David Jamison founded the Big Orange Army in 2002. He sold memberships, and members started as privates and moved up through the ranks by enlisting new members. The Big Orange Army entered into a trademark agreement with UT for use of trademarks in 2005 “so long as the Army complies with the royalty terms and quality control terms of UT’s standard licensing agreement with the Collegiate Licensing Company.” The army used the Power T, Smokey, the interlocking UT, and other designs. Outside of the trademark agreement, UT granted its approval for the company names Big Orange Army and Little Orange Army to be used in products and promotions. In October 2006 Alcoa-based Action Sports Media acquired majority ownership of the Big Orange Army program and opened a seasonal store in West Town Mall. The military-themed fan club featured an orange tank, and its principal logo had a silhouette of Neyland Stadium with the words Fort Neyland 108,000 Strong emblazoned across it, which it placed on a billboard on Interstate 40 and US 129 in October 2007.
- Following the billboard placement, the UT Athletics Department informed fans that it did not endorse the Big Orange Army or its marketing programs and indicated that the Big Orange Army was violating trademark protections by its use of UT symbols. Big Orange Army was sold to Learfield Sports and ISP in February 2008, and the dispute about trademarks and licensing culminated with UT filing suit in federal court stating that the company had participated in “gross trademark infringement at the state and federal levels.” UT indicated that although the Big Orange Army had paid some royalties to the Collegiate Licensing Company, it had never entered into the standard licensing agreement with the CLC, which was required in the original trademark agreement if the company wanted to use such designs as the Smokey likeness and the Power T.
- The lawsuit was settled in June 2008. Under the agreement, the company would not violate the licensing requirements and would also pay UT royalties from the sale of its unauthorized Big Orange Army Helmets, which were sold on its website, and produce no more of the helmets once the supply on hand was depleted. The company also agreed not to register and use the name Fort Neyland.