[Dave Campbell]

Travis,
Years ago, 1999 I think, we did have to use a placard indicating the team alliance color. That was the first year we did alliances. The required placard was not nearly as visible as our bumpers, nor did they stay in place during most matches. That was the year before the really cool rotating beacons with red/blue lenses (brittle and NOT shatter-proof!)
I would LOVE to get rid of the silly alliance flags, specifically this year as they have become notorious for unscoring ringers, carrying permanent scoring object on your now useless scoring robot, and just becoming dangerous projectiles during vigorous robot interaction. With the variety of robot classes and configurations of central mass structures, many flags can not be quickly seen by refs and spectators. I do appreciate the need for alliance identification, although our bumpers started as a silly suggestion during week 5 of the build that has played out interestingly.
Like you said, I don't think anything will change mid-season but if our multi-colored bumpers can invoke chages with alliance indicators, we're happy to help!