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After Pitt's surprise return of the script logo, athletic director Steve Pederson joined 93.7 FM The Fan to touch on a number of topics. Here's what he had to say. Give that interview a listen - worth your time.
Logo back ... for good
The most important thing of what Pederson may have said was that the logo is back for not only Homecoming, but also for the rest of the season and beyond. If you're a fan of the script, you'll be happy to know that it's not going away.
Limited use
While the logo is back on football helmets on a permanent basis per Pederson, it isn't the main logo Pitt is using. The jerseys aren't changing and they won't have the script, either. Block letter Pitt is staying around and as Pederson said, the script is more of a secondary or alternate logo. It will be a little more prominent, but isn't replacing the current logo.
In addition, it doesn't appear like the logo will carry over to other sports. This seems like it is a football-only change - and even there, again, only helmets.
I can't say how much I agree with this. I wouldn't mind seeing them on the football jerseys but to make it unique to football makes sense. The basketball team, in particular, has a strong identity with the block logo. In basketball, the block seems more like a brand to me. I've got no problem with keeping the block for other sports.
Colors
If you were hoping for a change to the old blue/mustard colors, that won't be happening. Pederson chuckled when asked the question saying the school is pretty set with those. I don't know if that means they won't be brought back on a limited/alternate basis, but the colors aren't changing.
Again, I've got no issue with this. I know a lot of people want the old school blue/mustard back, but I'm perfectly fine with the navy/gold. Looks classier and, to me, more up to date. It'd be one thing if they had been maintained the older colors over the past 20 years, but they haven't.
Timing
Pederson said this weekend seemed like the right time with Homecoming and an important ACC game. More than that, Tony Dorsett and Johnny Majors will be back along with members of some teams from the 1970s.
I get some of that, but there have been bigger moments, too. Bringing it back for the first ACC game last year, for example, would have really been the perfect stage. This weekend is big, but not nearly as big as that.
Also in regards to the timing, I would have liked to hear about the timing of the announcement. Pitt will no doubt be able to sell some tickets to tomorrow's game and I'm sure that the script change will encourage a few who might have been on the fence. But an announcement earlier in the week would have really let them capitalize on the return.
Surprise!
Really, it seemed like few people knew about this. Pederson said the players just found out in a team meeting today, so you can see how it was kept under wraps. This was really out of the blue.
Conclusion
Overall, this is kind of cool. I'm sure that the percentage of those of us over the age of 30 that are excited about this move dwarfs the younger crowd, with only a return on the helmets, there's really no reason to hate this move. It kind of satisfies both groups of fans.
And, oh yeah, this will be a merchandise bonanza.
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