In Living Color

By Adam Karon
Daily Bruin Staff

There seems to be something missing from the UCLA vs. USC game
each year. Passion, intensity and rivalry still permeate a game
that can make or break a season. The players still get fired up for
the late November matchup regardless of either team’s
record.

But many, especially those who have followed the contest for a
couple of decades, know the game lacks color ““ literally.

Until the early 1980s, both UCLA and USC wore their home jerseys
for the rivalry game. The game was held at the Coliseum, which
served as the home field for both schools. In addition to having a
reputation as one of the fiercest crosstown competitions in college
sports, the game was seen as the most colorful contest around.

The stadium would be equally divided in blue and red with a
little gold mixed in, not just in the stands but on the field as
well.

These days, however, one team is forced to wear white, as
dictated by the NCAA football Rule 1, section 4, article 3a. To
paraphrase, this rule states that teams must wear contrasting
colors, with the visitors wearing white. If the home team chooses
to wear white, the visitors must wear colored jerseys.

The history and date of this rule is blurred. Some believe it
was instituted because fans watching on black and white televisions
had trouble distinguishing between two teams wearing solid
colors.

Others think it stems from a conflict arising between the
University of Arizona and Arizona State in the ’80s. During a
game in the desert ,both schools showed up in their solid home
colors. The coaches got into a bit of a “hissy fit”
according to Pac-10 commissioner Jim Muldoon. As a result, the rule
was enforced with more regularity.

Both Bruin and Trojan administrators have tried to bring back
the “color game,” once known as the most vibrant game
of the year.

UCLA athletic director Peter Dalis said he and former USC
athletic director Mike McGee wrote letters to the NCAA requesting
they suspend the rule for the rivalry game. They were denied.

“I think it’s great for the fans, and great for the
game,” UCLA head coach Bob Toledo said of the colored
jerseys. “I liked it when I was at ‘SC, and I wish we
could bring it back.”

Unfortunately, the NCAA guidelines supercede coaches and
athletic directors.

But perhaps fans could get into the act.

“It sounds like a great idea to me,” senior
psychobiology major Jason Weinger said. “Maybe we could start
a petition or something. It would add some spice to an already
exciting game.”

With the advent of color television, a national audience would
be in for a treat watching blue, red and gold merge on the playing
field.

Most of the players do not seem to care what color uniform they
put on, as long as it says UCLA on the sleeve.

“It does not make a difference to me,” linebacker
Robert Thomas said. “Either way we’re still playing
‘SC.”

Offensive lineman Mike Saffer agreed.

“It’s not important,” he said. “We just
have to focus on the game.”

In recent years the rivalry game seems to have lost a bit of its
luster. The contest has not been carried on national television the
last two years, and this year it will be broadcasted on the West
Coast only.

Perhaps this is because neither team has completed a successful
season the last couple of years. Maybe it is because the rumored
“East Coast Bias” lowers Pac-10 national ratings.

Whatever the reason, adding color to the game can only benefit
the rivalry, and in turn promote college football. It would please
alumni of both schools who look back fondly on the years when the
Coliseum was drenched in red and blue. Television could also
benefit from the explosion of color and the players might change
their attitude about their attire.

But the chances of change are slim. The regulation falls under
an NCAA list of “administrative rules that may not be
altered.” Without a vote by the rules committee, UCLA and USC
will be forced to play the game as is, with one team wearing its
home colors and the other wearing white.

While the rivalry will remain intense, it will certainly lack
the color that characterized it for more than half a century.