC marks. We understand this may cause some inconveniences, but we have a responsibility to preserve and protect the University’s rights to its marks.”