2023 Uniformity – Week 4: Sun Devils to Wear Maroon Monsoon Against USC

Week in Review

There isn’t a whole lot to say when reviewing the actual game against Fresno State. It was a tough game filled with challenges from the beginning. Trenton Bourguet had an early interception but seemed to be settling into the speed of the game, leading a solid drive before, unfortunately, hurting his lower leg and leaving the field on crutches. Unfortunately, his interception and injury would set the tone for the rest of the night as Sun Devil after Sun Devil fell victim to the injury bug and as Arizona State amassed eight total turnovers on the night. The lone bright spot in it all was the defense, which stood strong and gave up only 15 total points off of those eight turnovers. It was an impressive effort, considering many of those turnovers took place within Sun Devil territory, often leaving Fresno State with a short field. I applaud the effort of the defense, who, outside of a couple of tough plays, looked really good. Speaking of looking really good, let’s talk about those uniforms, shall we?

I said it last week, and I’ll say it again: this uniform is an early uniform of the year candidate. First of all, to have Sparky on anything other than a gold helmet in football is groundbreaking. That alone is a major milestone that I hope to see the equipment staff be able to build off of in the future. Secondly, the white outline on the jersey worked so well in tying together the white helmet and pants into a very cohesive uniform. The large Sparky face decal, along with the maroon facemask, brought enough contrast to the light, white helmet to do its job in matching the rest of the uniform as well. I’m not the only one who took notice of this as a great uniform combination. National uniform tracker UNISWAG had this uniform ranked as the 7th best uniform of the week, while UniAuthority named it their 4th best uniform of the week. This is a testament to the work student manager Ruben Lickei put into the star of this combination, which was the helmet. This was a job very well done by the whole staff, and it definitely received a deserving, resounding response from both the ASU community and the national college football fanbase at large.

White Sparky Face/Maroon/White: A+

The Week to Come

Uniform

There probably isn’t too much to go over for this week’s upcoming matchup with USC. The Trojans are an offensive juggernaut who will be looking to impose their will when they come to Tempe. The Sun Devil defense will have to try to put together another strong performance, and there is hope that the offense could find some footing with some key pieces returning as healthy and the possibility of head coach Kenny Dillingham having more influence over play calling.

As has become something of a tradition every other year, the Sun Devils will wear their monochrome Maroon Monsoon uniform featuring a maroon helmet/maroon jersey/maroon pant uniform combination against USC. The maroon jersey features the Arizona state flag as a stripe feature on either side of the uniforms. 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 word mark 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, and above the nameplate is a small, gold “ASU” outlined in maroon. 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 gold adidas logo near the left hip.

Helmet

The Sun Devils will wear maroon helmets that feature standard-sized gold pitchfork decals with white trim and no center stripe. The facemask is maroon, and the front bumper has a white base and maroon word mark that reads “Arizona State.” Upon closer examination, one can see a subtle Hispanic Heritage design in the background of the bumper decal.

The decals on the back of the helmet include an American flag, a white Pac 12 shield, a white PT*42 shield honoring the legendary Sun Devil, Pat Tillman, and a white outlined Warning label which is in the shape of the state of Arizona, featuring white text, and has a small, white silhouette pitchfork over Tempe. The decals on the back of the helmet are rounded out by the maroon “Sun Devils” word mark over a white base on the helmet’s rear bumper. Again, the Hispanic Heritage design can be seen in the white background of the white bumper decal.

Cleats and Socks

The Sun Devils will wear maroon cleats this week. From left to right, there are three different types of cleats. The first four 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 AdiZero. It features a gold sole and textured maroon base. It features white seams with maroon stitching along each side of the shoe as well as down the middle and up the tongue where a maroon AdiZero word mark. The outside of the shoe features three gold adidas stripes towards the toe, while the inside of the shoe features a gold digital scribble design around a large gold AdiZero word mark. It also features maroon laces. The next pair is the AdiZero primeknit. It features the same characteristics as the AdiZero, with a few distinct differences. The sole is a slightly different shade of gold and has a more sateen finish. The main body of the shoes is a more breathable primeknit material, and the maroon laces also have gold thread woven in.

The middle pair is the Freak 23 Inline. The Freak has a gold sole and primarily gold base with a repeating maroon starburst pattern and three gold maroon stripes on the outside of the shoe towards the toe. The tongue, ankle, and laces are all the same maroon fabric with gold thread woven throughout. There is also a maroon finger loop with a gold “Freak” and an adidas logo on the heel.

The Final two pairs are adidas Nasty models, made for more ankle support for heavier linemen. The second to last pair is the Nasty Fly. It is a primarily maroon shoe with a gold sole, gold adidas logo on the inside of the heel, and three adidas stripes that feature a gold border as well as a maroon and gold chevron pattern within the stripes. The shoe has a maroon zipper and a gold finger loop with a maroon “Nasty” word mark on the heel. It also has a maroon finger loop on the heel. The last pair is the Nasty Torsion. It features many of the same design elements as the Nasty Fly, with a few differences. It is a heavier-duty shoe with even more ankle support. It has a maroon sole and a gold rubber seam that surrounds the entire bottom of the shoe except the toe.

The Sun Devils will wear maroon socks this week to match the rest of the uniform.

Gloves

The Sun Devils will wear maroon 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 maroon gloves feature a maroon pitchfork with gold trim on the palm of each glove. They also have gold vent specks and a gold adidas logo on the back of the hand, gold seams around the wrist, and gold lining around the maroon wrist strap, which features the AdiZero word mark and a gold 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, gold seams around the wrist, a gold adidas logo on the back of the hand, and a maroon mesh with small gold holes. 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

Every year, the Maroon Monsoon is one of my favorite uniform combinations. It looks fantastic and, despite being a monochrome combo, usually has an excellent mix of both maroon and gold. This year’s edition is no exception. It is noteworthy that it is being worn against USC in the final year of the two teams meeting as conference opponents for the known future, as USC was the first team that ASU ever wore the Maroon Monsoon uniform combination against in 2011.

I again love the white outlined numbers on the jerseys. The theme of a gold accent outlined by white is consistent throughout the entire uniform, whether it be the white trim around the gold pitchfork on the helmet and the pants or the white border around the numbers on the jersey. That kind of consistency really brings this combination a sense of, dare I say, uniformity. Every element is tied together and looks great.

We’ve seen the Maroon Monsoon in the past; however, this is a first with this new generation of jerseys and pants. That being said, there are no big surprises, and there are certainly no disappointments. I have the utmost confidence that these will look great on-field, both in person and on TV. Let’s hope that the Devils turn a corner and are able to have their play look as good as their uniforms.

What Color ASU Fans Should Wear: Maroon

#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 @RkyMtnSunDevil on earning a finalist spot last week! And best of luck to @JeffAlbaPHX, @Paulo063060, and @jwbreadfan in this week’s Twitter and Instagram poll!