IU-Indy Jaguars Throwback to Metros

Marc Viquez
13 hours ago
3 min read

I thought I was attending an IU Indianapolis Jaguars basketball game this weekend, but the moment I stepped through the gymnasium doors, it became clear I was watching a different team. There was no last-minute cancellation or mix-up—only a surprise throwback. The familiar Jaguars name was gone, replaced on the jerseys by a nod to the past - the Metros.

It was the second time the team played in the throwback uniforms and the first time this season. They are exact replicas of what was worn for at least two years in the mid 1980s. However, why did the school replace the unique name with the ordinary Jaguars moniker?

That happened at the start of the 1998-1999 academic year. This was the year the school transitioned from Division II to Division I. At the time, the school sought a more distinctive nickname and logo as it transitioned to the Mid-Continent Conference. The Metro's name was not going to be the name moving ahead.

The school had been known as the Metros when it began operations in 1969. The name reflected its urban location in downtown Indianapolis. The basketball program launched as an independent varsity sport in 1972, joined the NAIA in 1978, recorded its first winning season in 1980, and by 1993 had become a Division II program.

The colors were borrowed from Indiana’s crimson and Purdue’s gold. There was a logo that depicted the city’s skyline. However, over time, the name was a source of ridicule and ambiguity. What exactly is a Metro?

“Students didn’t know if it was a bus or whether it was a city,” said student Jacob Manaloor to The Indianapolis Star at the time of the school’s announcement of the new Jaguars name. “It’s catchy. It’s eye appealing.”

Manaloor was part of a student panel chosen to pick the new name and logo. The Metro name was considered for retention by the university, incorporating an urban-city theme with a cat. However, all concepts created “conjured images of a house cat”. The jaguar name conjured up images of a confident, beautiful, and wild cat that is known to be the best swimmer of 37 cats in the feline family. The Indy Hawks and Riverhawks were two other finalists.

“Jaguars are powerful, swift, and confident, an appropriate symbol for a campus rapidly moving to the forefront of urban higher education,” said school chancellor Gerald L. Bepko.

The Jaguars name was among 14 other colleges at the time using the name, along with countless high schools across the country. However, the fierce new logo was deemed more appropriate for competing against other schools' athletic teams, and it was mentioned that the jaguar.

Fast forward almost thirty years, and the school once known as IUPUI is now known as IU Indianapolis. The school, with an enrollment of approximately 30,000, has embraced its past with fans sporting the old Metros name on t-shirts and caps at the game. What was deemed vague and monotonous in 1998 is now considered cool, fashionable, and hip to today’s fan and sports enthusiast.

“They’ve been incredibly well received, both from the players and fans,” said Ed Holdaway, Senior Associate AD. “Obviously, the yellow/gold really pops and provides a nostalgic look at one of the most successful teams in program history.”

Holdaway suspects that the uniform sets will be in the mix for at least one game next season at the new buildings, but there are no guarantees, and that conversations will be up for discussion during the off-season.

It was a nice surprise to see the old Metros uniforms in action, and based on old photographs, the basketball program has had its share of an interesting set of designs in its 50-plus-year history. There could be a varied collection of designs in the future, but check your calendars for next year, because the throwback night could be back on campus.

The school wore throwback uniforms for a game in January 2010. They were gold but featured a script Metros logo.