By Jared Lloyd
The view from high in the stands of Lavell Edwards Stadium during the Syracuse and Hawaii games was quite colorful, which was kind of disconcerting because the leaves weren?t changing for another month.
Is this a football game or a bright-color variety show?
I couldn?t believe the assortment of purples, greens, yellows, pinks, and oranges that I could see in the stands. People were parading around in beige polo shirts, green-and-yellow sweaters, and orange coats.
OK, the events staff doesn?t have much choice about wearing the orange coats, but the rest of the Cougar nation does!
The most shocking sight from the press box was the gall of some people to wear bright crimson red to the games. Aren?t Ute fans banned at the gate? And if they aren?t, can we start a petition to keep them out or pass a constitutional amendment or something?
Now, I realize that most of the people reading this column are probably die-hard BYU fans who shudder when they see these multi-colored football spectators. You are the people who have your blue attire proudly laid out the night before the game, just in case you forget in the morning.
To you, I applaud your efforts. I cheer your desire to do more than watch a football game, but to become an active, vibrant part of the visual and audible atmosphere of LES. I salute your willingness to set aside the popular ?fashions? to support the team (although what is more fashionable than a sea of navy blue at a football game?).
It?s to everyone else that I make this personal plea: spring five bucks for a simple, navy blue T-shirt and wear it to the game! Not that complicated is it?
LES already boasts an energetic, noisy crowd. This year, the fans even seem to be more educated, making third-and-two situations for the opposition deafening.
So why can?t we correct our color blindness? I?d like to take a color picture of LES and compare it to any school with an intimidating tradition (Nebraska, Texas A&M, Washington, Michigan; take your pick). I doubt anyone would find LES visually daunting.
So take off the tans, greens, purples, and pinks. Don?t show up wearing beige, yellow, or worst of all, red. Even the use of white should be minimal, because it?s too bland. Let?s unite as a Cougar community to clothe ourselves in Cougar blue.
LES seats more than 65,000 fans, which is more than almost all other stadiums west of the Mississippi River. Imagine how imposing we could be if everyone was in Cougar blue? Or even 80 percent?
A sea of blue will definitely be far more distracting than the rainbow colors we have now.
