How to Fix 5 Classic College Football Uniforms
College football — unlike some sports leagues (we're looking at you, NBA) — is in a good place with uniforms. Adidas, Nike, Jordan Brand, and Under Armour have all done a great job of blending schools' histories with their latest performance technology.
While some teams are desperate for uniform refreshes, others are near perfection. Still, there is always room for improvement. Below are five iconic uniforms that can benefit greatly from minor tweaks.
Arizona State Sun Devils
The Arizona State Sun Devils have one of the coolest nicknames in sports, which is only strengthened by its authentic style true to Tempe. However, their 2011 rebrand was a mistake. The pitchfork logo is sharp, but Sparky the Sun Devil is timeless.
Luckily, Arizona State mixes the throwback uniforms into the rotation each year. But adidas still has work to do. The name font on the back of the jerseys (all of them) is comically small. It's an issue with all adidas football jerseys that needs to be fixed.
Florida State Seminoles
The Florida State Seminoles have a fanbase across the country thanks to their one-of-a-kind aesthetic and tradition. But just as the football team has suffered more down seasons than usual, so have their once proud uniforms.
In 2014, the school updated its logo alongside new uniforms. Luckily, Nike has dialed back the over-the-top details over the years. However, a brighter shade of garnet and gold could lead to brighter days in Tallahassee.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish uniforms are a 9.9/10. Under Armour has done a great job of improving the helmets and jerseys with a shinier, more metallic shade of gold. Unfortunately, they have forgotten about the pants, or chosen to leave the old-gold look from the waist down.
It would be great if Under Armour could match the gold pants with the gold used on the jerseys and helmets. Even better, let's move that 'UA' logo somewhere else and place the 'ND' branding or a green shamrock on the jersey collar for extra flair.
Tennessee Volunteers
A lot of Tennessee Volunteers fans are understandably nervous about their upcoming switch from Nike to adidas. Nike gave the Volunteers their best sets of uniforms after years of trendy adidas sets that did not age well.
Adidas could assuage the anxieties in Knoxville by avoiding any drastic changes. The uniforms could improve with the larger font sizes reminiscent of the Peyton Manning era, and the subtle use of alternate logos (like the hunter logo or tri-star circle) strategically placed on the pants. Speaking of pants, we need more orange pants in the mix.
UCLA Bruins
The UCLA Bruins are another program that had to suffer through years of bad adidas uniforms before Under Armour and Jordan Brand came to the rescue. However, it was Reebok that gave the team its best uniforms in the late 1990s.
Bruins fans are adamant about two uniform details they want back: powder blue jerseys with clarendon numbers. Even better, bring back the grey facemasks or the classic look. Maybe the athletic department wants the same shade of blue across all sports, but other schools have proven that it's perfectly acceptable to embrace different shades of blue (look at Ole Miss).
Pat Benson covers team uniforms and player apparel for Jerseys On Sports Illustrated. Pat is a trusted voice for fans, regularly breaking news, spotlighting important stories, and interviewing the biggest names in sports. Pat also covers the footwear industry and has authored "Kobe Bryant's Sneaker History (1996-2020." You can email him at 1989patbenson@gmail.com.