Happy 19th Birthday to the Jacksonville Jaguars

[copperfiend]

That's right. It's been almost twenty years since our fine city was awarded an NFL expansion team. The local reaction was one I have never seen before and will likely never see again aside from a potential Super Bowl win.

I was 13 at the time and I remember my dad picking me up from band practice and hearing the announcement in the car. After dinner, we went down to the OP Mall and waited in line for over an hour to get a shirt. I remember there were T-U vendors on almost every intersection selling special evening editions of the newspaper.

Nationally, the reaction was more of shock. Nobody really thought we could get a team over St Louis or Baltimore. But we did. I found like video (featuring a young Dan Hicken) from WTLV on the team being awarded.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPW5vYO8NAU

Good stuff for anybody here to experience it.

[I-10east]

Happy Birthday Jags!!!

[JayBird]

Awesome, Happy Birthday Jags!!

[Wacca Pilatka]

My sister (who lives in NY) asked if the city would be doing any kind of a birthday celebration for the team.  Seems to me that at least next year for the 20th anniversary, fans and the city ought to come together to create some kind of a celebration event.

[duvaldude08]

For our 20th next year, we need to wear our throwback uniforms for that game. That would be so awesome! We need to get that idea to them some how. And even invite our players that were on our first team and do something at half time.

[copperfiend]

My sister (who lives in NY) asked if the city would be doing any kind of a birthday celebration for the team.  Seems to me that at least next year for the 20th anniversary, fans and the city ought to come together to create some kind of a celebration event.

They probably will. For the 10th anniversary, the NFL scheduled a Sunday Night game against Tampa. Tagliabue was in town and they did a little ceremony on the field at halftime.

[Tacachale]

Go Jacksonville! I still have my first Jags t-shirt with the original logo. I was 12 when I got the thing.

[Wacca Pilatka]

For our 20th next year, we need to wear our throwback uniforms for that game. That would be so awesome! We need to get that idea to them some how. And even invite our players that were on our first team and do something at half time.

They had a nice alumni ceremony and video retrospective at halftime of the first home game of the 2009 season - unfortunately that was not a well-attended game.  That would be awesome to wear throwbacks and invite the entire inaugural roster.

[JayBird]

For our 20th next year, we need to wear our throwback uniforms for that game. That would be so awesome! We need to get that idea to them some how. And even invite our players that were on our first team and do something at half time.

^100

[BackinJax05]

& if the Jags could win a few games along the way, that would be nice, too!

I have a towel with the original Jaguars logo. Its so much more creative than the teal tongued kitty cat. We can thank Ford Motor Company for that. They threatened to sue the Jaguars for copyright infringement, claiming our leaping cat looked too much like the leaping cat hood ornament found on Jaguars.

Happy Birthday, Jags! Now ditch the black uniforms (they look like leotards) and WIN SOME GAMES! Now its time to play for pride.

[Coolyfett]

93 was a good year. I can still remember the juming jag logo, I can rember being in middle scholl when they announced we were getting a real team & not that usfl type of stuff. What exactly is considered the throwbacks? The jags had had a few jerseys & font changes

[Wacca Pilatka]

93 was a good year. I can still remember the juming jag logo, I can rember being in middle scholl when they announced we were getting a real team & not that usfl type of stuff. What exactly is considered the throwbacks? The jags had had a few jerseys & font changes

The original jersey with the cat across the shoulders/leaping cat helmet was never worn, of course.  The original jerseys, with a blockier font, were worn in 1995-96.  The second jersey design, with the more streamlined font and the full-body cat on the shoulder, lasted from 1997-2008 although there were variants in it (e.g., change from teal to black font for the numbers on the white jerseys, black jersey variant, the shade of teal changed a bit a few times).  I'd say either one would qualify as a throwback but I'd like to see the original 1995-96 jersey for a 20th anniversary commemoration. 

[duvaldude08]

The thing I remember the most is seeing a line down the sidewalk at JcPenneys when they showed it on the news.

[Adam W]

The thing I remember the most is seeing a line down the sidewalk at JcPenneys when they showed it on the news.

I was working at Camelot Music in the Regency Mall at the time - the line inside the Mall the morning after the announcement was insane. It stretched from the gate all the way down past the food court. People were waiting for hours before shops opened to get a chance to buy a t-shirt.

[fsujax]

I was in that line to get a t-shirt haha. I was 16, attending Lee High School. It was such a great feeling.