In the early 2010s, rumors spread that the University of Utah was going to phase out its iconic “Drum and Feathers” logo. Yet, as of 2019, the Utah Utes logo featured on the official website has remained the same.
The visual identity of the sports teams from the University of Utah has been very constant throughout the years, using the same symbol and composition, a tribute to the roots and history, for its logo. The circular badge, depicting a drum and two feathers on its left, made up the badge, which became iconic.
Named after the Native American tribe, the Utah Utes adopted the Indian symbol as the main theme of their logo, and the version, introduced in 1972 featured a bold bright pink letter “U” in an extended geometric typeface with massive serifs, enclosed in a black circular frame, with two feathers in monochrome, attached to the left side of the circle.
The rounded frame was supposed to symbolize the Indian drum, and two feathers — the most famous decorative element of the Native American tribes.
The logo was slightly redesigned in 1988, by refining the contours of the letter “U” and switching a color palette. The “U” got narrowed and gained a more elegant contour, while its color was changed from pink to scarlet red. The shape of the feathers was also a bit modified, removing some unnecessary black accents, which made them look more balanced and modern.
The redesign of 2001 elevated the color palette of the Utah Utes, by darkening the shade of red and adding a colorful touch to the bottom ends of the feathers, which more slightly modernized again. As for the drum with the letter, its contours remained almost untouched, just cleaned and refined, creating a better balance in shapes and sizes.
The history of the team started in 1892. Today, it plays in the Pac-12 of the FBS of NCAA Division I. They are currently coached by Kyle Whittingham and play their home games at Rice–Eccles Stadium.
The basketball program competes under the name of the “Runnin’ Utes.” Both the men’s and the women’s teams of the University of Utah compete in the Pac-12 Conference in Division I of the NCAA. The women’s team has reached the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight one time and has had 17 NCAA Tournament appearances. The men’s team became the NCAA Tournament Champions in 1944. The total number of the NCAA Tournament appearances has reached 29, as of 2019.
UNIVERSITY RED
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