If you’ve walked around Penn State’s campus, you probably didn’t have to look very hard to find the famous blue and white.

The colors are on the flags outside Beaver Stadium, the shirts worn throughout the student section, and on thousands of people repping the school’s pride. Although the colors are everywhere today, their history isn’t well known and remains a mystery to be solved.

For more than a century, blue and white have been inseparable from Penn State’s identity. But Penn State once wore pink and black, and the shift to what folks know now began in 1890.

Why Did Penn State Choose Blue & White?

The university officially adopted the blue and white in 1890. However, their origin remains unclear, according to the Penn State Archives.

That uncertainty makes the story behind the colors more interesting than it might seem and leaves plenty of questions to answer.

One possible connection comes from E.K. Tryon Jr. & Company, a Philadelphia athletic outfitter. Around the time Penn State switched to blue and white, a representative from the company visited the university and brought athletic samples.

The company had previously worked with clothing for Penn State, and nearly $300 worth of orders were placed during the visit. The timing is definitely interesting, but there isn’t enough evidence to say that the company influenced the decision.

Another possibility is Pennsylvania itself. The state’s flag features plenty of blue, which could suggest Pennsylvania influenced the decision to adopt these colors.

Lastly, the choice may not have had a deeper meaning at all. This decision could have been made simply because the colors looked good together, were easy to use on uniforms, and perhaps were available at the time.

Unlike today, when school colors are deeply tied to a university, the colors may have been chosen somewhat randomly. Without documentation explaining the reasoning behind the choice, it’s impossible to know the specific meaning behind it all.

Penn State later tried to piece together the story behind the colors, and in 1947, university administrator J. Orvis Cromer gathered recollections from people who had been at the college during that change. Even then, no definitive answer emerged.

Before Blue & White, There Was Pink & Black

In 1887, Penn State students were tasked with choosing colors to represent the institution. A committee consisting of representatives from the sophomore, junior, and senior classes presented a variety of color combinations to the student body. That’s when the decision for pink and black came into play.

The combination didn’t last long, though, and the pink began fading in the sunlight, making it hard to maintain. Eventually, the athletic association decided it was time for a change.

On March 8, 1890, Penn State officially adopted navy blue and white.