Why Pizza Hut is dropping the ‘pizza’

To mark the start of the NFL season next month, Pizza Hut is dropping the “pizza” from its name—at least for a little while. “You can just call us HUT for the next 25 weeks,” the pizza chain wrote in a social media post with an image of a temporarily rebranded Pizza Hut storefront. On the restaurant’s facade, the “Pizza” part of the chain’s wordmark is covered up by a red banner showing a football; another image shows the word “Pizza” similarly covered by a football banner on a store marquee. [Photo: Pizza Hut] Don’t expect your local Pizza Hut to cover up its logo, however. The “rebrand” is actually just a stunt, the chain says, playing off the dual meaning of the word hut in its brand name, which quarterbacks shout in a football snap count. There won’t be a widespread change made to the signage at the shrinking number of Pizza Hut restaurants. “This is a playful, limited activation deployed at select Pizza Hut locations, designed as a fun nod to our longtime role in football traditions,” Pizza Hut CMO Melissa Friebe tells Fast Company. “This creative take on our signage is simply a reminder to football fans that game day starts with ‘Hut.’” Pizza Hut’s gimmick rebrand is part of…