Outback Bowl logo replaced Big Ten logo on players' right shoulder, and "LEO" replaced B1G helmet logoGetty Images
Indiana Univ. "removed the Big Ten logos from its jerseys and helmets" ahead of the Outback Bowl against Ole Miss on Saturday, a move that "fueled speculation it was in response to IU feeling slighted by the conference in bowl selection," according to Glenesk & Osterman of the INDIANAPOLIS STAR. But Indiana football coach Tom Allen said that that "isn't the case." Allen in a statement explained, "Since I took over as Indiana head coach, this program's mantra has been LEO, Love Each Other. This season has been the most trying we will ever experience, and we felt it was appropriate to showcase LEO, which has carried us through one of the most historic years in Indiana Football history. We did not intend to show any disrespect to anyone. We are a proud member of the Big Ten and are always representing our conference." Glenesk & Osterman noted the Outback Bowl logo "replaced the Big Ten logo on the player's right shoulder," and the B1G helmet logo was "replaced by the 'LEO' mantra." Allen's statement included "nothing about the jersey logo switch." Indiana was "passed up for a New Year's Six Bowl, then knocked down the bowl pecking order, as the Big Ten handed lower-ranked Northwestern the Citrus Bowl." Former IU AD Fred Glass last month said, "I’m not AD anymore, nor officially affiliated with IU, so I can tell you what I think, and that is this: Our program, our coach and our kids got done in by the good-old-boy Big Ten football power structure. There are influential people who don’t want Indiana to be good in football" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 1/2).
