Pitt will officially "use blue and yellow as the color scheme for its various athletic programs" after a two-year collaboration with Nike, moving away from the navy blue and gold pairing it "had been using" since '97, according to Craig Meyer of the PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE. The new branding was the "worst kept secret in Pittsburgh sports." Pitt AD Heather Lyke said that the navy and gold look "will not be featured in any capacity, even as throwback jerseys for select games." On Sunday, players from each of the school's teams modeled their new jerseys before a "crowd of hundreds of students and fans." Pitt also "unveiled a new panther logo that will serve as its secondary athletic mark after going several years without a logo of any kind beyond the school's signature Pitt script." Over the past two seasons, Pitt's teams "increasingly started wearing blue-and-yellow retro jerseys, beyond even designated games," and coaches and administrators were "more frequently seen in blue-and-yellow apparel" (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 4/8). In Pittsburgh, Kevin Gorman noted at the new branding reveal, the school also "held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Nike Store at The Pitt Shop" (TRIBLIVE.com, 4/7).
ICONIC INSPIRATION: TRIBLIVE.com's Gorman wrote Pitt is "back where it belongs." The new football uniforms "aren't exact replicas" of those worn by Tony Dorsett and Dan Marino, "but you'll know it's Pitt playing when you see players wearing those colors." Gorman: "And that's the point, for Pitt to stand out." The redesign "incorporates the centerpiece of campus, the Cathedral of Learning." Not only are its Gothic arches "evident in the numbers but the new secondary logo, a front-facing Panther head that will appear on the uniforms of teams in every sport, is inspired by the fountain on the entrance to the cathedral." After the reveal, fans were "lined up to buy the new merchandise" (TRIBLIVE.com, 4/7).
