The University of Houston is moving forward with plans to use powder blue uniforms as an alternate option for its Cougar football team, despite a cease-and-desist order from the NFL.
The Houston Chronicle reported that school officials sent a letter to the NFL last month saying the university was rescinding its previous decision to shelve the jerseys after considering its legal options.
“This isn't a reach. This is a layup,” university athletic director Chris Pezman told the Chronicle at the Big 12's spring conference. “We are in a very defensible position.”
The Cougars' decision to wear blue uniforms for the 2023 season opener has prompted a threat of lawsuits from the NFL's Merchandising Licensing Department for being a “blatant copy” of uniforms worn by the former Houston Oilers. Ta.
According to the Chronicle, university officials had not received a response from the NFL as of late Tuesday.
“We're giving them two to three weeks to respond,” Pezman said. “I’m waiting for a response to see if I can get one.”
Pezman said the latest design changes the uniform's stripes and uses a slightly different shade of blue than the Columbia Blue that the Oilers popularized in the late 1970s. He also noted that other schools, most notably Mississippi Tech University and Louisiana Tech University, feature similar light blue uniform colors and designs.
The overall response to the blue uniforms was, in Pezman's words, “overwhelming.”
The school is the first member of the Big 12 Conference to not announce when the team will wear alternate blue jerseys during the football season.
UW's women's soccer and golf teams also wore their own versions of blue uniforms last year, and the university is considering expanding the rollout to include all sports.
