USU athletes light the A blue
Utah State University’s student athletes have been lighting the A on the bell tower of Old Main blue more often this year thanks to a new tradition.
“This year is the first year we’ve incorporated the actual teams in the ceremony right after the game if they win,” said Doug Hoffman, USU’s associate athletics director for media relations. “We bring out a smaller model of Old Main and, with a press of a button, they get to light the A blue as a team. It’s pretty fun, and the students have really enjoyed it.”
This change has been the second alteration to the tradition since the A was erected in 1909 as the university’s first class gift. It was originally lit by 146 candlelight bulbs and eventually switched to LED lights.
The A can be seen throughout Cache Valley, shining white on most nights and blue on nights after athletic victories and for other special occasions like A-week and Homecoming.
Dallin Laird, this year’s USUSA campus and recreation vice president, started this new tradition and hopes it will continue.
“I thought it would be something great to start and would build a new, fun tradition here at Utah State,” Laird said. “I knew that in the past after one of our athletic teams won, one of the employees in the athletic department would just click a button on their computer, not in front of anyone, that would light the A blue. I wanted to bring that out from behind closed doors and give the Aggies the chance to light the A blue.”
Laird said this year’s athletic theme has been centered around the slogan “Light the A blue.” The look of the game day shirt was inspired by the new tradition.
“I think this has impacted students in a very positive way,” Laird said. “No one else in the country gets the opportunity to light an A on top of a tower blue after a victory.”
At the end of the 2013-2014 school year, USU sports teams had a total of 122 wins. Overall, the Aggies have 83 wins as of this week, with more games and matches in the future.
“Some of the biggest factors have been changes in conference affiliation,” said Tristan Boyce, a manager for the USU women’s softball team. “When I was younger, we were in the Big West. I remember at times dominating that conference. Then when we moved to the Western Athletic Conference. It took us a couple of years to really get under our feet, but we started to really own that conference as well. With our recent move into the Mountain West, I feel like the teams have improved overall.”
Boyce said the level of talent for both men and women athletes at USU are higher now than ever.
Utah State was part of the Big West Conference until July 1, 2008, when it became a member of the Western Athletic Conference. On July 1, 2013, the Aggies left the WAC and officially joined the Mountain West Conference.
“When the A is lit blue, it means that our awesome student athletes have represented the program well,” Boyce said. “Anytime part of our program gets a win, it’s a win for the entire university, not just the athletics department.”
— schwaby23@hotmail.com