The college football regular season is winding down, rivalry week is on deck, and several teams — including five with 11-0 records — continue to battle for the four College Football Playoff spots. Bowl berths and conference championships are still to be determined around the country.
On Dec. 9, fans will be treated to the 124th playing of the Army-Navy Game, which for the first time will take place at Gillette Stadium, the home of the New England Patriots. The nationally televised game, in addition to pitting the United States’ two oldest service academies in a spirited football clash, has become a platform of showcasing the best college football alternate uniforms of the season. This year, Army’s uniforms will pay homage to the 3rd Infantry Division soldiers during the opening phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Meanwhile, Navy’s uniforms will honor the Silent Service, the U.S. Submarine Force and supporting personnel and families.
Both uniforms have been released for the Army-Navy Game presented by @USAA!
Who ya got? ⚔️ or ⚓️?#ArmyNavy pic.twitter.com/EtdRIo7e7X
— Army-Navy Game (@ArmyNavyGame) November 22, 2023
We’ve seen outstanding alternate uniforms in 2023 since the opening week of college football, and The Athletic’s Jason Jones, David Ubben and Chris Kamrani took time to discuss some of the best this season. The trio came up with a top-10 ranking, using a scoring system where 10 points were given to their favorite uniform, all the way to one point given to their least favorite. (This explains the numbers in parentheses next to each writer’s name below.)
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Here is the ranking and the writers’ thoughts of each uniform that made the list, starting from the bottom to the top. A note to all readers: Low scores for a team don’t necessarily mean the writers disliked the uniforms; it just meant they liked others better.
Feel free to hype up your favorite uniforms in the comments section.
Honorable mentions
Notre Dame Fighting Irish/Navy Midshipmen: Gaelic (Aer Lingus College Football Series)
Notre Dame and Navy will wear alternate uniforms that feature Gaelic-style striping patterns on the sleeves or shoulders during their Aug. 26 game in Ireland: https://t.co/sjwwBYDbr5 pic.twitter.com/ZuyUBXUmGU
— Andrew Lind (@AndrewMLind) August 7, 2023
Casual fans might not have even noticed on TV, but the Gaelic nods to the game’s host in Ireland made for a nice touch. It’s a small addition that made for a good storyline.
Nebraska Cornhuskers: Blue outline
Soon…#GBR x #WhatsNExt! pic.twitter.com/eIbwJ2eUMH
— Nebraska Football (@HuskerFootball) October 21, 2023
It’s a nod to a tradition from a century ago and honors a rivalry killed by realignment, but visually, there wasn’t much on television that showed a significant difference from a regular Nebraska uniform. Now … what if the uniforms were blue …
10. (Tie) Ohio State Buckeyes: All gray (3 points)
Scary Hours 😈 pic.twitter.com/piy5rHctma
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) November 12, 2023
Kamrani (2): Ohio State’s all-gray version of these with more pronounced Buckeye red sprinkled throughout is much better than their all-gray look from a few years back that had only black. This is a good alternate, but there were too many better ones ahead of it this year.
Jones (1): Their all-gray just feels all meh. It’s an extension of the helmet, which isn’t necessarily a good thing in this case. I’m sure my relatives from Ohio aren’t going to like me for this. But, I do like the gloves.
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Ubben (0): It seemed like about a decade ago, everybody in college football decided they needed to have a version of gray uniforms. Some are better than others. The red makes these pop.
Florida Gators: Saluting those who serve (3)
#SalutingThoseWhoServe 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/nJyeAkjG8v
— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) November 4, 2023
Ubben (2): My hottest uniform take: Every program should be allowed to wear black uniforms. I checked the Constitution; there are no laws against this, nor should there be. Let college football programs live.
Kamrani (1): The combo of white numbers on all-black jerseys pops, both in photos and in 4K. The all-white or all-black looks go so far if you’re able to make sure you have great helmets to go with the ensemble. Plus, the Gators in cursive rules.
Jones (0): Remember in the 1990s when a bunch of alternate black jerseys were available for retail but not actually worn in games? That’s what these look like to me.
9. Notre Dame Fighting Irish: Irish wear green (7)
Game Week
🆚 Ohio State
📆 Saturday, Sept. 23rd
🕝 7:30 pm ET
📺 NBC#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/ynYQN0tKNv— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) September 18, 2023
Kamrani (3): A team with as much history on the jersey color palette as Notre Dame should vary from its classic look only once, and the all-green is the easiest alternate look there is.
Jones (3): The green pants feel like overkill, but the gold accents on the jersey look good. I’d love to see the Irish go with a gold jersey at some point.
Ubben (1): At least a couple of times a year, Notre Dame has to break out full green uniforms. We as a sport don’t talk enough about a team nicknamed the Fighting Irish that has blue and gold as its official colors and not green.
7. (Tie) UCF Knights: Mission VII/Space U (13)
Mission VII: Reaching New Horizons pic.twitter.com/8UjDnUYpl7
— UCF Football (@UCF_Football) October 11, 2023
Ubben (7): I enjoy UCF and Houston fighting over which university gets to claim space, but UCF has leaned in way harder, and this year’s NASA tribute proved a time-honored truth of alternate uniforms: You cannot go wrong with powder blue.
Jones (6): Powder blue, I mean “Canaveral blue,”will always stand out. All the space-related details make this one of the more fun alternate jerseys. You know a jersey is good if someone with no connection to the school would wear it. The Space U jerseys are that kind of jersey.
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Kamrani (0): It’s hard to go wrong with this color of blue. Combine that with the white helmet and keep the UCF gold, and it’s a tremendously clean look. Kudos to UCF for using “Space U” across the chest, too. The new-look Big 12 has a galactic rivalry with UCF claiming outer space over Houston.
FAU Owls: Sand-colored uniforms (13)
South Florida swagger + Boca Raton elegance = 🏝🛥👑
Repping our culture Saturday night with these sand-colored uniforms 👀#TriCountyTakeover#WinningInParadise pic.twitter.com/CF9HB6Y2bT
— Florida Atlantic Football (@FAUFootball) October 16, 2023
Kamrani (6): A team should utilize the all-white look on the jersey combo to its advantage. Florida Atlantic certainly did here. These look like the kind of jerseys you tried your best to design on Madden back in the day. Extra points for the shadows of the palm trees on the shoulder pads.
Jones (4): I only wish the FAU mascot wasn’t an owl. When I see this uniform with the palm trees on the shoulder, pants and helmet, I don’t think of owls. Seeing “Owls” across the chest just doesn’t work for me.
Ubben (3): These were named after their color, but the highlight for me is the “Owls” script across the chest and the thick red stripe down the middle of the helmet. Also, there should be more college football photo shoots on yachts.
6. Tennessee Volunteers: Condredge Holloway tribute (17)
Paying tribute to a Tennessee legend.@SportsCenter#GBO 🍊 pic.twitter.com/8wsNNZ7EuU
— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) September 9, 2023
Kamrani (9): I am all about designs honoring legendary players, and Condredge Holloway is definitely on that list. He’s the first Black quarterback to start at the position in SEC history in 1972. Holloway also has one of the coolest nicknames in college football history. Does it get any better than “The Artful Dodger”? Even cooler is that Vols starter Joe Milton dons the same jersey number as Holloway.
Ubben (8): Sometimes, it’s not just the uniform. These are sharp in general, but in the reveal video, Holloway and Milton sat next to each other at a pair of lockers. Holloway looked at him, laid his hand on his shoulder, got up and walked away, almost as if to say: “I did my part. Y’all got this now.” For me, it was a “Why am I crying in the club right now?” moment.
Jones (0): I love the sentiment, but not the jersey. The gray paired with the orange doesn’t do it for me. If Tennessee went with an updated version of the orange and white jersey Holloway played in, we might be in business. The best part of this is the helmet, but even then you have to work too hard to catch the Smoky Mountain silhouette.
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5. Air Force Falcons: Doolittle Raiders (18)
Air Force set to debut the Doolittle Raiders uniform against Navy this weekend. pic.twitter.com/8zxX49gkRl
— NFL Fashion Advice (@fashion_nfl) October 17, 2023
Jones (9): We have a winner for the best alternate helmet. Never seen anything quite like this. I’m usually not too keen on white jerseys and white pants (sorry, Penn State), but the lettering on the pants and the details on the jersey make this a win for the Air Force.
Kamrani (5): This is all about the lid. These specialty helmets do all the work for this combo focusing on the crest of this Air Force outfit from World War II and the planes flown over Tokyo. I know we’ve seen schools honor the armed forces in other ways, but when one of the armed forces academies does it and pulls it off this perfectly, it’s even cooler.
Ubben (4): The service academies always have a lot of material to fuel alternate uniforms. They’ve had better in the past, but these that honored the 1942 Doolittle Raid — America’s first response to the attacks on Pearl Harbor — are a fitting tribute.
3. (Tie) Iowa State Cyclones: Jack Trice legacy (19)
These Iowa State Jack Trice Legacy Uniforms are 🔥 pic.twitter.com/U7VnvXH6WN
— Kenny Mossman (@Kenny_Mossman) October 8, 2023
Kamrani (8): One of the best pieces I’ve ever read about college football opens with the backstory of Jack Trice, the first Black athlete at Iowa State University who went on to suffer injuries in a 1923 football game against Minnesota — so severe that they became mortal. Trice died at 21. This is how you recapture an era revisited only through grainy black-and-white photos.
Ubben (6): Like the Holloway jerseys, these tell a story and offer a constant reminder about the rich, often-troubling history of the sport. The Cyclones’ stadium is named for Jack Trice, and the handwritten “I will!” on the back of the collar and the helmet — taken from a letter Trice wrote before the only college football game he ever played — is the single-best detail on any uniform on this list.
Jones (5): The Cyclones went all in with the nostalgia for this, and I love it. This uniform tells the story of Trice and gives us an idea of what the jerseys looked like 100 years ago. I love the “Ames” and “I will!” details on the helmet and jersey. A great old-school tribute.
Boston College Eagles: Red bandanna (19)
Boston College is taking on No. 3 Florida State wearing 'Red Bandanna' jerseys.
The Red Bandanna Game honors the memory of Welles Crowther, a volunteer firefighter who lost his life rescuing people stuck in the south tower of the World Trade Center on 9/11.
H/T @BCFootball pic.twitter.com/hikRG36Jgm
— The Athletic CFB (@TheAthleticCFB) September 16, 2023
Kamrani (7): Out of terror and heartbreak, heroes are created, and they act. But not all stories of heroes become known. When the story of “The Man in the Red Bandana” debuted on ESPN, it introduced the world to a former lacrosse player at Boston College who helped save those stuck in the south tower during the Sept. 11 attacks. Welles Crowther’s legacy lives on in these uniforms. Bravo.
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Jones (7): I don’t wear a lot of red, but if I did, I’d wear this jersey. The bandanna accents on the helmet are awesome. The bandanna print on the numbers, the BC logo on the shoulder and along the side of the uniform are dope. But the gloves might be the best part with the red bandanna on the palms. Boston College hit a home run with this edition.
Ubben (5): The story of Welles Crowther is well known, in part because Boston College dedicates a game to him every year. These uniforms are part of that tribute to an American hero. The best uniforms tell a story. These tell a great one and challenge us all to be better.
2. FIU Panthers: Vice theme (21)
We’re on for tonight 💯 #ViceU
7:30pm / ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/SAn1rzteOY
— FIU Football (@FIUFootball) October 11, 2023
Ubben (9): The look, the vibe, the color scheme. The entire “Miami Vice” vibe is both quintessential 1980s and timeless.
Jones (8): I’m a sucker for anything related to “Miami Vice.” Whether it’s the Miami Heat’s previous City Edition uniforms or these Florida International uniforms, I can dig it. Who knew palm trees on a football jersey would look good? Grab me one of those linen suits from the ’80s so I can catch an FIU game.
Kamrani (4): Like FAU’s sand jersey, the palm tree touch on this jersey is awesome. But credit to them for going full Miami on this. The neon coral pink and blue on the all-black look gives serious Vice City vibes.
1. Houston Cougars: Luv Ya Blue (30)
Love you, Houston. This one is for you. #GoCoogs | #TEAM pic.twitter.com/X2Ul4SWwf5
— Houston Football (@UHCougarFB) August 31, 2023
Ubben (10): Back off, NFL. These were so good, the biggest league in the country sent Houston a cease-and-desist letter. It’s obnoxious when the Tennessee Titans wear uniforms like these, but this send-up to the artists formerly known as the Houston Oilers are fire. Easily the best alternate uniform of the season — and they belong to the city of Houston, not the Titans’ franchise. Everything about these is perfect.
Kamrani (10): No offense to the patented Houston Cougar red, but these should be their primary uniforms from here on out. Seeing the powder blue reminds me of watching Warren Moon launch bombs down the field for the Oilers. Of course, the NFL threatened legal action over the resurrection of the Houston powder blue. “No Fun League,” indeed.
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Jones (10): This uniform was well worth upsetting the NFL. The Titans franchise left Houston, so what’s wrong with the Cougars rocking these Columbia blue jerseys that inspire memories of the run-and-shoot and Earl Campbell? Let Houston have this. Let Bun B, Paul Wall and everyone else repping Houston do it in these jerseys. Easily, my favorite of the bunch.
(Photos: Robin Alam and Leslie Plaza Johnson / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images, and David K. Purdy / Getty Images)
