In 1893, LSU was preparing to play their first ever football game against the Tulane Green Wave in New Orleans. The school’s sports teams, up to this point, had been wearing blue and white,  but felt they needed to change since Tulane’s main colors were blue, white, and green. Head Football Coach, Charles Coates, and Team Captain / Quarterback, Ruffin Pleasant, decided to go to Reymond’s Store in Baton Rouge to find ribbons they could tie on to their grey uniforms.

The store had been stockpiling purple, gold, and green ribbons for the upcoming Mardi Gras season, however, the green ribbons they ordered had not arrived to the store yet. The coach and his team captain decided to buy all of the purple and gold ribbons Reymond’s had.

The “Fighting Tigers” lost that first game, 34-0, but people liked the purple and gold scheme. 132 years later, LSU’s “Royal Purple” and “Old Gold” colors is still the main driver of their identity.