Mountain West Conference
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| AIR FORCE | BRIGHAM YOUNG | COLORADO STATE |
| "Falcons" | "Cougars" | "Rams" |
| Air Force Academy, CO | Provo, UT | Fort Collins, CO |
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|---|---|---|
| NEW MEXICO | SAN DIEGO STATE | TEXAS CHRISTIAN |
| "Lobos" | "Aztecs" | "Horned Frogs" |
| Albuquerque, NM | San Diego, CA | Fort Worth, TX |
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|---|---|---|
| UNLV | UTAH | WYOMING |
| "Rebels" | "Utes" | "Cowboys" |
| Las Vegas, NV | Salt Lake City, UT | Laramie, WY |
Comments
UNLV will be using a slightly modified helmet design in 2008 - the helmet stripe will be shaped differently from the one used in recent years.
Historical Helmets
AIR FORCE
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| 1959? - c.1973 | 1980 - 1998 | 1999 - 2006 |
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| c.1974 - 1979; 2007 - |
I am not aware of Air Force having used any logo other than the traditional blue lightning bolt on its helmets since the 1960s, but there have apparently been some fairly minor changes to the color, placement, and shape of it through the years. The team used silver helmets with blue lightning bolts in 1956 and 1957, and apparently used blue helmets with silver bolts in 1958. The helmets shown above are believed to be a complete set for the period 1960 to present.
BRIGHAM YOUNG
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| 1955 - 1960 | c.1962 | 1964 - 1965 |
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| 1966 - 1968 | 1969 - 1977 | 1978 regular season |
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| December 22, 1978 - 1997 |
1998 | 1999 - 2004 |
| *see note 1 below |
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| 2005 - |
During at least some games in 1969, BYU used a version of the "100" decal that many college teams wore that year to commemorate the centennial of college football. BYU's version had a dark-colored football shape with the numerals "100" in white, and I believe it was probably worn on the left sides of the helmets only, with the oval "Y" logo worn on the right sides. A color photograph showing the "100" decal would be appreciated.
*1 This helmet design was first used during BYU's appearance in the inaugural Holiday Bowl game against Navy at the end of the 1978 season. Site Visitor Dan C. reports that both blue and white faceguards were used by different players on this helmet in games from 1979 to 1983, although blue was always the predominant color. The BYU helmet site states that "light blue facemasks were traded in for a darker color, 'Seattle Blue'" in 1994, but I think this must have been a very minor change, as I can perceive no noticeable difference in the colors in the photographs that I have seen.
COLORADO STATE
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| 1965? - 1968 | 1970 - 1972 | 1973 - 1981 |
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| 1982 - 1992 | 1993 - 1994 | September 8, 2007 |
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| 1995 - |
I do not have much information for CSU from the early 1960s, but the photograph below, from the 1964 season, suggests that the team may have used a logo of some sort during at least part of this time (or perhaps this is some sort of "award decal" worn by only a few players). Any clear photographs from the years 1960 through 1964 would be greatly appreciated.
The 1969 CSU helmet was identical to the first helmet shown above, but with the addition of a "100" decal, as shown in the photo below. The football-shape appears to be green or perhaps blue - the photograph is not quite clear enough to reveal which for certain.
Below is a photo from the 1973 season showing a couple of CSU players wearing very "thick" horn decals on their helmets - does anyone know the story behind these unusual decals?
NEW MEXICO
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| 1960 - 1963 | 1964 - 1965 | 1966 - ? |
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| ? - 1968 | 1969 | 1970 - 1971 |
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| 1972 - 1973 | 1974 - 1979 | 1980 - 1986 |
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| 1987; 1996 | 1988 | 1989 - 1991 |
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| 1992 - 1995 | 1997 - 1998 | 1999 - 2000 |
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| 2001 - 2003 | 2004 - |
This is believed to be a complete set of historical helmet images for New Mexico for the period covered by this web site (1960 to present). Please let me know if you are aware of any other helmet designs used by this team.
SAN DIEGO STATE
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| ? - 1963 | October 12, 1963 - 1973 |
1974 - 1977 |
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| 1978 - 1979; 1981 - 1988 |
1980 | 1989 - 1995 |
| *see note 1 below |
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| 1996 - c.mid-season 1997 |
c.mid-season 1997 - 2000 |
2001 |
| *see note 2 below |
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| 2002 - 2003 | 2004 - 2005 | 2006 - |
*1 Although the difference shows up only poorly at this size, this helmet differs from the 1981-1988 version in that the black letters had both red and white outlines, as opposed to "just" the white outline on the earlier helmets.
*2 San Diego State's new helmet design for the 2001 season featured black "airbrushing" around the "edges" of the helmet; a first in helmet history, to the best of my knowledge.
TEXAS CHRISTIAN
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| 1960 - 1964 | 1966 | 1967 |
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| 1968 | 1969 - 1970 | 1971 - 1973 |
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| 1974 - 1976 | 1977 - 1980 | 1980 |
| *see note 1 below | *see note 2 below |
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| 1982 | 1980 - 1991 | 1992 |
| *see note 3 below | *see note 4 below |
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| 1993 - 1994 | 1995 - 1997 | 1998 - present |
Much of the information here for TCU, including the dates of use for the various helmets, is derived from the impressive "Southwest Conference Helmets" web site.
In 1965 purple helmet shells were used with a logo depicting a horned frog. I do have a copy of what may be the logo used on this helmet, but I need a very clear photograph of the helmet (preferably in color) to verify this.
*1 This helmet design was worn during the first eight games of the 1980 season.
*2 This design was apparently used for just one game, November 8, 1980 vs Texas Tech.
*3 This design was used for the last few games of the 1982 season only.
*4 This one was first used for the team's tenth game of the 1980 season, November 15 vs Texas.
UNLV
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| 1968 | 1969 - 1972 | 1973 |
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| 1974 | 1975 | 1976 |
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| 1977 - 1978 | 1979 - 1980 | 1981 |
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| 1982 | 1983 - 1986 | 1987 - 1989? |
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| 1990 - 1992 | 1994 - 1995 | 1996 - 1998 |
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| 1999 - 2004 | 2005 - 2007 | 2008 - |
The first UNLV football team played in 1968, though at that time the school was known as Nevada Southern University. The helmet design shown in the photograph below was apparently the first one used by the team. I do not have any color photographs of this helmet, but I suspect that the colors used on the helmet logo were almost certainly similar to those used on the "Confederate Battle Flag" which the design mimics (so the oval shape would be red, with a blue and white "X" across it) - this, however, is merely an assumption on my behalf. The helmet shell appears to be silver. A color photograph of this design would be appreciated greatly.
The team's second helmet design (used 1969-1972) featured a silver shell with a "UN" logo which was probably red in color.
Photographs of most of these helmet designs may be found in UNLV's 2007 football media guide, which is available at the team's web site.
UTAH
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| 1965 - 1967? | c.1968 - c.1973 | 1975 - 1976 |
| *see note 1 below |
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| 1977? - 1985 | 1986 - 1987 | 1988 - 1989 |
| *see note 2 below |
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| 1990 - 2000 | 2001 - 2003 | 2004 - |
During the early 1960s, Utah was using plain dark-colored helmets (probably red) without any decals on the sides, but with a single white stripe running over the top. These were used during at least parts of the 1962, 1963, and 1964 seasons.
Utah's helmet sequence from about 1968 through 1974 is unclear. The team used both white and red helmet shells during most of these years, but I do not yet know what scheme was in place with regards to their use, or whether they were ever used at the same time. The earliest photograph that I have seen showing the feathered circle logo in use is from the 1975 season.
*1 The logo used in 1967 may have been a bit different from the one used in 1965 and 1966 - I suspect that it was somewhat larger and may have had a white outline. Color photographs from 1967 would be appreciated.
*2 Stripes were added to the helmet by 1977, but I do not know in which year the facemask color was changed from gray to white. It was gray in '76 but had been switched to white by '78.
WYOMING
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| ? - 1961 | 1962 - 1964 | 1965 - 1972 |
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| 1973 - 1974 | 1975 - 1976 | 1977 - 1980 |
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| 1981 - 1988 | 1990 | 1989; 1991 - 1996; October 15, 2005; October 14, 2006 |
| *see note 1 below | *see note 2 below | *see note 3 below |
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| 1997 - 1999? | 2000 - 2006 | 2007 - |
*1 During the 1986 season, the horse/cowboy decal was modified slightly; the number "100" in yellow was placed over the body of the horse, apparently to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the university. I would appreciate a photograph clearly showing the "100" on this helmet.
*2 I have only a single clear picture of Wyoming's 1990 helmet, but it shows quite clearly the number "1890" atop the horse decal on the LEFT side of one player's helmet, and the number "1990" on the logo on the RIGHT side of a different player's helmet. These special decals were apparently used in recognition of the 100th anniversary of Wyoming's statehood, and I do not know if they were used for every game during 1990.
*3 This design was brought back for homecoming games against New Mexico in 2005 and Utah in 2006.
