A Week in Review
Any conference win in the Pacific Northwest in November is a good win. That’s the theme of this month and especially last week’s game. Arizona State didn’t play a flawless game, but they fought hard. After a slow start, ASU’s talent on defense began to dominate Washington’s complete lack of cohesiveness on offense, but not before giving up two quick touchdowns, which put the Sun Devils in a 14-0 hole. A game-long trek uphill through the cold and rain ensued with Rachaad White pulling the team up that hill with his own two legs. Another incredibly impressive effort put forth by the talented running back allowed the Devils to claw their way back into the game on the offensive side of the ball while the defense was dominant for the final three quarters of the game. Everything about this game was ugly. The way it began, the length of time it took the Devils to come back, the Washington offense, the weather, and ultimately the ASU win. The one thing that wasn’t ugly, however, was that Sun Devil uniform.
I stand firm in the opinion that white on white is my least favorite uniform combination. However, the way that the white jerseys and pants looked with the maroon helmet earlier in the season and with the gold helmet this past Saturday impressed me. The old school gloss gold helmets that have returned this year definitely help the cause. That being said, Jerry Neilly and crew are really putting forth some incredible helmet build outs this season in which they do a fantastic job in matching not just the helmet but the facemask and minor details of the decals to complement the entire uniform.
The white trim on the maroon pitchfork was far and away my favorite element of last week’s uniform. It provided a classic ASU look that has been lacking since the dawn of the pitchfork era. For over three decades, the predominantly maroon Sparky graced ASU’s gold helmet every week. His gold face and pitchfork provide school color accents, but his menacing white smile, as well as the white border surrounding him on the decal, provided the contrast to jump off of the gold helmet. The maroon pitchfork with gold trim that had become the standard over the last decade gets lost on the helmet because the spiked trim basically blends in. The maroon fork with the white trim, however, made much more of a statement and made the overall helmet look more like the quintessential ASU helmet. On top of that, it complemented the white elements of the uniform combination. Overall, I was very pleased with the way it looked on the field and held up in the rain.
Gold Helmet/White Jersey/White Pants: B+
The Week to Come
Uniform
A second consecutive win is nothing to take for granted in the wacky Pac 12. Checking off the first of two consecutive trips to the Pacific Northwest is also a big win in itself as well. As a fan base, Sun Devil Nation is so tired of watching their team play in Corvallis. All that said, this same Sun Devil team was able to beat the Beavers in Corvallis in December just last year. The forecasted weather conditions are also more favorable next week as the game is going to be cold but most likely dry. When the Sun Devils visit Oregon State seeking their third straight win, they will be wearing a uniform combination they have never worn before when they take the field in a maroon helmet/white jersey/black pant combination.
The white jersey features a sublimated Arizona state flag in representing the sunset and the star across the chest. The star and stripes of the flag are a tonal gray. The maroon player numbers are outlined in gold on both the front and back of the jersey, as are the TV numbers on the sleeves.
The nameplate on the back of the jersey utilizes black Sun Devil Bold font, and above the nameplate is a small, maroon “ASU” outlined in gold. On the front of the jersey near the left shoulder is a black adidas logo, near the right shoulder, is a maroon and gold Pac 12 shield, and at the base of the collar is the black PT*42 shield in honor of ASU Football legend, Pat Tillman.
The black pants have a small gold pitchfork with maroon trim near the right hip and a gold adidas logo near the left hip. Running vertically along the side of the left thigh is “Sun Devils” in gold Sun Devil Bold font. There is paneling on the pants that features the darker tonal color, not only providing further dimension to the uniform as a whole but also serving a purpose in providing a greater range of motion.
Helmet
The maroon helmet 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. The helmet features a black oversized pitchfork decal with chrome maroon to gold gradient trim and white border on the right side of the helmet and matching player number decals on the opposite side of the helmet. The facemask is black, 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 a 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 with a maroon border, featuring gold text, and has a small, gold pitchfork with maroon trim over Tempe. The decals on the back of the helmet are rounded by the American flag and gold “Sun Devils” text on a maroon base on the helmet’s rear bumper.
For a more dynamic look at the maroon helmet, see the video below for an example of the color shift from maroon to gold in different angles of light.
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 exact 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 this week’s white jersey.
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 features 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
This is sharp. It’s different, but it’s sharp. I, on behalf of Sun Devil Nation, both young and old, am sad to not see the classic gold helmet/white jersey/maroon pant combination this season. I suppose there’s still a chance if ASU is the designated away team in whatever bowl they end up in, but that combo ought to be one of those guaranteed uniforms on a year-to-year basis.
That being said, I’d like to welcome this new combination to the fold. It’s nice to see maroon and black beginning to get used together. The first time took place two weeks ago with the textured pitchfork decal, which was incredibly creative and looked great. This particular set of decals creates more contrast against the maroon helmet, and I personally like the color combination even more. The black pants with the maroon helmet is definitely a different look, so while it looks good on a mannequin, I truly am curious to see how it looks once the Devils hit the field.
What Color Traveling ASU Fans Should Wear: Gold
#Faniforms Presented by Cactus Sports
Welcome back to #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! Reminder, 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!
Congratulations to @Shannon_Stone on earning a finalist spot last week! And best of luck to @toeknee216, @gabe_g30, and @16thholedevil in this week’s Twitter poll!
