The History Of The Border War “Bronze Boot”
Wyoming fans know about "The Bronze Boot." The traveling trophy is for the winner of the Wyoming-Colorado State game, but do you know the sweet story behind it?
In 1968, the ROTC detachments of both the University of Wyoming and Colorado State agreed on a great idea that still is The Bronze Boot. The boot was worn in the Vietnam War by Cpt. Dan Romero, an Army ROTC instructor at CSU between 1967 and 1969.
Leading up to each year’s big event between the Pokes and Rams, the game ball is carried in a running shuttle relay by the ROTC detachment of the visiting team along U.S. Highway 287 to the Wyoming-Colorado border, where the home team's ROTC detachment receives it, and runs it to the host stadium. The trophy is guarded by the ROTC unit of the past year's winning school during the game.
The first meeting of these two goes all the way back to 1899, so generations went by before anyone ever heard of the Bronze Boot, but the respect for it has only grown every year since 1968. With the honor for our military that’s always found in Wyoming, the feeling for the Bronze Boot is pure reverence.
This past Friday the ball was carried from Fort Collins the 39 miles to the Cowboy State, where UW ROTC took it the final 26 miles to War Memorial Stadium in Laramie.
CSU’s longest win streak is three years, which The Cowboys hope to end by late Friday night. So do we. Go Pokes.