ARIEL FORTUNE | opinion editor
If for no other reason, changing APU’s colors from orange and black to brick and black ten years ago, made it so that President Jon Wallace would never have to be called a “pumpkin head” again—at least not by his rivals at Westmont.
It is not surprising though, considering the football teams’ helmets matched the bright orange shade of their pants. Recent students and graduates at the university may not be aware of Azusa’s strong tangerine history. In fact, many may think we have been brick and black since the beginning of time. Unfortunately, APU’s motto of God First, did not transpose into our color choices. When the new brick and black colors were Þ rst introduced by the former President, Richard Felix, APU athletic teams were foaming with Westmont rivalry and after a couple Þ erce tackles in the end zone, that brick was looking a little too similar to Westmont’s red.
Needless to say, not everyone was happy with the new color choices. Deana PorterÞ eld, APU alum and current Vice President for Enrollment Management went to Wallace with the assistant director to discuss the issue. Afterward,
PorterÞ eld began to engage in something she called “silent protest,” encouraging students to wear their traditional orange APU shirts instead of the brick and black colors to Homecoming that year.
“We got in trouble,” PorterÞ eld said. “But it was my colors. It was the colors I graduated with. I have strong feelings about the change.” Although PorterÞ eld now agrees the new colors are great for where APU is at right now, she still Þ nds subtle ways to showcase her orange spirit like when she “accidentally” ordered a hood with an orange interior for the graduation ceremony. Like PorterÞ eld, former basketball player and ’79 alum, Rick Dillon, is a big advocate of tradition, but not in this case.
“I would normally consider myself a traditionalist, but I didn’t like the colors,” Dillon said. “I was glad for the change.” Associate Director of Athletics and Sports Information Director Gary Pine agreed. Also a former alum, Pine was in the university cafeteria when former President Felix Þ rst approached a few students about the change. “No way!” Pine said. “We are black and orange; that’s all we were.” His primary concern for the change was its similarity to the colors of long-time rival Westmont. “I thought we were just going to look like Westmont now,” Pine said.
In the end, Pine believes it was a good thing. “It was a good business decision,” Pine said. “Orange is not bought and was a difÞ cult color to
market as a university”. President Wallace also agrees that the switch was a good move by the former President. Felix Þ rst considered the change when a former marketing director approached him regarding the color orange’s marketability. When Azusa College and Los Angeles PaciÞ c College Þ rst combined in 1965, orange was accepted as a compromise from each university’s former colors. Instead of choosing to be blue and white or green, orange offered the combined schools a change to start over and move forward together as a new school with a new identity. In 1998, another change was made to the school colors but for a different reason.
Although the change ten years ago was initially met with resistance, the new brick and black colors brought with it great success for the university. In the fall of that year, the football and women’s soccer team won their Þ rst-ever NAIA championships. The teams may not have won because of the color change but they were certainly winning wearing the new brick and black colors. At the same time, the infamous Cougar claw mark and athletic logo were introduced.
“All of it made it a little more palpable for people to accept,” Pine said. Besides, Westmont would have to Þ nd a new name to call the APU football players, especially after the brick and black “pumpkin heads” left the warriors in the dust.
