OK, so this might’ve been a head-scratcher for many, but if you harken back to your elementary school art class, I’m guessing that you’ve seen the acronym ROYGBIV before, right?
ROYGBIV stands for the different hues visible in a rainbow.
- R is for Red – In our case, R is for legendary New York Knicks coach Red Holzman. The Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer won 613 games for the Knicks, including two NBA Championships in 1970 and 1973.
- O is for Orange – In our case, O is for Minnesota Vikings’ rookie defensive lineman Domonique Orange. A 4-year player at Iowa State University, the man nicknamed “Big Citrus” was the Vikings’ third-round draft pick in April.
- Y is for Yellow – In our case, Y is Moses “Chief” Yellow Horse, a 100% Pawnee Native American, who pitched for two seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates (1921 and 1922). Prior to joining the Pirates, Yellow Horse and his family traveled with Pawnee Bill’s Wild West Show with his family.
- G is for Green – In our case, G stands for legendary Pittsburgh Steelers’ defensive lineman Mean Joe Greene. A member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Greene helped lead the famed Steel Curtain Defense and the team to four Super Bowl championships. Did you know that his alma mater, the University of North Texas, is nicknamed the Mean Green, but that name was not for him as widely believed, but rather for the vaunted defense he helped lead during his first season (1966).
- B is for Blue – In our case, B stands for longtime MLB pitcher, Vida Blue. A standout with the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants (and even the Kansas City Royals), Blue had a season for the ages in 1971 when he went 24-8 with a 1.82 ERA and fanned 301 over 312 innings pitched (and 24 complete games and eight shutouts!) en route to winning both the American League Cy Young and MVP Awards. He remains the answer to a terrific trivia question as the last AL switch-hitter to win the MVP.
- I is for Indigo – In our case, I stands for Indigo Sims, a junior soccer player at San Jose State University. Sims spent her first two years of college at Sam Houston State and is also a member of the Puerto Rican Senior National Soccer Team. (If I’m being honest, there weren’t too many Indigo athletes out there. I almost went with the noted swordsman from The Princess Bride, Inigo Montoya, but I didn’t want anyone to “prepare to die.”)
- V is for Violet – In our case, V stands for Violet Palmer, the trailblazing basketball referee who, in 1997, became the first female to officiate any of the four major professional sports leagues in North America. She was part of the crew for the Vancouver Grizzlies and Dallas Mavericks game in British Columbia. In addition to NBA games, Palmer also officiated WNBA games and, since retiring in 2016 due to knee issues, has been named the coordinator of officials for the WAC, WCC, Big West Conference, and the California Collegiate Athletic Association.
Just to review, The Fan Teaser was the creation of former Ann Arbor News Sports Editor Geoff Larcom. Longtime friend and fellow Ann Arbor News alum, Pat Schutte, took it to heights previously unknown. We aim to keep it alive here at The Sports Fan Project. The cropped photo and the accompanying clue give you an idea as to who or what the image is of. We invite you to use the Comment option to take a crack at solving the Teaser and, if you’re so inclined, participate in some good-spirited banter with your fellow sports fans. The Fan Teaser will appear each Friday morning with the reveal coming to you Sunday.