2021 Uniformity – Maroon Helmet Makes Triumphant Return for Sun Devils

A Week in Review

Let’s start out with a couple of pieces of perspective after Arizona State’s 41-14 victory over Southern Utah. On the one hand, it has been nearly two years since there has been a game with fans in Sun Devil Stadium, so to see some struggles and rust on the part of the Sun Devils was to be expected. On the other hand, 135 penalty yards, some shaky route running, holding onto the ball too long, and not getting a consistent dominant push on the defensive frontline are some causes for concern. No disrespect intended to Southern Utah, but ASU was clearly the faster, more talented team last Thursday. However, there was a lot of sloppy play from the Sun Devils against a team that they should have dominated on nearly every snap. All that said, it was incredible to be in Sun Devil Stadium and to see the Devils put up over 40 points to open the season.

Now, let’s review last week’s uniform combination. The traditional gold helmet/maroon jersey/gold pants became even more traditional with the return to the glossy gold, metallic-flaked helmet for the first time since 2010. Add to that the primarily maroon center stripe, and the end result is a helmet that has a classic Arizona State look. Regardless of one’s vantage point at the stadium or watching on TV, fans’ eyes were graced with a true Sun Devil helmet. A maroon center stripe had been a staple on ASU helmets for over six decades before its 2011 removal. Jerry Neilly’s team recommitting to this aesthetic is welcome and overdue.

After watching the game in person and seeing a replay of the game on TV, I am very pleased with the equipment change. The chrome decals on the helmet gave a bit of flair to the traditional gold lid, though the chrome maroon pitchforks did give off a darker hue than the traditional maroon decals. Even still, the overall look worked, and it is never a bad thing when the Sun Devils wear their traditional colors. This was a great uniform to kick off the 2021 season.

Traditional Gold Helmet/Maroon Jersey/Gold Pants: A

The Week to Come

Uniform

With the first game of the season under their belt, Arizona State will welcome UNLV to Tempe this Saturday. For the first time since the 2018 season, the Sun Devils will be wearing a maroon helmet. They will match that maroon helmet with a maroon jersey/white pant combination against the Rebels.

The maroon jersey features a sublimated Arizona state flag in representing the sunset and the star across the chest in lieu of identifying text which is now on the back of the jersey. The gold player numbers on the uniforms being worn this Thursday are outlined in black on both the front and back of the jersey, as are the TV numbers on the sleeves. The TV numbers on the sleeves take the place of the pitchfork stylized shoulder stripes.

The nameplate on the back of the jersey utilizes the gold Sun Devil Bold font and above the nameplate is a small, gold “ASU” outlined in black. On the front of the jersey, near the left shoulder, is a gold Adidas logo. Near the right shoulder is a maroon and gold Pac 12 shield. Finally, at the base of the collar is the black PT*42 shield in honor of ASU Football legend Pat Tillman.

The white pants have a small gold pitchfork with black trim near the right hip and a black adidas logo near the left hip. “Sun Devils” is in maroon Sun Devil Bold running vertically along the side of the left thigh. There is paneling on the pants that features the darker tonal white, not only providing further dimension to the uniform as a whole but also serving a purpose in providing a greater range of motion.

Helmet

Welcome back maroon! You’ve been missed! Maroon is coming back with a vengeance and a whole new paint job. Rather than the gloss that we grew used to over the 2010s, this season’s uniform uses a candy finish color shift paint job. The surface of the helmet directly in front of the eye will appear as the candy maroon finish, but the angles from which light hits the helmet will shift to gold. For the second week in a row, the decals on the helmets are never-before-seen. The maroon color shift helmet will feature standard sized white pitchfork decals with maroon trim and a gold streak through the middle of the pitchfork. That gold streak, though static, mimics the gold color shift of the candy maroon helmet. There is also a two-tone center stripe, which boasts a bold chrome white center outlined by thin strips of maroon. The facemask is white, and the front bumper has a maroon base and gold font that reads PT*42 honoring the legendary Sun Devil, Pat Tillman. An added element to the PT*42 front bumper decal is that the star separating the PT and 42 doubles as the star in the Arizona state flag, with tonal maroon rays rising from it in subtle detail.

The gold decals on the back of the helmet include the Pac 12 shield and the Warning label, which is in the shape of the state of Arizona, featuring gold text, and has a small, maroon pitchfork with gold trim over Tempe. The decals on the back of the helmet are rounded by the American flag and maroon “Sun Devils” text on the helmet’s rear bumper.

Cleats and Socks

White cleats will be worn for this week 2 matchup. From left to right, there are three different types of cleats. The first six pairs are a mix of AdiZero and Freaks, and the last two are Nastys. The AdiZero cleats are typically worn by speed position players (wide receivers and defensive backs), while the Freaks have a hybrid element and can be worn by mid-size players (fullbacks, linebackers, and tight ends), and the Nasty cleats worn by heavier players (linemen).

From left to right, the pair furthest to the left is the Freak Ultra Laceless. It features a white sole and white base with a maroon pixel gradient pattern around the bottom of the shoe and a primeknit center outlined by a maroon lined starburst pattern. As the name suggests, this cleat does not have any laces but instead has three maroon adidas stripes where the laces would usually be. It is rounded out with a maroon Freak logo on the heel of the cleat. The next pair is an AdiZero which features a white base and sole, a maroon tongue, maroon laces, three maroon adidas stripes near the toe on the outside of the shoe, and a prominent maroon AdiZero logo with a digital ghost effect on the instep near the arch. It also has a maroon finger loop on the heel. The third is the AdiZero Scorch which is a Primeknit mid-top. It is white on the outside of the shoe and on the sole, but more prominently maroon on the instep and throughout the rest of the top of the shoe. The maroon instep features a maroon tonal AdiZero logo with a digital ghost effect and a maroon finger loop on the heel.

There are two more pairs of adidas Freaks in the middle of the group of cleats. The Freak pair on the left is the Freak mid. It has a white base and maroon sole, white laces, a white tongue with a maroon Freak logo on it, three maroon adidas stripes on the outside of the cleat near the toe, and a prominent maroon adidas logo on the instep. The Freak pair on the right is the Freak Ultra. It features all of the major base aesthetics as the Freak Mid, but also features some gray primeknit material, maroon stitch detailing around the lace eyelets, and a maroon finger loop on the heel. The next pair is the third AdiZero pair. All of the major elements of this pair of cleats are white except for the three maroon adidas stripes on the outside of the shoe near the toe and the maroon adidas log on the instep.

The final two pairs on the right are Nasty cleats. The second to last pair is the Nasty Torsion. It is a heavier duty cleat with a white base and sole, white laces, white eyelets with maroon accents, a white tongue with a maroon Nasty logo on it, three maroon adidas stripes on the outside of the cleat, a maroon adidas logo on the inside of the cleat near the heel, a small plastic maroon plate on the arch, and a maroon and gold finger loop that mimics the styling of the lace eyelets. The far right pair is the Nasty Fly. It essentially shares all the same major details as the Nasty Torsion, however, it is not as heavy duty, and instead of a white sole, it features a metallic maroon sole.

White socks will be worn to match the white accents featured in this week’s uniform.

Gloves

The Sun Devils will wear white gloves, and as with the cleats, there are different gloves for different positions. The gloves on the top are AdiZeros which are typically worn by speed position players like wide receivers and defensive backs. The white gloves have a maroon palm that feature a maroon pitchfork with gold trim on each glove. They also have a maroon adidas logo on the back of the hand, maroon striping and a small “Z” AdiZero letter mark on the wrist strap, and maroon stitching along the wrist strap. The gloves in the middle are adidas Freaks, worn by larger skill position players such as linebackers and tight ends. The adidas Freak gloves have the same maroon base and maroon pitchfork with gold trim on the palm of each glove as the AdiZero gloves.

On the back of the glove, the adidas Freaks also have some extra padding, a maroon adidas logo, and maroon striping, and the Freak logo on the wrist strap. Finally, for linemen, the gloves on the bottom are adidas Freak-Max, which boast extra padding on the heel of the palm meant to withstand all of the contact that linemen endure throughout the course of a game. They are plain white and black two-tone on the palm and along with a maroon adidas logo on the back of the hand, they also have gold accents on the knuckles and wrist-wrap.

Reaction

There’s a lot to be excited about. First of all, we had a game with fans in Sun Devil Stadium last week, and guess what? We get to do it again this weekend! Not only that, but we get to finally see a maroon helmet atop a uniform for the first time since 2018. And to make it even cooler, it’s a color shift paint finish that features both of Arizona State’s primary colors.

You may remember that LSU did something similar in 2018 when they released a purple color shift helmet that shifted to gold in different angles of light, but it was relatively subtle and hard to notice. I’m interested in seeing how ASU’s version of the color shift looks when the Devils take the field this Saturday.

I’m personally ecstatic about this helmet. I’m usually slow to come around on white being as primarily showcased as it is here, but the white pitchfork decals with the gold streak make for a cool effect, and I have high hopes for it as a cohesive look with the entire uniform. As excited as I am for this helmet to hit the field, I will, as always, wait to see what happens before making a final judgement. That being said, it was time for a change away from white helmets, and maroon is a great choice to replace it.

What Color ASU Fans Should Wear: Gold

#Faniforms Presented by Cactus Sports

Welcome to the first week of #Faniforms Presented by Cactus Sports! Uniformity loves to highlight your best gameday #faniforms that you wear to support the Sun Devils each week. As a reminder, with Uniformity’s new partnership with Cactus Sports, three #faniforms will be chosen at random each week, just like in the past, but this season, there will be a weekly Twitter poll to vote for which of those three #faniforms will become a contest finalist. At the end of the regular season, all of the finalists will be entered into a final vote, with the grand prize being a $100 gift card to Cactus Sports! Remember, when posting to Twitter, remember to use the hashtag #faniform and tag the Uniformity Twitter account @ASU_Uniformity. Here are this week’s selections! Keep an eye out on Twitter for the fan vote! Cast your vote for the best #faniform each week!