BYU defensive gamers Jeff Holtry, Chris Hoke, Rob Morris, and Hans Olsen throughout a win over Washington, sporting the bib uniforms for the primary time. Gary M. McKellar, Deseret Information
BYU soccer gamers Kevin Feterik (7), Byron Frisch (93), Margin Hooks (14) and Rob Morris (44) showcase the brand new uniforms. Stuart Johnson, Deseret Information
BYU quarterback Kevin Feterik after throwing a landing towards Washington in 1999. Gary M. McKellar, Deseret Information
Notice: This story is a part of Deseret Information sports activities staff’s Flashback Friday collection, which revisits memorable moments involving Utah groups.
Do you know that a newspaper intern unearthed BYU’s “new” emblem earlier than the massive reveal in August 1999?
In all probability not. I think most BYU followers have moved previous the bib uniforms and the cougar-on-the-mountain emblem. (What was it with mountain logos within the Nineteen Nineties?)
Plus, I by no means instructed anybody apart from my editor and the remainder of the sports activities workers on the Every day Herald. However boy, did taking part in video video games repay that 12 months or what?
Let’s rewind.
Heading into the 1999 soccer season, the BYU athletic division had introduced a rebrand with new logos and uniforms. The brand new look can be unveiled at a press convention scheduled for Aug. 16.
“Till then, lips are sealed,” reported the Deseret Information on the time. “BYU staffers have been requested to not talk about the adjustments and distributors have signed non-disclosure agreements.”
So think about my shock after I introduced my new copy of EA Sports activities’ NCAA Soccer 2000 residence to my school residence, fired up my PlayStation and found a brand new BYU emblem. The sport had been launched on July 29 — greater than two weeks earlier than the press convention. The uniforms had been the identical royal-and-white combo because the 12 months earlier than — however there was no mistaking the brand new emblem.
What occurred subsequent is difficult. I couldn’t tweet out the picture or textual content it to anybody in these days. So I took my console into work, discovered a method to hook it as much as the newsroom TV after which proudly shared my discovery with the sports activities workers. My presentation was adopted by quite a lot of conversations between editors that I wasn’t concerned in.
It took negotiation and time, however we finally printed a narrative with a picture of the brand new emblem on Aug. 13. (You possibly can see the digitized model of the story right here.)
“We knew sooner or later anyone would get their fingers on it,” athletic director Val Hale mentioned within the story.
Being an intern, I didn’t get the byline. However I didn’t care. I lastly had proof that taking part in video video games was a worthwhile endeavor.
And whereas we bought the inside track on the brand, which was a secondary emblem from a bigger household, we had been nonetheless at midnight on the uniforms — so the larger shock was but to come back.
BYU soccer gamers Kevin Feterik (7), Byron Frisch (93), Margin Hooks (14) and Rob Morris (44) showcase the brand new uniforms.
Stuart Johnson, Deseret Information
On the time, I used to be each a pupil and an intern on the native paper, so I ended up within the press field for the season-opener towards Washington. Weeks earlier, BYU had launched new residence uniforms from Nike with blue numbers on a white background that resembled a bib. It was fairly the departure from the normal royal uniforms that had outlined the LaVell Edwards period, and there was loads of sturdy response from BYU followers.
However once more, this was earlier than a rebrand may very well be buried in angst and mockery within the span of 5 minutes on social media. So for lots of people, the season-opener was the introduction to BYU’s daring new look.
The sport itself was a traditional. BYU took an early lead. Washington rallied behind future NFL quarterback Marques Tuiasosopo. The Cougars finally received late on a protracted cross from Kevin Feterik to freshman Chris Hale, who occurred to be the athletic director’s son.
However what I keep in mind essentially the most had been the incredulous feedback within the press field in regards to the uniforms, particularly from the out-of-town media. “Wait, are these uniforms purple?” I keep in mind somebody asking.
BYU quarterback Kevin Feterik after throwing a landing towards Washington in 1999.
Gary M. McKellar, Deseret Information
The reply depended a bit on the lighting. However sure, they had been sort of purple. Defensive finish Byron Frisch apparently thought the identical factor.
“The purples,” he instructed then-Every day Universe author Seth Lewis, “are just a little too purple.”
However quite a lot of the gamers appeared to love them. I've a definite reminiscence of 1 BYU participant telling me throughout an interview, “I don’t care what everybody says. I like our uniforms.”
A long time later, the bibs aren’t remembered fondly. They made SBNation’s listing of the worst school soccer uniforms in historical past. KSL’s Mitch Harper has them on his listing of the 5 worst at school historical past, and my colleague Sam Benson, as a younger author for Bleacher Report, gave them an F-minus.
Extra considerably, the NCAA didn’t like them. Following the 1999 season, BYU was knowledgeable that it couldn’t have white on its residence jersey aside from the uniform quantity and accents. Apparently, some opponents discovered the bibs complicated.
Consequently, we didn’t get to see the bibs the next 12 months on NCAA Soccer 2001 and so they ended up with a really quick shelf life — all of six video games. The final time the Cougars wore them, they misplaced 20-17 to Utah in a recreation that value them an outright convention championship.
The brand new logos caught round for for much longer, however they will’t be discovered on BYU’s official branding website at the moment.