Why does Tennessee softball wear blue? What to know about ‘Summitt Blue’ uniforms

Tennessee softball rallied after a Game 1 loss to Nebraska in the super regionals, winning Games 2 and 3 to advance to the Women’s College World Series.

The No. 7 Lady Vols wore their all-blue uniforms for the series-clinching win on Sunday, setting up a first-round WCWS matchup with No. 2 Oklahoma. Tennessee might bring back the all-blue uniforms again in Oklahoma City, which might be unusual for some college softball fans not aware of the Lady Vols’ history.

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All of Tennessee’s women’s sports programs wear “Summitt Blue” uniforms in honor of Pat Summitt, the legendary Lady Vols basketball coach.

Here’s everything to know about Tennessee softball’s blue uniforms, and how they came about:

Why does Tennessee softball wear blue?

Tennessee softball started wearing blue jerseys in 2022, as part of the “Summitt Legacy” collection of uniforms for Vols women’s sports. Lady Vols soccer, volleyball, softball and basketball all have blue uniform options.

Lady Vols softball stepped it up in 2025, however, introducing a full blue uniform for the first time. Previously, the team wore white or orange pants with their blue jerseys.

The “Summitt Blue” collection launched in 2022 as part of the 50th anniversary of Title IX. It was then when Tennessee officially renamed the blue accents that are part of the school’s colors in honor of Summitt.

“Well, I think I finally got over the idea that we’d look like North Carolina if we wore all Summitt Blue,” Lady Vols softball coach Karen Weekly told the Knoxville News-Sentinel earlier this year. “The little touches to it, like the Summitt legacy patch on it, because Pat Summitt is a big part of our program, a big part of me and Ralph (Weekly). We wouldn’t be here, we wouldn’t have the success we’ve had here if it wasn’t for Pat Summitt.”

Summitt coached at Tennessee from 1974-2012 and won eight national championships and went to 18 Final Fours. She was gifted the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama and was a part of the inaugural Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame class in 1999.

Summitt retired from coaching in 2012 after being diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s. She died in 2016 at the age of 64.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why does Tennessee wear blue? ‘Summitt Blue’ uniforms, explained