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AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — At last, Neil Crump's calendar is clear for a little while.
Over the past year, Crump's plant construction crew at the University of Texas has kept busy organizing Tower lightings for campus achievements. Last month's recognition of the U.S. Open victory a day earlier by former Longhorns golfer Jordan Spieth was the 40th time since August that Crump had arranged for the Tower to be lit in some form of orange.
There were 10 lightings in May, beginning with the Big 12 championship for men's golf (May 4) and ending with spring commencement (May 23-25). National championships won by quidditch and women's club volleyball might have gone unnoticed by many, but not the Tower, which honored the achievements May 6.
Crump deserves a break.
"There's nothing on the calendar for the next month," he told the Austin American-Statesman (http://atxne.ws/1IrrHcz), sounding surprised and maybe a tad relieved.
That's subject to change, of course, particularly if Spieth wins the British Open in Scotland this month for his third major tournament victory this season. Spieth's win at the Masters prompted a lighting April 12.
Not all milestones are equal, so there are various lighting configurations.
The Tower, in the center of campus, is 307 feet high, encompassing 30 stories. At the command of the university president, Crump's staff simply sets a timer and — presto — the Tower is beautified.
An all-orange look signifies academic achievements, commencement, Big 12 athletic championships and UT's birthday (Sept. 15). Matthew McConaughey might have won big at the Oscars in 2014, but he had to share his celebration at Texas, where the lighting for his best actor award came on the same evening, March 2, that the Tower was to be lit for Texas Independence Day.
A football win over Texas A&M also sparks an orange-out, but that hasn't happened since the Longhorns beat the Aggies on Nov. 24, 2011. The teams have not played each other since A&M departed for the Southeastern Conference after that season, and there are no plans to renew the rivalry.
After regular-season football victories, the top of the Tower is lit orange but the shaft remains white. A darkened Tower represents mourning, such as for the annual UT Remembers, which honors those associated with the university who have died in the past year. This year it was on May 8.
On June 2, the Tower was lit to honor Bill Powers, Texas' outgoing president. A day later, his successor, Gregory L. Fenves, basked in the burnt-orange limelight.
Lighting the Tower costs the university roughly $9,000 per year, Crump said.
After Texas' baseball team won the national championship in 2002, Craig Way, the longtime "voice of the Longhorns," delivered an iconic call on radio: "Light the Tower orange! The Texas Longhorns are coming home as college baseball's national champions!"
In Austin, a crew of two or three got busy. National championships require several hours of preparation, as 217 window shades must be turned up or down to form a large No. 1. Work doesn't begin until late in the business day so that university employees working in the Tower's lower 14 floors are not disturbed. A crew member sticks around until the evening to ensure that each window shade is aligned properly.
"There's not a single master key that fits every one of those offices, so when my crew goes by, they have a key ring as big as a dinner plate," Crump said.
On March 5, No. 25 was displayed for Manuel Justiz's 25 years as dean of the College of Education. Less than a month later, the men's swimming and diving team earned a No. 1 for winning the NCAA championship.
Though the university does not keep a log, Crump, who has held his job for eight years, said the 40 lightings this year are not unusual.
The Tower has 356 light bulbs, of which 112 light four clock banks. All bulbs are white, and the orange lighting is actually produced by a filter. About two or three times a year, Crump's crew climbs into the Tower and replaces the bulbs.
There is currently discussion about making a transition to LED lighting, not only for environmental benefits but because LED has a longer operating life than the incandescent bulbs UT uses.
That change might be worth touting on social media. The Tower's Twitter account — @UT_Tower — has more than 4,100 followers.
Last month, Texas men's golf coach John Fields reminded reporters that Spieth, as a high school star in Dallas, once promised to light the Tower multiple times.
"I just didn't know it was going to be like this," Fields said.
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Information from: Austin American-Statesman, http://www.statesman.com
Editor's note: This is an AP Member Exchange shared by the Austin American-Statesman.
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