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Why are the Boise State Broncos blue and orange?

Two men changed the course of Bronco history forever in the early 1930s.

BOISE, Idaho — Editor's note: This segment originally aired on April 21, 1997

If Preston Hale and Owen Sproat hadn't been around in the early 1930s, things at Boise State University would likely look a lot different today.

"After we decided we were going to have a football team, we decided we better have a college color," they said.

Boise State's colors were initially black and red. The school, which was originally Boise Junior College, got their uniforms second hand from the Boise High School football team.

"We decided on orange and blue because there were no orange and blue combinations in the area at all, and there were no Broncos either, so we chose the Broncos," Sproat said. 

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In the 1940s, the school became Boise State University.

"Did you ever imagine that now you'd be seeing bumper stickers and logos and astroturf?" John Miller asked.

"Not in our wildest dreams!" both Hale and Sproat answered.

Check out the video above for the original story.

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