Alabama fans may hate the color orange, even enough to notice when it isn’t even there — in this case in the signage on a new Whataburger on the Strip in Tuscaloosa.

The city is getting a third location of the popular Whataburger franchise, soon at University Town Center on University Boulevard just a few blocks from Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Located next to Insomnia Cookies and a few doors down from the University of Alabama Supply Store and Mediterranean Sandwich Co. (and across the street from Buffalo Phil’s), this Whataburger location looks a little different than most you see nationwide, even across town.

The signage outside the building does not feature any of the franchise’s standard orange coloring. The lettering in the word “Whataburger” and the restaurant’s logo are white against the red brick building. Alabama fans took notice online.

“If you think Rivalries in College don’t mean anything, you’re dead wrong!” one Facebook user wrote in response to the lack of the chain’s customary orange hue in their signage. The post got more than 2,000 shares, with Crimson Tide fans writing “Roll Tide!” and “Yeah we don’t do orange here.”

But despite how many die-hard Bama fans feel about the color worn by their bitter SEC rivals like Auburn and Tennessee, the choice was made merely for aesthetic purposes, at least according to the restaurant and the property owners.

A Whataburger public relations representative told AL.com that the white signage outside the restaurant was “a requirement from the landlord.”

A University of Alabama spokesperson shared this statement: “As a requirement for occupancy of the space, Whataburger needed to adjust their typical signage for the location in University Town Center. This type of requirement is typical to ensure aesthetic consistency in developments. The University appreciates Whataburger’s willingness and eagerness to offer the campus community another dining selection.”

It remains unclear when the restaurant at University Town Center will open, but construction crews are hard at work.

Two years ago, the UA System Board of Trustees approved an commercial lease agreement with Whataburger for the stretch of University Boulevard known as The Strip. Tuscaloosa’s first two Whataburgers opened in 2018, on Skyland and McFarland Boulevards. (These locations have the standard orange coloring.)

The Texas-based franchise is currently expanding throughout Alabama, with a location in Albertville open this year and restaurants announced for Jacksonville and Gadsden. Whataburger already has 26 locations in Alabama and added a Madison restaurant in November.

Following the opening of a restaurant in Athens last year, the Albertville location was the second of 30 restaurants set to open through 2027 in partnership with MWB Restaurants, Whataburger’s local franchise group. Whataburger also has locations in Alabaster, Athens, Auburn, Birmingham, Brewton, Chickasaw, Clanton, Daphne, Decatur, Foley, Fultondale, Homewood, Hoover, Huntsville, Leeds, Mobile, Montgomery, Opelika, Pelham, Saraland and Tuscaloosa.

William Thornton contributed to this story.