A lot of folks are paying attention to Tennessee football this week, and for good reason. Last weekend, the Vols annoyed Nick Saban on their way to an upset win over Alabama, a celebration 16 years in the making that involved smoking cigars, scaring away referees and tearing down goalposts.
On Saturday, the Vols – newly ranked No. 3 in the latest AP Top 25 Poll – are hosting UT Martin for their homecoming game. And when the Vols take the field, there will be something a little different about Tennessee’s uniforms.
So, some of y’all might be wondering: Why are the Vols wearing blue?
🟠⚪️🔵#TitleIX50 pic.twitter.com/TLAx7B5l9p
— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) October 22, 2022
The short answer is that the blue is for both Pat Summitt, the longtime legendary women’s basketball coach for Tennessee, and Title IX.
Josh Heupel opened up his press conference saying it's a unique weekend because "This is a celebration of Title IX and obviously Pat Summitt and her legacy in sports and her legacy here." #Vols pic.twitter.com/VCu5bcZD93
— Reece Van Haaften (@Reece_VH) October 17, 2022
We’ll go a little more in-depth in our explanation than Heupel:
This year is the 50th anniversary of Title IX, the groundbreaking legislation signed into law in 1972 by President Nixon that barred educational institutions from discriminating based on gender. It aimed to level the playing field for women and to equalize opportunities. Simply put: It sparked an athletic revolution and opened doors for women in sports.
A few years before Title IX, Joan Cronan was the women’s basketball coach at Tennessee. Before the start of the 1968-69 season, she went shopping for new uniforms. But no company was making women’s basketball uniforms in Tennessee’s signature orange. So, Cronan opted for “Columbia Blue” kits with orange lettering on them. Orange uniforms became available later on, but that blue stuck with the women’s basketball team.
Pat Head (Summitt) was hired as the Vols’ women’s hoops coach in 1974 and transformed the program into a national powerhouse brand, winning 16 SEC titles and eight national championships. The basketball hall of famer died in 2016 at the age of 64 after a fight with Alzheimer’s disease.
To honor Title IX and Summitt – the most important woman in the history of Tennessee athletics – the Vols renamed that iconic color as “Summitt Blue” and incorporated it into uniforms for several of its teams this season, including football.
This means so much. One the beautiful things about Tennessee is the love for the women in sports. Pat Summitt paved the way for THOUSANDS of women. Not just at Tennessee but for any young girl who wanted to compete at the college level. 🧡💙🤍. https://t.co/3tfwNOEyLe
— Julia Dugan (@juju_Dugan18) October 21, 2022
Summitt Blue even has its own color codes:
- Pantone: 2171 C
- CMYK: 75/24/0/0
- RGB: 72/159/223
- HEX: #489FDF
The volleyball, soccer and softball teams at Tennessee are incorporating Summitt Blue into their uniforms this year too.
It’s a pretty good time to be a fan of Tennessee right now. Not only are the Vols undefeated in football, but Kellie Harper – who played for Summitt – has the Vols’ women’s basketball team back in the national conversation and garnering a lot of preseason hype. Tennessee is fifth in the preseason AP Top 25 Poll for women’s basketball that was released last week. Last season, Harper’s squad won 25 games and made the Sweet 16.
Harper narrated the Tennessee hype video for this week. The Vols are favored by 37.5 points over UT Martin, which is Summitt’s alma mater.
𝙃𝙊𝙈𝙀 𝙎𝙒𝙀𝙀𝙏 𝙃𝙊𝙈𝙀#GBO 🍊 pic.twitter.com/RAXl1476k0
— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) October 21, 2022
