2023 Uniformity – Week 12: Salute to Service Uniforms in the Oregon game
Week in Review
What an absolutely gritty win on the road. It was inspiring to watch the Sun Devils go into the Rose Bowl and execute Kenny Dillingham’s unorthodox game plan so well. This game proved two very important things: 1. Kenny Dillingham cares so deeply about helping this team succeed that he will go to great lengths in his game planning, and 2. The players have no quit in them whatsoever.
The swinging gate formation hasn’t been seen that consistently in one game since before 1990. Three different players played quarterback, two of whom are not quarterbacks, and one of those two threw the only touchdown for ASU. The defense absolutely smothered everything UCLA tried to do en route to stopping the Bruins on all four of their 4th down attempts. Some people might think that the game was weird and ugly. I was inspired. I was emotional watching these players put everything they had out on the field. All for a third win. I’ll tell you what, that game was beautiful. As were the uniforms!
The maroon helmet matching the maroon pants around the white away jersey made for a great look. The white pitchfork decals with gold trim looked better than I expected, so that was a nice surprise, and of course, the inclusion of a center stripe is always a bolster to any helmet look. It made for a good looking color matchup between Arizona State and UCLA, so that even for those that thought the game was ugly, at least the uniforms both looked great. A really good looking uniform has a bolstered grade due to being worn during a beautiful win.
Maroon/White/Maroon: B+
The Week to Come
Uniform
As much fun as last week was, another tall task immediately lies ahead as the powerhouse Oregon Ducks will be bringing a ton of momentum into Tempe. The Devils have already gone toe-to-toe with another high-powered offense in Washington this year and stifled them, so who’s to say that they can’t gather another effort like that against the Ducks? There’s a lot of emotion and excitement following the win in Pasadena last week and a change in personnel in the athletic department, so hopefully, Sun Devil Nation will bring the energy this week. The Sun Devils will wear a white helmet/maroon jersey/maroon pant uniform combination when they take the field against Oregon.
The maroon jersey features the Arizona state flag as a stripe feature on either side of the uniform. It is a dark gray with the rays leading up and fading into the armpit, the star around the base of the rib cage, and the river block running downward and eventually fading towards the waist. In a move towards an even more simplified design, adidas has opted not to include any identifying letter or wordmark on the jersey.
Maroon/White/Maroon: B+
The Week to Come
Uniform
As much fun as last week was, another tall task immediately lies ahead as the powerhouse Oregon Ducks will be bringing a ton of momentum into Tempe. The Devils have already gone toe-to-toe with another high-powered offense in Washington this year and stifled them, so who’s to say that they can’t gather another effort like that against the Ducks? There’s a lot of emotion and excitement following the win in Pasadena last week and a change in personnel in the athletic department, so hopefully, Sun Devil Nation will bring the energy this week. The Sun Devils will wear a white helmet/maroon jersey/maroon pant uniform combination when they take the field against Oregon.
The maroon jersey features the Arizona state flag as a stripe feature on either side of the uniform. It is a dark gray with the rays leading up and fading into the armpit, the star around the base of the rib cage, and the river block running downward and eventually fading towards the waist. In a move towards an even more simplified design, adidas has opted not to include any identifying letter or wordmark on the jersey.
The maroon jerseys feature gold player numbers outlined in white on both the front and back of the jersey, as well as the TV numbers on the sleeves. Though it may be hard to see, the numbers on the front and back of the jerseys have a subtle, tonal flame pattern within the gold.
The nameplate on the back of the jersey utilizes the gold Sun Devil Bold font. 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. Last but not least, at the base of the collar is the black PT*42 shield in honor of ASU Football legend Pat Tillman.
The maroon pants have a large gold pitchfork with white trim on the right thigh and a maroon gold logo near the left hip.
Helmet
The Sun Devils will wear white helmets for the Salute to Service game. The Salute to Service decal build includes a maroon digicamo pattern shield with gold PT*42 and outline. There is also a maroon digicamo pattern center stripe with a thin gold outline on either side. The facemask is white, and the front bumper has a white base and maroon wordmark that reads “Sun Devils.”
The decals on the back of the helmet include an American flag, a maroon Pac 12 shield, a maroon PT*42 shield honoring the legendary Sun Devil, Pat Tillman, and a maroon outlined Warning label, which is in the shape of the state of Arizona, featuring maroon text, and has a small, maroon silhouette pitchfork over Tempe. The decals on the back of the helmet are rounded out by the maroon “Arizona State” work mark over a white base on the helmet’s rear bumper.
Cleats and Socks
For the first time this season, the Sun Devils will wear white cleats. 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 are 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.
Many players will be wearing these newly released white Adizero cleats that have the same characteristics as the white and maroon AdiZero cleats pictured above, except that everything is white. They feature a white base and sole, a white tongue, maroon laces, three white adidas stripes near the toe on the outside of the shoe, and a prominent white, reflective AdiZero logo with a digital ghost effect on the instep near the arch. They also have a white finger loop on the heel.
The Sun Devils will wear white socks this week to match the cleats.
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 feature a maroon pitchfork with gold trim on the palm of each glove. They also have maroon vent specks and a maroon adidas logo on the back of the hand, maroon seams around the wrist, and maroon lining around the maroon wrist strap, which features the AdiZero word mark and a maroon arrow.
The gloves in the middle are adidas Freaks, worn by larger skill position players such as linebackers and tight ends. The maroon adidas Freak gloves feature the same maroon pitchfork palm design as the AdiZero, maroon seams around the wrist, a maroon adidas logo on the back of the hand, and a white mesh material on the back of the hand. 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 with black padding 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 the black wrist-wrap.
Reaction
Last week was fun, and it is certainly worth enjoying, but arguably, the best team in the conference is coming into Tempe, so there’s no time to rest as the Devils must prepare for Oregon. Kenny Dillingham has some familiarity with the Ducks after spending last season as their offensive coordinator. There will certainly be a new game plan as Dillingham tries to scheme new ways for this offense to be able to move the ball and put up some points, but the burden, as it has all season, falls on the shoulders of the defense. Much like Michael Penix at Washington, Bo Nix has not faced much pressure due to a great offensive line and quick, efficient reads. However, if ASU can disrupt the comfort he has felt in the pocket for the past two seasons, they may give themselves a chance to be competitive in this ballgame.
As far as the uniform is concerned, it’s a solid look. I love that Ryan Barker and company in the equipment room went with maroon pants with this look. The PT*42 decal is not as aesthetically compatible with the helmet as it has been in years past, but it’s never a bad look. The maroon digicamo patterns on the stripe and Pat Tillman shield are a nice, subtle nod to military fatigues, and honoring Pat Tillman is a long standing and important tradition at ASU. The contrast of the decals and white helmet is a bit stark but is balanced well by the maroon jersey and pants.
Oregon blazed the trail for creative uniforms, and even though it has been tough sledding against them as far as wins and losses, ASU has certainly outdueled them in the uniform game a few times. Hopefully, they can do the same this weekend. We shall see what the Ducks have in store for their gameday fit and how it looks opposite this white/maroon/maroon uniform from Arizona State.
What Color 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 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 $125 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 @JPopASU on earning a finalist spot last week! And best of luck to @jonfrosch, @Cawley_TV, and @asudbubba in this week’s Twitter and Instagram poll!
