We Made It, Finally
After more than a year of essentially every aspect of our lives having been disrupted by a pandemic, we have finally come to that for which we all yearn: ASU football. While we got a taste of it in 2020, the four games were not enough to satisfy the appetite for an avid Sun Devil fan, nor were they sufficient in distracting from the state of the world. In fact, with the interruptions to the season, the state of the world may have been even further amplified.
But, no matter, because come September 2nd, we will be in Sun Devil Stadium watching Sparky stomp the bus and pyrotechnics flying off the field as our beloved football team storms out of Tillman Tunnel. Once the pregame pageantry ends, there will be a real life football game to be played as Arizona State will take the field against Southern Utah. A season beginning on time with fans in the stands is exciting, though often seen as simply expected in the cyclical nature of our calendar year, but it carries extra weight and so much more meaning in 2021. A full season means twelve games of ups and downs, cheers and disappointment, and, of course, uniforms.
The Week to Come
Uniform
When the Devils take the field against the Thunderbirds, they will keep with tradition. Since the 2011 rebrand, the Sun Devils have always made sure to wear their traditional gold helmet/maroon jersey/gold pant uniform combination for the first home game of the season, and that tradition will continue in this 2021 season, but with a slight twist.
As a reminder, these uniforms utilize a process called sublimation, in which heat is used to transfer ink into the uniform, providing a tonal effect within the color scheme of each jersey. 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 gold pants have a small gold pitchfork with black trim near the right hip and a maroon adidas logo near the left hip. “Sun Devils” is in maroon Sun Devil Bold font running vertically along the side of the left thigh. There is paneling on the pants that features the darker tonal gold, not only providing further dimension to the uniform as a whole but also serving a purpose in providing a greater range of motion.
Helmet
Here enters the twist to the traditional look. The gold helmet, which has typically featured standard maroon pitchfork decals, will have a bit more flash. First and foremost, the traditional gloss gold helmet is back, replacing the matte gold that has been used since the rebrand. Secondly, the decals provide a bit more dimension. The gloss gold helmet will feature standard sized chrome maroon pitchfork decals with chrome gold trim. There is also a two-tone center stripe which boasts a bold chrome maroon center outlined by thin strips of chrome gold. The facemask is maroon, and the front bumper has a chrome gold base and metallic maroon font that reads PT*42, also 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 gold rays rising from it in subtle detail. This ties together well with the sublimated state flag on the jersey, lending to more continuity in the overall uniform.
The maroon decals on the back of the helmet include the Pac 12 shield, the Warning label which is in the shape of the state of Arizona, featured maroon text and has a small maroon pitchfork over Tempe. The decals on the back of the helmet are rounded by the maroon “Sun Devils” text on the helmet’s rear bumper.
Cleats and Socks
Maroon cleats will be worn for this week 1 matchup. From left to right, there are three different sets of cleats. The first three pairs are AdiZero, the next two are Freaks, and the last two are Nastys. The AdiZeros cleats are typically worn by speed position players (wide receivers and defensive backs), while the Freaks have a hybrid element and can be worn my mid-size players (fullbacks, linebackers, and tight ends), and the Nasty cleats worn by heavier players (linemen).
Beginning with the left three, the AdiZero furthest on the left features a maroon base and sole, a gold tongue, gold laces, three white adidas stripes near the toe on the outside of the shoe, and a prominent white AdiZero logo with a digital ghost effect on the instep near the arch. It also has a gold finger loop on the heel. The next AdiZero is maroon on the outside of the shoe and on the sole, but more prominently gold on the instep and throughout the rest of the top of the shoe. The gold instep features a maroon AdiZero logo with a digital ghost effect and a gold finger loop on the heel. The third is the AdiZero Scorch which is a Primeknit mid-top. It has the same base color features as the previous pair, except the AdiZero logo with the digital ghost effect is silver rather than maroon.
The two pairs of adidas Freaks are in the middle of the group of cleats. The Freak pair on the left is the Freak mid. It has a maroon base and translucent gold sole, maroon laces, a maroon tongue with a white Freak logo on it, three white adidas stripes on the outside of the cleat near the toe, and a prominent white 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 primeknit material, darker maroon accents, gold stitch detailing around the lace eyelets, and a gold finger loop on the heel.
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 maroon base and sole, maroon laces, maroon eyelets with gold accents, a maroon tongue with a white Nasty logo on it, three white adidas stripes on the outside of the cleat, a white adidas logo on the inside of the cleat near the heel, a small plastic gold 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 maroon sole, it features a metallic gold sole.
Many players will be wearing these special edition maroon UltraBoost cleats as well. This pair of cleats is designed exclusively for ASU, celebrating the 5th anniversary of the UltraBoost 1.0 cleats that were originally designed for Arizona State 5 years ago. This cleat has a maroon and gold weave of primeknit material that makes up the majority of the top of the shoe.
The top of the tongue is gold, and it has maroon laces. Maroon leather begins at the toe and wraps around the base of the shoe until it reaches the base of the heel. The base of the heel features a two-tone gold accent with an UltraBoost logo, while the top of the heel is a maroon mesh material. The top of the tongue has a black adidas logo, and there are three black adidas stripes on either side of the shoe, matched by black shoelace eyelets. The sole of the cleat is white with black-tipped spikes.
Gold socks will be worn to match the rest of the uniform as well.
Gloves
The Sun Devils will wear gold and 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 gold gloves feature a gold pitchfork with maroon trim on the palm of 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 gold pitchfork with maroon 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
Is there any better feeling than the satisfaction of watching the Sun Devils take the field for the first game of the season? After waiting for that moment for nine excruciating, college-football-free months brings any Sun Devil with a pulse of unbridled joy and intense excitement. That feeling is completed by seeing them take the field in their traditional gold helmet/maroon jersey/gold pant uniform combination. The dedication to wearing traditional colors in the first home game of the season is one of my favorite traditions.
The added helmet elements are an incredible touch. I have been advocating for center stripes to be a regular occurrence on helmets with standard sized pitchfork details for years now, and it looks like things are really starting to tilt that direction. It makes the helmet feel more complete and truly more ASU. The chrome detail of the decals adds an element of flash that is both welcome and sharp. I’m also ecstatic to see a return back to gloss gold helmets. This opinion may be disputed by some of you out there that have taken to the matte gold, but there’s something about the gloss helmet that brings Sun Devil teams of that past back into connection with the current generation. It feels like a return to home.
I’m mostly just ecstatic that ASU football is imminent and that we get to see our beloved school colors take the field with fans in the stands. It’s always important to those of us that follow this team, but it means something more this season after what we’ve endured in the world the past 17 months. College football is back, everyone!
What Color ASU Fans Should Wear: Gold
#Faniforms Presented by Cactus Sports
That’s right, folks! The #faniforms are back and better than ever! Why? Because the Uniformity community is growing and better than ever. Add to that the fact that games can be attended in person again this season, and it gives us all a reason to show up and show out! With that, I’m so excited to announce a partnership with Cactus Sports! Three #faniforms will continue to 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.
