Uniformity – Week 6: ASU Brings the Maroon Monsoon Back to the Desert

A Week in Review

Ladies and gentlemen, we have finally caught a glimpse as to what this team is capable of. The only negative about this game is that some penalties and mental errors still need to be cleaned up. The key positive thing about this game is that the Devils looked so good despite there still being penalties and mental errors that need to be cleaned up. The offense found its stride and presented a very balanced attack as Jayden Daniels had his best game through the air, hooking up on big plays over the top with the likes of Ricky Pearsall, Geordon Porter, and Curtis Hodges. Matching UCLA stride for stride until taking the lead into halftime was a good start for ASU, defensively locking down the potent Bruin offense for the entirety of the second half. It was both a less than perfect game and a dominant performance all wrapped up in one, which only leads one to be excited about how good this team can be if they play mistake-free football. The Sun Devils managed to win their second game in a row, so let’s talk about the other thing that got its second win in a row… this uniform combination.

That’s right, the maroon helmet/white jersey/white pant base uniform combination got its second win in a row in its second time ever being worn. The last time it was worn was during the 2013 Pac 12 South championship-winning season against Utah, a game that ended with a 1 point victory after Will Sutton heroically pulled down a late interception to seal the game. Now, in another season where there’s hope of a Pac 12 South title, this combination has again been worn in a winning effort. Let’s hope that this is a foreshadowing of a division title and that the game was a sign of things to come for the rest of the season.

The uniform itself was a bit mundane for my taste. I know the players like the “clean” look of the white elements, but anyone can do white. With no maroon socks or cleats as part of the uniform to balance out all the white, it felt like there was a lack of continuity within the uniform. Much of the feedback I received from the Uniformity community mirrored that sentiment. That being said, I know not everyone was of that mindset as the athletes loved it, and the uniform combination was named as the #2 combination of the week by UNISWAG just a week after taking the top spot with the Valley Heat gold jerseys.

Now, did I dislike this uniform? Not at all. It just didn’t rate as highly for me as previous uniform combinations or possibilities that are out there. I’m all for difference of opinion in this sphere. My opinion is not at all authoritative. It’s just my opinion. And I’m definitely all for Jerry Neilly and his staff being recognized for a job well done. The helmet was the saving grace of this uniform as it again showed to be a sensational piece of equipment. The color shift is so beautiful, especially in TV close-up shots. That alone gave the uniform an extra boost, and I can see why UNISWAG would be so high on this look. Overall, it was an above average look for me, but with the knowledge that they’ve had better looks and will have better looks throughout the rest of the season.

Traditional Maroon Helmet/White Jersey/White Pants: B

The Week to Come

Uniform

With a huge Pac 12 South road win, Arizona State will come home to take on their first Pac 12 North opponent of the season in the Stanford Cardinal, who are coming into Tempe fresh off a win against then #3 Oregon. It will be a tough matchup on a Friday night in which we will see the true return of the Maroon Monsoon theme game. After a two-year hiatus due to there being no maroon helmet and a pandemic getting in the way, the Sun Devils will take the field against Stanford in a maroon helmet/maroon jersey/maroon pant uniform combination that has a unique helmet decal in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month.

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 maroon pants have a small gold pitchfork with black trim near the right hip and a black gold logo near the left hip. “Sun Devils” is stitched in gold Sun Devil Bold running vertically along the side of the left thigh. There is paneling on the pants that features the darker tonal maroon, 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 maroon color shift helmets have standard-sized gold pitchfork decals with maroon trim that have a sateen finish. The facemask is maroon, 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 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.

The decal that honors Hispanic Heritage month is the center stripe. The center stripe is stylized to mimic Sparky’s tail. It has a gold outline and maroon base within the outline of the tail. The stylized Sparky tail is filled in with a pattern that is an homage to Hispanic art and design.

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

Maroon cleats will be worn with the Maroon Monsoon uniform. 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 by 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 exact 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.

Maroon socks will be worn to match the monochromatic uniform as well.

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 palm design so that when the palms are placed together, it completes the image of the gold ASU Sunburst made famous by the 1975 undefeated Sun Devil team. They also have a white adidas logo on the back of the hand, maroon and gold detailing and a small “Z” AdiZero letter mark on the wrist strap, and gold 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. Like the AdiZero, the adidas Freak gloves feature a palm design so that when the palms are placed together, there is the image of the 1975 gold ASU Sunburst. On the back of the glove, the adidas Freaks also have some extra padding, a white adidas logo, and maroon and white 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

Welcome back to the uniform rotation, Maroon Monsoon! You have been missed! There was technically a “Maroon Monsoon” game in 2019, a game that saw the Sun Devils dash Oregon’s playoff hopes, but the uniform featured gold helmets. This true return to a full Maroon Monsoon is something I’m very much looking forward to as it has always been my favorite of the monochromatic theme games.

The big difference this year lies in the color shift helmet. This helmet is dynamic, which technically goes without saying, but in simply photographing it, seeing it on the field in person, and on TV with different color uniform combinations, it truly takes on the personality of the rest of the uniform as well. It looked great but slightly lighter in the shade with the all-white jerseys and pants. However, matched with maroon jerseys and pants, it takes on a richer, deeper maroon hue. It just further confirms that making an out-of-the-box decision with these helmets was the right one from the Sun Devil Football Equipment staff.

I already know that all maroon looks good under the lights at Sun Devil Stadium. I’m looking forward to seeing it with the new helmet as a little change of pace. It’s just a matter of taking in this treat for the eyes and hoping the result of the game matches.

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 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 @crafty_devils on earning a finalist spot last week! And best of luck to @lilbobby28, @kookstopher, and @UTAHDEVIL in this week’s Twitter poll!