By Phil Hecken
Every so often, as a lede, I will run a set of uniform concepts from a single designer that are either so good, so innovative, or so special that they deserve to be set apart from the normal “Concepts” section.
Today’s featured designer may be familiar to some of you, since I’ve run a few of his concepts in the past — Jesse Alkire. Today, Jesse will share with us a set of NFL concepts. After receiving these, I needed to get to know a bit more about him so here’s a quick Q&A before we get to see his stuff.
Uni Watch: How old are you and where are you from?
Jesse Alkire: I’m 29 years old, originally from southern Missouri but grew up in the suburbs of Colorado.
UW: So, are you a fan of the Missouri teams or Colorado, or some other clubs?
JA: I’m a big Chiefs and Royals fan, so their traditional uniform sets are naturally a big influence on my sports design perspective.
UW: Do you do designing for a living, or is this just kind of a side hobby?
JA: I work professionally in advertising as a writer and art director.
UW: Cool. When and how did you start designing unis?
JA: I began doing uniform design just for fun around 2003. Started, oddly enough, as an online community modder of the EA Sports NHL series, then really hit my stride on MVP Baseball 2005, then I just started doing concept designs for my own amusement or to add to my design portfolio.
UW: Awesome! OK, last question for now. When did you start reading Uni Watch?
JA: I began reading Uni Watch back around 2005 when it was just on ESPN.com, I believe, and have checked the blog weekly ever since.
UW: Ah. Long-timer. OK, enough with the questions. Let’s have a look at your designs.
Below are 16 of Jesse’s 32 NFL designs (we’ll have a look at the final 16 in a future post, and I hope to have a bit of followup questions for him as well). They’re in alphabetical order by City name, and you can click on each design for a much larger full-size version. Below each design is a brief description of each.
Arizona Cardinals
• Limited the use of black to an accent color.
• Numbers inspired by the team’s custom type.
• Cues from the primary logo influence the sleeve design.
• Feather/sunburst stitching on the shoulders and helmet, taking cues from the Arizona flag and cardinal feathers.
Atlanta Falcons
• Used a brighter red, which pops brighter on solid black and conveys a fiercer, piercing image.
• Numbers inspired by the team’s custom type.
• Sharp points on the color and sleeves resemble talons, taking cues from the primary logo.
Baltimore Ravens
• Overall a much more menacing, darker design for a team named after America’s foremost master of the macabre.
• Purple to black gradient throughout takes cues from the raven’s glossy feathers, which appear to change shades under different light.
• The number type plays off the idea of color and light refraction.
• Feather design on shoulders, taking cues from raven feathers.
Buffalo Bills
• A team without a consistent striping pattern in their history, a simplified stripe here takes it’s cue from the singular stripe in the team’s primary logo.
• The number type is italicized and has ruffled, furry corners — much like a charging buffalo.
Carolina Panthers
• Carolina blue and white take the front seat, with black becoming the accent.
• Helmet features oversized “knock-out” version of the team’s primary logo on the right side, with player number on left side.
• Numbers inspired by the team’s custom type.
• Striping pattern taking cues from the panther’s whiskers on the team’s primary logo.
• All-black home alternate uniform a more literal interpretation of the sleek, black panther featured as the team’s primary logo.
Chicago Bears
• A strong, proud uniform tradition remains virtually untouched.
• Removed outline on road uniform numbers to stay consistent with striping.
• Navy pants could be substituted for the road set, but I felt orange pants would look less harsh against the white jersey.
Cincinnati Bengals
• Orange takes over as the primary color, whose namesake animal is similarly predominantly orange.
• Black striping on shoulders continues onto the chest and pants as a sublimation.
• Numbers inspired by the team’s custom type.
Cleveland Browns
• As the Browns are in a unique position of being without a primary logo, this re-design allows them to completely own their most prominent uniform element — the color brown.
• Taking cues from the team’s colorful name and their minimalist sensibility, color blocking is the main uniform element in play here, save for a heavy brown stripe on the helmet and pants.
• The custom letter and number type gives the uniform set an almost throwback feel, keeping the set from becoming too modernist with a small wink toward the traditional.
Dallas Cowboys
• A single shade of silver, — blue-tinted — is paired with a single shade of blue — navy — for a now thankfully consistent color palette across the entire set.
• The two-stripe pattern, a staple in Cowboys history and an ownable team element, is now applied to all uniforms.
• White pants provide a clean, crisp, and classic alternative to the silver, on either the home or away uniform.
Denver Broncos
• The Broncos striping pattern here, resembling a horse’s mane, reinforces the team brand.
• Mane stripes appear on the helmet, jersey, and pants.
• Removed striping and number outlines for a consistent look throughout.
Detroit Lions
• Consolidated striping into one consistent pattern that is unique to the Lions, applied to both home and road uniforms.
• Tweaked number colors to stay consistent with striping.
Green Bay Packers
• Reduced the Packers to one consistent striping pattern which is unique to the team.
• Numbers inspired by the team’s custom type.
Houston Texans
• New helmet a manifestation of the team’s primary logo — horns on the left and right, heavy red stripe down the center.
• More cues from the team’s primary logo throughout, with stars on the sleeves and a horned stripe on the pants.
• Alternate Battle Red uniform an option for marquee matchups, such as playoff games or rivalry games.
Indianapolis Colts
• Another strong, proud uniform tradition remains virtually untouched.
• Blue pants an option on the road to achieve the classic white/color look.
Jacksonville Jaguars
• Sublimated jaguar spots over black gradients on the shoulders and pants disappear and reappear in different shades of light.
• The gradients and sublimation allow for the use of the distinctive and ownable jaguar appearance without feeling too gaudy, as animal print often can.
• A return to the teal-to-black gradient helmet, again consistent with the gradients used throughout.
• Alternate Jungle Night uniform an option for marquee matchups, such as playoff games or rivalry games.
Kansas City Chiefs
• Another strong, proud uniform tradition remains virtually untouched.
• Solid-color socks and red shoes gives one of the NFL’s most traditional uniforms a slick, modern feel.>
Thanks Jesse! OK, readers — I won’t make any comments on the designs themselves, as the floor is now yours — but I do wish we could have seen some side views of the uni and helmet, and perhaps back views as well. That’s not a complaint, but an observation. Perhaps that can be for a future post. I’ll be back with the second half of these concepts at another time, but for now, enjoy!
Guess The Game…From The Scoreboard
It’s baaaaaack.
This week’s entry should be a bit harder than last week…but I have complete faith you guys will solve it before I wake up today. Ready? Go! (This week’s image is already full size, but that shouldn’t be a problem.)
If you solve it, as a courtesy to other readers, simply LINK (go to Baseball Reference) to the game and post that link in your comment — feel free to describe HOW you solved it, using any clues you may have gleaned from the Scoreboard.
OK? OK! Post your answer (in link form) in the comments section below. Good luck.
Last week’s scoreboard/answer: June 22, 2006.
Colorize This!
Occasionally, I will be featuring wonderful, high-quality black and white photographs that are just begging to be colorized.
Just two colorization today, and both are from George Chilvers, one of our oustanding colorizers.
Click on images to enlarge.
Phil
Two colourisations today.
The first is of Kenilworth Road, the home of Luton Town FC, around 1912 or so I would guess. Luton are known as “The Hatters” because of the local industry, and it looks like everyone is doing their best to support the local economy. Of course in reality everyone then wore a hat.
The second is a screengrab from a 1904 short film recording a match at Burnden Park, Bolton between Bolton and a nattily clad Burton in their pink and green. Being a screengrab it is obviously a bit blurry, but I hope it gives an idea of what it was like to be there.
The film is from the marvellous British Film Institute’s archives, in particular a series by Mitchell & Kenyon. Well worth a look.
George
That’s it for today. Great work, as always, by George. OK colorizers, let’s keep the colorizations coming!
U.W.F.F.L. Week 11 Update
By Rob Holecko
It’s Week 11 in the UWFFL and that means there’s only four weeks left in the regular season and every game is ripe with playoff implications. New York (9-1) takes on Detroit (6-4), while Miami (5-5) faces Minnesota (8-2). There are some big matchups in the minors as well, as #1 Dallas (10-0) takes on #4 Anchorage (9-1-1) in a game that has both PCC and national title implications. In the East, #8 Hartford (8-2) takes on the #13 Brooklyn Uni Watchers (7-4) in another pivotal game.
All across the UWFFL, teams are paying their respects to the Albuquerque Red Skins, who lost two members of their squad in tragic events last weekend. Teams are wearing various helmet stickers, jersey patches or black armbands in tribute:
Also this week, a “zoologist with an overactive righteous indignation gland” (as one person called him) tried to spearhead an initiative where certain teams, for one week at least, would abandon their team nicknames that “misappropriated animal imagery and culture” and revert to “less offensive terminology”. Many teams with Animal-American based nicknames did not take part, however a handful did, including teams like Seattle and New Orleans that simply went without a nickname for the week, while others were more creative with the initiative, for instance Sacramento brought a new meaning to the term “going stormtrooper”:
Be sure to follow along with all of these stories and vote for your favorite teams at uwfantasyfootballleague.com.
Uni Watch News Ticker:
Baseball News: Here is color video of the last 3 innings of Jim Maloney’s no-hitter on 8/19/65 – fascinating for a look back at how baseball games used to be broadcast, as well as some really nice looks at the Reds’ away uniforms, with the NOB below the number (thanks to Christian Ruzich), who adds, “Also, make sure to watch the commercial in the first break, where Lloyd Petit and Jack Brickhouse announce the opening of the Hamm’s Tap Room.” (also spotted by Dave Sizer) … The always-great Creamer site has an article on “Dandy,” the forgotten mascot of the NY Yankees.
NFL News: We’ve noted this before, but once more couldn’t hurt: Titans quarterback, Ryan Fitzpatrick, was wearing his wedding ring in Thursday night’s game against the Colts (spotted by David Eichblatt). … Check out this awesome ‘Cat in the Hat-esque’ hat on Antonio Brown (great find by Joseph Gerard). … Matt Barnett was watching the NFL Films highlight of Super Bowl XVII and noticed something interesting. Rick Upchurch’s jersey was a lighter and different shade of orange than that being worn by the rest of the he Broncos. “My guess is because his was a tear away jersey (it easily shredded during this return) while the rest of the Broncos wore regular jerseys,” says Matt. … The Bills will wear a National Guard decal on their helmets tomorrow.
College Football News: Good thing this came in on a Friday: A purple football field. That’s the Union City (Tenn.) Golden Tornados (submitted by Dustin Semore). Dustin did some more digging and found that it’s actually painted on. “That poor away team. Let’s hope they have lots of bleach,” says Dustin. … Here is Florida QB Tyler Murphy wearing a Binghamton Bearcat shirt in a press conference this past Monday in support of her sister, Morgan Murphy, who is a starting forward for the Lady Bearcats Basketball team (good find by Benjamin Ramos). … As you’re probably (hopefully) all aware, Hawai’i’s Rainbow Warriors are throwing back tonight. … We’ve already heard plenty about the WWP unis NU will sport today, but this article highlights a veteran (and Northwestern grad) who feels the blood-spattered unis are a “Frankenstein football uniform — it kind of lessens each of those things that I’m proud of.” … The Illinois Illini will have a new helmet this weekend (from Brad Kruizenga) versus Ohio State. The helmet honors 10 former Illini players who died in combat. … On sale at Cracker Barrel on Vero Beach FL. is a full size Gators helmet (spotted by Jon Solomonson) who called that “Crazy!” … Louisville has a black chrome helmet (but won’t wear it today). … Kentucky will wear blue/white/blue today (h/t Brent Miller). … SMU has a shiny new red helmet they’ll wear today — lots of commenters on that tweet said “Nice Calgary Stampeders ___” (usually ripoff), but it is a legit throwback. … Josh Petty notes “Ball State is a Nike school so obviously the ‘mark of the beast’ was all over the Ball State sidelines. There was one exception and it was the Ball State mascot, … and he (or she) was sporting a jersey featuring a Russell Athletic logo.” … Arizona State will go maroon/maroon/white today (thanks to Marc Altieri).
Basketball News: “The new Bucknell uniforms seem to have flown under the radar,” says Kyle Moran. “They have only played two road games, so still interested in seeing what the home whites look like, but not a fan of the road blue’s. It is a much simpler looks that I think needs some white trim or outline on the numerals.” For comparison, here’s last year’s duds. … Nice article from Forbes, “How The Brooklyn Nets’ $80 Million Tax Penalty Is Making Basketball Competitive Again” (thanks to Tommy Turner). … Boise State has changed the striping on its unis (new vs. old), as spotted by Nick Hueser. … The OSU Beavers will wear their turquoise unis on November 26. … FAU has a new red uniform.
Soccer News: Unfortunately, I don’t really keep up with soccer news, so I’m not sure how “new” these are, but seven World Cup kits were released (including one for Mexico, who at the time of the release, hadn’t quite qualified for the cup, right?). … “A friend of mine at work showed this (Soccer out of Context) to me today,” writes Chad Curry “Reminded me of the work that Mark Willis did with his baseball/soccer out of context series.”
Grab Bag: Marvel Studios has a new logo sequence and bumper (thanks to Jason Charles Franklin). … “As if keeping the peloton clean wasn’t hard enough,” notes Sean Clancy, “here’s an interesting piece on some of the more, ummm, colorful sponsors of pro cycling teams.” … BuzzFeed has a collection of athletes wearing all kinds of eyewear (thanks to Kurt Esposito). … Just what the world needs: UnderArmour is entering the world of software (from Tommy Turner). … Nice vintage tailgate photo that Brinke says “Now HERE is a MEAT photo.” Also from Brinke, “Classical Paintings Meet Nike’s Famous ”˜Swoosh’ Logo.” … Pearl Jam has a logo that’s very Mav’s-eque for their date in Dallas (incredible thanks to James T. Huening for that killer find). … Cort McMurray sends in this article warning “Rob Ford’s Argos jersey is a lesson in the risks and pitfalls of branded clothing.” … Crossover: “I always like pictures of athletes dabbling in different sports,” says Eric Bangeman. “Here’s Leinster and Ireland rugby player Jamie Heaslip crossing codes.”
OK, lads and lasses of the Uni Watch sphere, that will do it for today. Big thanks to Jesse (and George) for their efforts. Everyone enjoy the games today (and don’t forget the Northwestern flag desecration game); I’ll be back with Terry, Catherine and Timmy tomorrow as we wind up your weekend and get you ready for the Sunday games. Till then…
Follow me on Twitter @PhilHecken.
Peace.
Oh – By the way – A Big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Brinke today (I’d forgotten until just now!
“Nike is so powerful they’ve developed time travel. That’s why Union troops during the Civil War had swooshes on their forage caps.”
–Brian C.
Are you listening, Bengals? That’s a beaut.
This is not a knock on Jesse’s work and vision, but I think the Bengals could benefit from something less literal in their presentation. Subliminated stripes and orange jerseys are not what the Bengals need. They need reduction. When you wear a big orange lid with tiger stripes ( which I like), the rest of the uni demands restraint…or your eyes will hurt—like they do when I watch the present day Bengals.
Every summer, we are treated to this on the practice field…
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….Designers take note.
^ This. ^
Agree. Just like Michigan. Let the helmet be the centerpiece.
There’s a couple of great looking concepts, but we really need a side view to show the pant stripes and helmet designs.
What The said.
As a whole, these concepts are excellent. I would disagree on the Bears; the numbers need orange
trim and the pants should either be navy or white.
Looking forward to the remainder.
Scoreboard is from June 9, 1968
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Since Dodgers were in LA, Crosley Field still in use and Johnny bench in lineup, I knew it was late 60s…I guessed 1968 first and looked for a high scoring game in Cincy.
Since the Braves were in Atlanta and the 1969 expansion teams didn’t exist yet, you could narrow it to 1966-68. And that turned out to be an interesting point in the game.
Yes…it appears the Cards were about to score 10 runs after two were out in that inning. A record?
BTW, it could have been that the expansion teams were off that day, making 1969 and 1970 possible I guess.
I wonder if they modified the out-of-town board to handle 12-team leagues. At this point, it’s designed for 10.
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I just started looking late 68, because of the ad for the new 69 GTO
Interesting point in that game as the Cards were down 8-0 and then they scored 10 runs in the 5th inning with 2 out no less. That must have been something to see if you were a Cards fan.
What always strikes me about the Reds at Crosley Field in the late 1960’s is how surreal and out of place the whole thing looks. It’s the late 1960’s but it kind of looks like the 1940’s. But then the whole look and feel of the Reds would change drastically in just 2 years when Riverfront stadium would open up. Then you had the double-knit sans-a belt pull over polyester uniforms and the Reds had that Iconic 1970’s look that lasted well into the 1990’s.
It’s the same kind of feeling when I see Pirate or Phillies games from the late 1960’s at Forbes Field and Shibe Park. In only a few years those teams would be playing in astroturf cookie cutter stadiums and they would be wearing polyester uniforms.
Serious – was there any REAL difference between Riverfront, Three Rivers, the Vet and Busch? Especially the first three
It’s truly a shame that the cities of Pittsburgh and Philadelphia did not go with the proposed alternate concepts.
Three Rivers would have been more Shea-like (though with a spectacular view!)if the Pittsburgh NFL team didn’t sugest closing off the riverside section, and a Rectangle-Vet would have felt more wide open…sort of a proto-Joe Robbie.
Lou,
If you look at aerial photos, the Vet was actually rectangular rather than round, although the interior was similar to the others. And although I can’t tell you exactly which stadiums this applied to, some moved two sections of seats for football and some moved one. (Three Rivers moved two.)
Chris,
A couple things about Three Rivers proposals from my jaunts through newspaper archives:
– The design with an open end I saw was more oblong than circular, kind of like old Cleveland Stadium.
– When the Stadium Authority first accepted bids for construction in ’66 or ’67, they all came back too high. The concrete ashtray design may have been so popular because it was cheaper to build.
Chris H.,
Looking back, I’ll think you’ll find most Pirate and Steelers fans who attended games at Three Rivers Stadium doing not hung up on aesthetics. Everyone knew compromises were made because it was a multipurpose facility, and that said, it was still superior to domes.
And at the end of the day, it’s more about the memories strongly associated a stadium, and TRS had more success than the vast number of sports facilities. Six world titles in total for football and baseball, and even the great 1976 Pitt team took down Penn State in that building.
First time, long time. Those are they best concepts I can remember seeing on Uni-Watch. I can hardly watch the Cowboys anymore (for many reasons), but my biggest issue is the uniform. The mismatched helmet and pants and ludicrous sock situation drive me insane. Well done, Jesse!
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Saw Rose was hitting lead off for Reds, and Dodgers in LA. Guessed 69 first, and knew it was June due to the Cubs being in later in the month.
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Rose in RF didn’t start until 68, and SD/MTL didn’t start until 69. The next home stand promo helped tip off the date.
Quick question: why are you using the Chicago flag stars to separate the sections?
Seeing them after the first section made me think there would be some Chicago content to follow, but there was none…so I was just a confused Chicagoan.
And a comment: I don’t think I’ve ever said this before, but very good job on the concepts. I did a quick glance over them, but all of them look like they could easily work for every team. Nice work!
“Quick question: why are you using the Chicago flag stars to separate the sections?”
~~~
No reason (though I did use the Bears for the splash). Just wanted to use “Stars” for the section dividers, and I knew the Chi-town flag had em. Was kind of a spur of the moment thing. I’m wondering how many non Chicago folks will even recognize those (HHH excluded, of course).
” I’m wondering how many non Chicago folks will even recognize those (HHH excluded, of course).”
Ha! I did recognize those stars as being from the Chicago flag, and just like Steve said above I was wondering why they were being used as content dividers.
Since we are on the topic here are the Chicago flag jersey concepts I designed back in 2009:
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The concepts are clean and crisp. A breath of fresh air from the falcons, jaguars, and cardinal uniforms of today. Great work, Jesse!
Also first time, long time. The Broncos’ design is certainly better than the current atrocity, but I’ll never be satisfied until they go back to the correct uni, With the D on the helmet. Worst uni change ever. Imagine how good that would look with a Jesse update.
I found it interesting when I was at Mile High stadium store recently and about 40% of the merch is the old design… What does it mean? I can dream.
The concepts are great! I especially appreciate your work to keep striping consistent… So many teams have mis-matched striping (my greatest peeve of uniform designs). We’ll done!
Adrian Peterson plays for 16 teams now!
There’s really no need to thank me, Philip. I’m just doing my part for the Faithfull…
Nike and the NFL need to hire Jesse STAT. Well, except for the neck roll. That’s still gotta go. I love these concepts, though!
As someone who’s annoyed by the Cowboys’ use of multiple shades of blue and silver, I like that Jesse standardized it all (without really changing anything, as their template is fine). I think, however, that I would prefer just straight silver instead of the blueish silver–certainly with the navy jersey and for all the helmets, and there’d be nothing wrong with white over silver.
So nice to see so many comments on a uni-tweaker’s designs, and mostly positive as well. On that note, don’t fuck with the Packers helmet ;)
Love the number font, though.
Maybe I’m getting a little too deep in this, but the “Stormtroopers” uniforms would be considered illegal because of the helmet,right?
The Bills would look a lot better without the neckroll. Also, the sock stripe on the blue socks would probably look better with a white outline. Technically that would match the logo as intended.
Those new Bucknell road basketball uniforms are great. No need for any extra trim or outlines. Such simplicity should be praised.
very clever and smart to use PACKER LETTER FONT on the Uniform numbers.
why has no one else though of that?
KUDOS
Agreed. Make that font change, bring back the sock stripes (still severely pissed Nike did away with those) and all is well.
I’ve seen a stencil font for Packers jersey numbers in concepts before. Since I was certain I’ve seen it before but wasn’t sure when, I did some Googling and very quickly found Chance Michaels’ Packers jersey concept he submitted to the 2010 Uni Watch NFL Jersey Design Contest. Chance’s concept indeed had stencil numbers and was one of the finalists in the contest:
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I really like the idea of stencil numbers on Packers jerseys and think it is such an obvious idea for a team named the Packers I’m surprised the team hasn’t adopted it yet. It’s a good look! I mean, the Packers wearing stencil numbers makes sense. A college team wearing stencil numbers just because it looks cool? That calls for a new acronym: SNFSNS (Stencil Numbers For Stencil Numbers’ Sake).
Yeah Phil, my phone started blowing up yesterday after you retweeted that pic (which, BTW, was link), since a bunch of people retweeted it. Not bad for someone with a private account like mine.
I should add that if you watch the accompanying video on the Steelers official web site of Antonio Brown wearing the hat and the throwback (which, strangely enough, wasn’t his own but Larry Foote, who also appears in the video), the Steelers logo is on the hat. So the hat is official team merchandise.
I am hyper-digging George Chilver’s recent work that places the sporting events (soccer, mostly) as elements of a larger, almost pastoral composition. Kind of the inverse of some our focused attention on the minutiae of pinstripes, and most welcome. Kind of a more painterly aesthetic, yeah?
Thanks Connie.
The muses come and go, and often if I am doing one style of picture (individual portrait, action, team group, stadium view) I will do others as I have the technique in hand. They all have their own little foibles.
Glad you keep on liking them.
A little plug – if anyone likes my pictures then I have my own collection on Flickr. Most have appeared here – but there are quite a number non-sporting (including my most recent portrait lol).
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Thanks George for the great work and thanks for that link of 100 plus year old film clips. Fascinating.
The Houston Texans’ concept doesn’t follow the ‘One Helmet’ Rule. But I do like these concepts. Great work!
Great view of Michigan Stadium in that tailgate shot, including the first-ever electronic scoreboard in an American stadium with a clock. A great reminder of how fantastic the classic stadium bowl was before the renovations obscured them with luxury boxes.
If anyone watches the video of Jim Maloney’s no-hitter in the Cubs/Reds game you’ll note that both pitchers wear number 46 (Maloney, Larry Jackson) while both catchers (Johnny Edwards- Cincy, Ed Bailey-Cubs) are number 6. How many times has that happened through the years?
Both hurlers went the distance in the 10-inning game. And both teams looked like real baseball teams in how neatly and properly they dressed. Damn you Barry Bonds!
Before the days of softball tops, too… and I don’t think Bonds had anything to do with them. White homes vs. gray roads is the way baseball should be. And there’s plenty of color in both uniform sets.
BTW — just added this to the end of the post — today is Brinke’s birthday. So Happy B-day big guy. Didn’t realize it until just now.
I’m another long-timer, that hardly ever comments. But Jesse Alkire’s work here is FANTASTIC. I would love to change the whole league over tomorrow.
Side views would also be great!
The mildest of quibbles (and I only bring it up because it’s a pet peeve of mine): the shade of blue that the Panthers wear is not Carolina Blue. UNC uniforms have been trending more and more towards a ‘metallic’ shade (see the new football uniforms, but Carolina Blue is supposed to be baby blue.
Just what the world needed, limited edition Thanksgiving Days NFL caps from New Era
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What, did they run out of white thread?
Really enjoyed looking over those concepts. Worth giving the space too I reckon. Also a tiny point, as a deposed Northern Brit I love the ‘lads and lasses’ at the end of the sign off. Makes me feel right at home.
insane question – is this joe dimaggio?
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scratch that question. i just found “After being out of baseball since his retirement as a player, Joe became the first hitting instructor of the newly relocated Oakland Athletics from 1968 to 1970.”
I thought he was 100% yankee his whole life. never knew this but I am 33 yrs old so definitely this was before my time.
next thing you guys will be telling me Babe Ruth wasnt always a Yankee.
Game is June 9, 1968, St. Louis @ Cincinnati
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All across the UWFFL, teams are paying their respects to the Albuquerque Red Skins, who lost two members of their squad in tragic events last weekend. Teams are wearing various helmet stickers, jersey patches or black armbands in tribute.
Just an A++++++++++* for creativity, for taking it up one more notch beyond an entire league of fantasy uniforms.
(*Yes, from “A Christmas Story”.)
Serious uni content: How much does the black background of the NFL concepts here today make them look different than encountered in the “wild”? I always think that hockey uniforms look different, a half shade darker, when in action with the predominantly white ice and boards.
Great concepts by Mr. A. One quibble: why so much repetition of the same digits? It would be good to see more of them.
UWFFL note: Drew Abernathy’s show exemplifies contemporary sports talk radio at its best. That being said, I don’t listen to sports talk radio ’cause I can’t stand the interminable thumping between the few bits of information.
Duke’s pants look purple in the sunshine.
With Miami going full Stormtrooper, I’m sure Paul is loving this game….
My thoughts on the concepts: Love the Browns (they actually look good), dislike the Packers, and smart not to touch the Colts.
Overall, nice work.
For all those who feel the need to not only bash Maryland’s uniforms, but unnecessarily include that the score when they get beaten wearing them: the Terps wore their White Ops today, and beat a 16 1/2-point favorite in Virginia Tech. They also secured a bowl bid.
Let’s put it to rest, fellas.
Not sure who’s bashing the “White Ops” unis. I happen to like them A LOT. And FSU has been taking a LOT of teams behind the woodshed, so their 63-0 loss to them isn’t as much of an anomaly as it seems.
I’d never play a game they’re involved in, but I don’t mind the White Ops unis one bit. Wish they’d make those their regular road uni.
Love that shot of ol’ Crosley, Phil.
I recall being a kid and we had tix for the ’70 season and our tix were for July, just prior to the ASG. Reds fans who are old enough might recall they didn’t have Riverfront ready until almost July. I was so anxious for them to get it done. I remember my Dad telling me to calm down, the stadium would be done by ASG so it would have to be done when we went down to see them (from Columbus).
Well, as it turned out, he was right. And I got to see a brand new shiny all-purpose stadium as a youth.
Now, even though I would have been disappointed at the time, I wish it hadn’t been ready, because I never got to see ol’ Crosley in person.
Okie State at Texas is a great-looking game!
Sadly the Pac-12 has been at the opposite end. Utes-Ducks could be the single worst game YTD and the Bruins’ kits last night were among the worst ever. Will the Jayhawks keep the grey unis for luck?
Ducks are a strong contender for 5 & 1 honorable mention, but there is no question the “AND ONE” goes to NU/UM
Nice concept work, Jesse!
I really like your choice of white facemasks for Houston, Cleveland and Indianapolis, and the shoulder striping for Carolina is inspired!
Minor nitpick:
Those Chiefs cleats have a “Wizard of Oz” feel to them…white’s the way they should go.
Uni insanity in New York tonight with the Knicks in their orange alts vs. the Hawks in their red alts. Tough to tell the teams apart.
Not only looked horrible, but could impact the game. You need peripheral vision and the ability to tell teammates from the other team.
So…to “guess the game” I looked at Crosley Field’s Wikipedia page (via the Reds’ entry; I couldn’t remember the name of the field, and it was bothering me). If you scroll down towards the end, this exact picture (with pertinent game information) is featured.
I guess it was easier than last week.
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Too bad Hawaii didn’t go with the 80s rainbow helmet throwback. That was one of my favorite lesser-known designs as a kid (up there with Wyoming). I remember when I was about 12, I told my friends I was excited because ESPN was going to show a Hawaii game at midnight (back then, there was usually only one night game on all of TV, and it was usually over at 11). My friends just stared blankly like there was something wrong with me. Good times.
Liked some of the concept UNIS. However, like some of the other commentators I would like to see pant stripes and why does every helmet have either no helmet stripe or one big ass stripe down the middle. And just to let you know the Browns may be able to change their unis they can’t change the helmet.
Thanks for all the compliments, guys! I don’t consider this an easy crowd to please, so I’m glad to hear these mostly went over well.
Excited to see what everyone thinks of the second half.
LOVE these Cowboys concepts. They are my favorite team in any sport, but the inconsistent blue and silver along with the mismatched blue jersey design drives me nuts. I will say I’m not a fan of the white pants though. Would love to see a Thanksgiving Day style throwback.
Also, on the whole these are great. The only one I think is not an upgrade from the current set is Cleveland. The striping on the helmet killed it for me a bit. My favorites were Carolina (which is almost exactly what I thought they would look like in my head after the logo redesign), Jacksonville and Baltimore (that gray/purple along with the black gradient is so unique). Very well done all around.
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Did I miss part 2?