Commenters showed love for classic uniforms like Alabama.
Last week I tried deciphering which team in each FBS conference had the best uniforms — a tough order with so many options and different styles to look at.
Coming as no surprise, there was a ton of feedback on social media with fans weighing in on their own opinions — some apparently biased while others made some pretty good points.Here are some of the thoughts across social media in response to last week’s article. What changes do you agree with?
Atlantic Coastal Conference
My pick: Florida State
North Carolina's powdered blue jerseys rival Florida State out of the ACC.
I mentioned the Seminoles’ historic garnet and gold look in my reasoning for favoring them in my post, but as one Facebook commenter noted in her take, there’s symbolism within the jersey’s seams that adds to its appeal.
In working with the Seminole Tribe of Florida, according to Florida State’s athletics site, Florida State and Nike came up with its recent redesign to show its relationship with and respect for the Tribe.
According to the site, the sleeves contain the Tribe’s symbols for Arrow, Man on Horse and Fire, while the crossing spears on the helmet’s back is an ode to Florida’s state flag.
As for North Carolina, there’s perhaps no better look in basketball than its powdered blue sets, but its football uniforms also deserve some mention. Partnered with Nike, UNC now goes with a powdered blue helmet with its interlocking “NC” logo, with an all-blue look and white numbers or vice versa.
While it’s a simple look, no other major program boasts that same light blue shade. When you see powdered blue, it’s only natural to associate that with the Tar Heels, and that kind of branding is tremendously effective.
Big 12
My pick: Texas
West Virginia's navy and gold jerseys still appeal to fans in a competitive Big 12.
Classics like Texas and Oklahoma received some love for their respective burnt orange and crimson jerseys, while the more modern looks from West Virginia and Oklahoma State garnered some praise as well.
There’s not much more to say about Texas and Oklahoma that wasn’t discussed in last week’s post. Both boast iconic colors that support their rich traditions. During their annual Red River Rivalry matchup played at a neutral site, it’s always fun to see contrasting seas of red and orange split up in the stands.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma State continues to roll out its own sleek orange and black look with new alterations in 2016. The Cowboys’ uniform features now include reflective fabrics for its stitched numbers and names and a “marshal badge” design on the back. They also changed their white jerseys to have black numbers with an orange trim.
In West Virginia’s case, many fans still prefer the program’s previous, more basic navy uniforms with gold numbering. The Mountaineers have tried different styles and color schemes in recent years, but their newer Nike uniforms have moved back toward that look with a few extra options.
Big Ten
My pick: Michigan
Penn State's navy and white classic jerseys was a resounding choice by commenters for the Big Ten.
Last week’s post discussed how classic uniforms, while they don’t stand out too much, have become just as recognizable and appreciated as the on-field success has for some of the greatest programs in college football history. For some reason or another, the Nittany Lions’ navy and white look was left out of the conversation.
Penn State continues to put out its simple navy or white jerseys with white pants and a plain white helmet with one navy stripe going across vertically. It’s perhaps the plainest uniform combination imaginable — but it works.
You don’t need bright colors or flashy designs when you’ve built an identity around one certain, clean look. And surrounded by equally historic programs in the Big Ten, Penn State has done just that.
Pac-12
My pick: Oregon
Outside of Oregon, UCLA received the most support from the Pac-12.
But overall, Oregon still reigned supreme while UCLA picked up most of the other mentions.
The Bruins’ traditional light blue jerseys with gold pants and helmets is one of the most underrated classic looks across the nation, and their road white jerseys with navy trims is also a hit.
I’m not too sure about how its black uniforms stack up with the other two, but UCLA isn’t too far behind Oregon in the public’s view.
Other Pac-12 representatives to get nods from commenters were USC, Stanford and Arizona.
Southeastern Conference
My pick: LSU
Alabama was described as having "the complete look" with its crimson uniforms.
While I opted for the colorful purple and yellow attire from LSU narrowly ahead of the Crimson Tide’s look, there was no question among commenters who deserves the SEC crown. Often paired with Penn State’s uniform in comments, Alabama’s uniform was referred to as a “simple, clean look,” “the complete look” and one that “never goes out of style.”
The Tide sport a simple crimson red and white jersey with a crimson helmet featuring an individual player’s number in white. This has been the constant with only little changes in the past five decades.
Coming second to Alabama’s support, Tennessee’s orange and white and Florida’s blue and orange looks were also mentioned.
Other notes:
- Commenters seemed to favor the classics over more modern styles, as seen by the greater support shown toward Penn State and Alabama.
- Florida State, Texas and Oregon were the three teams that had the most (or tied for the most) comments of support that matched NCAA.com’s picks last week.
- There was no clear winner in the American Athletic Conference with Temple, Navy, Tulsa and Cincinnati each getting a mention in Facebook comments.
- Ohio’s green and white jerseys received the most positive feedback out of the Mid-American Conference.
- Wyoming (Mountain West), Army (Independent) and Western Kentucky (Conference USA) were the only teams from their respective conferences to get supportive comments.
