Team to wear new purple-accented home jerseys this season

By Matt Chinander  |   May 21, 2016, 6:05 p.m.

This upcoming season, the football team will be wearing some very cool new home jerseys. The Nike-made jerseys feature the standard red, black, and white West Branch Bears color scheme. But, this jersey has a twist: a purple accent.

Along the front neck line of the jersey is a purple stripe to honor former West Branch Football players.

"One of the things that I've always tried to stress is that we shouldn't forget the people of the past that have made the school district what it is today. We've added the purple stripes on there to honor the players that played with the purple jerseys at West Branch High School."

Remembering and honoring the time when the Bears were the Polar Bears has been a staple in the program the past few years with the Throwback Night events at the Little Rose Bowl. The team has special all-purple jerseys, reminiscent of the Polar Bears' jerseys, worn up until the early 1940s.

"Along with Throwback Night and the purple jerseys, now every time we step on the field, [those teams] are going to be remembered."

Below, check out a video of Coach Pedersen showing and talking about the jerseys and other uniform updates being made. The clip is from Coach Pedersen's Spring 2016 interview with WestBranchFootball.com, which is coming soon.

The team also raised money to purchase new game pants and reconditioning of their helmets. The helmets are now painted in a matte black color, as opposed to a more glossy black paint.

The jerseys, pants, and helmets will make their debut at the Little Rose Bowl during the home opener on September 2nd when the Bears take on the West Burlington Falcons.