"Luv Ya Blue" was a movement by fans of the
Houston Oilers
The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Tennessee Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 as ...
of the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
in the late 1970s that featured large flashcards,
fight songs
A fight song is a rousing short song associated with a sports team. The term is most common in the United States and Canada. In Australia, Mexico, and New Zealand these songs are called the team anthem, team song, or games song. First associated ...
,
pom-pom
A pom-pom – also spelled pom-pon, pompom or pompon – is a decorative ball or tuft of fibrous material.
The term may refer to large tufts used by Cheerleading, cheerleaders, or a small, tighter ball attached to the top of a hat, al ...
s and other features more reminiscent of the
college game than the NFL.
__TOC__
Coining of the term
In the early 1970s, the
Houston Oilers
The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Tennessee Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 as ...
had fallen on hard times. In 1975,
Bum Phillips
Oail Andrew "Bum" Phillips Jr. (September 29, 1923 – October 18, 2013) was an American football coach at the high school, college and professional levels. He served as head coach in the National Football League (NFL) for the Houston Oilers fro ...
was hired as the coach and ushered in a new era for the Oilers. With the help of stars such as
Billy "White Shoes" Johnson
William Arthur Johnson (born January 27, 1952), better known as Billy "White Shoes" Johnson, is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver and return specialist in the National Football League (NFL) from 1974 throug ...
and
Elvin Bethea
Elvin Lamont Bethea (born March 1, 1946) is a former American football defensive end who played his entire career with the Houston Oilers. He played for North Carolina A&T State University and was the first person from that school to be elected t ...
, the Oilers had their first winning season of the decade in 1975. In 1978, the Oilers drafted one of the most dominant
running back
A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...
s in college football,
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...
winner
Earl Campbell
Earl Christian Campbell (born March 29, 1955), nicknamed "the Tyler Rose", is an American former professional football player who played as a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Houston Oilers and New Orleans Saints. Kn ...
of the
University of Texas
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...
. Campbell went on to become the NFL
Rookie of the Year, as well as the
Most Valuable Player
In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...
in 1978.
Led by the charismatic Phillips, the team quickly became a sensation in Houston. Many team members, including Campbell, began adopting Phillips' "good ole boy" attitude by wearing
cowboy boot
Cowboy boots are a specific style of riding boot, historically worn by cowboys. They have a high heel that is traditionally made of stacked leather, rounded to pointed toe, high shaft, and, traditionally, no lacing. Cowboy boots are normally ma ...
s and "ten gallon" cowboy hats. As the 1978 season progressed, Campbell contributed such a large part of Houston's offense that many fans began referring to the team as the Houston "Earlers". This would soon change, however, as the marketing department of the Houston Oilers under the direction of PR Director Jack Cherry would give Oilers fans another catchphrase to use while cheering for their team.
On November 20,
1978
Events January
* January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213.
* January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...
, the Oilers took on the
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...
on ''
Monday Night Football
''ESPN Monday Night Football'' (abbreviated as ''MNF'' and also known as ''ESPN Monday Night Football on ABC'' for simulcasts) is an American live television broadcast of weekly National Football League (NFL) games currently airing on ESPN, AB ...
''. In order to boost team spirit, the Oilers gave each fan a blue and white pompom before the game. The sight of over 50,000 fans waving the pompoms inspired the Oilers to a 35-30 victory, behind Campbell's 199 rushing yards and 4 touchdowns. After the game, Campbell stated, "The display of Blue was a chance for people of all races and backgrounds to come together as a city.” The Luv Ya Blue Era was born. Licensed products began appearing all over Houston.
Joske's
Joske's, founded by German immigrant Julius Joske in 1867, was a department store chain originally based in San Antonio, Texas. In December 1928, Hahn Department Stores acquired the company along with the Titche-Goettinger department store of Dall ...
opened Luv ya Blue retail shops inside their stores. Luv ya Blue was a sports promotion that captured the connection of a city to its team.
Spirit of Luv Ya Blue
After that night, blue-clad fans began to bring "Luv Ya Blue" signs to the
Astrodome
The NRG Astrodome, also known as the Houston Astrodome or simply the Astrodome, is the world's first multi-purpose, domed sports stadium, located in Houston, Texas. It was financed and assisted in development by Roy Hofheinz, mayor of Houston ...
.
Face painting also became popular, with many fans sporting the Oilers' logo painted on their cheek.
Pep rallies
A pep rally or pep assembly is a gathering of people, typically students of middle school, high school, and college age, before a sports event. The purpose of such a gathering is to encourage school spirit and to support members of the team. It ...
were often organized and the Astrodome was regularly sold out as the entire city went wild for the Oilers. Houston's energy-based economy was also booming at the time due to rising fuel prices, and this gave a large sense of optimism that boosted Oilers fans. Additionally, many thousands of new Houstonians had recently moved in from other parts of the US due to the surging economy, and the Oilers became a common cause for new and established citizens to feel civic pride. Local singer/songwriter Mack Hayes wrote and recorded the song, ''We’re the Houston Oilers'' in 1978. Then after the ABC ''Monday Night Football'' game on December 10, 1979, where 50,000 "Luv Ya Blue" flashcards were distributed and the Houston Oilers defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers, Mack Hayes wrote, copyrighted and recorded his song, ''Luv ya Blue''. The song became the Oilers' rallying song the following year and Hayes and the Love Ya Blue band played at the Astrodome for each of the 1980 home games.
The song was played to the tune of the Beatle's song "Love me do", which resulted in a copyright lawsuit.
Lyrics to another song (Houston Oilers Fight Song), written by Lee Ofman was played until their departure in the NFL in 1996.
While the Oilers would never win an AFC Championship, they would reach two AFC title games during the Luv Ya Blue era, which included losses to the
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
in 1978 and 1979; despite the tough losses, they were still welcome to thundering roars by crowds in Houston on both returns.
During the latter rally, he made a commitment to next year, famously stating that "One year ago, we knocked on the door. This year, we beat on the door. Next year, we're going to kick the son of a b---- in." The Oilers traded for
Ken Stabler
Kenneth Michael Stabler (December 25, 1945 – July 8, 2015) was an American professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons, primarily with the Oakland Raiders. Nicknamed "Snake", he played col ...
, but they would lose 27-7 in the Wild Card round on December 31, 1980. Shortly after the game ended, amidst disagreements with Adams over having three head coaches split offensive duties rather than one coordinator, Phillips was fired.
References
{{Tennessee Titans
External Links
http://www.luvyablue.net(Jim Schmidt co-creator marketing dept Houston Oilers)
History of Houston
Houston Oilers
Songs about Texas