12/25/2025
When Washington Huskies head coach Jim Lambright reintroduced the purple helmets from 1995-1998, it sparked controversy among the fan base.
What many fans may have forgotten or disliked at the time was that during the Jim Owens era, the Huskies wore purple helmets.
The last year prior to Lambright's decision that the Huskies wore purple helmets was 1974, which was Jim Owens' final season.
Notably, Lambright himself wore the purple helmet in 1963 and 1964, as it was often awarded to the best defensive players.
In 1972, Owens adopted the Purple Helmet on a full-time basis, with top achievers earning a Gold W on the side of the helmet.
The previous year, Owens had expanded the eligibility to wear the purple helmets to include offensive players, whereas previously only defensive players were permitted to wear them.
One of Don James' first decisions was to revert to gold helmets, as he disliked the idea of players wearing different helmets. I previously discussed Rick Neuheisel's decision to switch back to gold helmets.
Since then, the Huskies have primarily used gold helmets. Under Steve Sarkisian, the team introduced white helmets in 2011 and black helmets in 2013.
The purple helmet was not worn again until 2017 under Chris Petersen.
The Huskies last wore the purple helmet in 2023, securing a thrilling home victory over the Arizona State Sun Devils. Hopefully, this historical account of the purple helmet will be enlightening.
