The Lettermen Jacket or Varsity Jackets, whichever you prefer, is a staple in every high school and in every sort of media containing high school. A personal favorite of mine is Andrew the jock from the 80s classic The Breakfast Club whose varsity jacket is from being on the wrestling team. The felt jacket with your school’s name on the back and your number on the front is something that personally makes me want to join sports but alas. Though the lettermen jacket wasn’t originally a jacket but instead a sweater.

      Letterman jackets, which originally came from Harvard University baseball teams in 1865 originally was just a sweater with their number in the middle but then cardigans got in style, so they remade the sweater in a jacket. It wasn’t till the 1930’s when we got the style that we are familiar with the school’s name on the back, your number on the front and the wool jacket. But then the 80s hit and the varsity jackets got their time to shine appearing in hip groups of run DMC and NWA which made it popular as street wear, along with Michael Jackson’s iconic “Thriller” music video wearing a red letterman jacket with his initial but also in the 90s with the People’s Princess Diana sporting one as well. Now where does this lead us to the CT Gladiators.

      CTK introduced the Gladiators Letterman Jackets, which we’ve never had during the few months before school ended. With CTK’s Gladiator on the back, the athlete’s number on the side, and of course our signature school colors maroon and gold. I was able to ask a classmate of mine about what he thinks the CTK’s Letterman jackets represent and he told me “If you do the work today, you don’t have to do it tomorrow which is commitment.” Jaylen Rempson, ‘25 I am not an athlete but seeing a student wearing letterman jackets like Jaylen said shows the commitment they have to the sport they are playing for.