Mid-American Conference - Western Division

BALL STATE	CENTRAL MICHIGAN	EASTERN MICHIGAN
"Cardinals"	"Chippewas"	"Eagles"
Muncie, IN	Mount Pleasant, MI	Ypsilanti, MI

NORTHERN ILLINOIS	TOLEDO	WESTERN MICHIGAN
"Huskies"	"Rockets"	"Broncos"
De Kalb, IL	Toledo, OH	Kalamazoo, MI

Comments

Central Michigan and Toledo both made slight helmet design modifications for the 2009 season.

Historical Helmets

BALL STATE

1957 - 1960	1961 - 1967	1968

1969	1970	1971 - 1984

1985 - 1989	1990 - present

Ball State's 1999 media guide listed the following information for helmets used by the team prior to the period covered by this web site: leather helmets were used from 1924 through 1955, and in 1956 the team used red helmets, each with a single white stripe. Thanks to Jim K. for most of the information I have received about Ball State.

This set is believed to be complete for the period covered by this site (1960 to present).

CENTRAL MICHIGAN

? - 1972	1973 - c.1980	c.1981 - 1988

1989	1990 - 1996	? - 2008

1997 - ?; 2009 -
*see note 1 below

I have very little information for this team from the 1960s, and it is possible that there were some other helmet designs used during that decade. However, I think the set shown above is probably complete from at least 1970 to present.

*1 The "C" logo was changed for the 2009 from an old gold color to a much more yellowish color, but an examination of photographs from the first years when this logo was used would appear to show that the logo was initially a yellowish color, also. When was the switch made to the old gold color?

EASTERN MICHIGAN

c.1950s - 1965	1966	1967 - 1975

1976 - 1978	1979 - 1983	1984 - 1990

1991	1991 - 1992	1993 - 1995
*see note 1 below	*see note 1 below

1996 - 1998	1999	2000 - 2001

2002 - 2003	2004 -

Through the 1990 season, EMU's teams were known as the "Hurons", which is the name of a Native American tribe which lived in Michigan; hence the logos on the pre-1991 helmets.

*1 During 1991, the "100" logo was worn on the left side of the helmet for the entire season in recognition of the university's 100th season of football. The big "E" was used on the right side of the helmet during both 1991 and 1992; during 1992, the left side of the helmet was left "blank". Thanks to Eric R. and Eric S. for information on these helmets.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS

? - 1968	1969	1970 - c.1975
*see note 1 below

c.1975 - c.1976	c.1976 - 1979	c.early 1980s
	*see note 2 below	*see note 3 below

c.late 1980s	1997	? - 1996; 1998 - 2000

2001	2002 -

*1 NIU was using black helmets with white numerals on the sides by at least 1965; I do not have much information yet from the years before then.

*2 Gray facemasks may have been used with this design during part of the period when it was in use, most likely around 1976 and 1977, I would guess.

*3 Some photographs that I have seen from the early 1980s suggest that NIU was using helmets of a darker shade of red than is shown here, perhaps a crimson color similar to that presently used by Oklahoma or Alabama.

TOLEDO

1964 - 1966	1967 - 1972	c.1975

c.1976	c.1977 - 1980	1981 - 1996

1997 - 2008	2009 -

During at least part of the 1963 season, Toledo used a "rocket" decal different from the 1964 - 1996 version

The 1973 helmets were similar to the 1967 - 1972 version shown above, but for a different decal being used; the logo was a small, light-colored football shape that probably contained a picture or letters or something - the photographs that I have are not clear enough to show what's inside. The 1974 helmets were apparently dark blue with a single light-colored stripe and with no decals on the sides.

WESTERN MICHIGAN

1964 - 1968	c.early 1960s; 1969 - 1973	1975

1976 - 1977	1978 - 1983	1984

1985 - 1992	1993 - ?	? - 1997

1998 - 2004	2005 -

In 1974, Western Michigan's helmets were of some light color, apparently either yellow or gold, and had a stripe sequence of brown-white-brown. No decals are visible in any of the photographs that I have seen of this design.