A Uniform Force
September 30,
2008 | Kevin
Zdancewicz
We’ve been staying positive
around here at JOTW
lately,
talking about some great-looking throwbacks. The upbeat vide continues
with
this week’s featured uniform: the Air Force Falcons football team.
Before you
ask, there’s no specific reason for highlighting this jersey this week:
I just
love the way it looks. Sometimes the pure aesthetics of sports uniforms
get
lost in the shuffle of merchandising and the big business of jersey
sales. Not
to get too philosophical here, but what is a uniform for? Sure, it’s
meant to
distinguish one team from another and create an identity for a school
or
franchise, but at the same time, a uniform is supposed to look pleasing
to the
eyes of fans. Every once in a while, you need to just take a step back
and
admire a great jersey.
If the Commander’s-in-Chief’s Trophy
(annually
given to the
best football team among Army, Navy, and Air Force) was awarded to the
service
academy with the best uniforms, Air Force would probably win it every
year.
Sure Army
and Navy’s jerseys have tradition, but they lack creativity – and
the blank
helmets are downright boring. Air Force has a perfect balance of
simplicity and
appropriateness with the forceful bolt logo on the side of its helmets
and rocks uniforms with one of my favorite color combinations in royal
blue,
silver gray, and white. The early 2000s uniform
in the feature photo is one of my favorite college sets ever (as you
may recall
my affection for solid
color pants) and looks great with the blue jersey
as
well.
Another reason these jerseys hold
sentimental
value for me
is I would often play Air Force in NCAA Football ’03 to run Chance
Harridge and
the triple option. The Falcons were like a video game in real life with
their
gimmicky offense that was a lot of fun to watch, though a bit ironic
given Air Force’s devotion to the running
game. Anyways, Air Force’s jerseys have been “modernized” in recent
years and
look all right from
the front, but not so great from
the side. I also don’t like the white helmet with silver pants
combination,
even when coupled with a nice lightning
bolt
down the leg (but slap that on a pair of white
pants
and I am game).
Photo Courtesy of Jamd
Jersey of the Week Archive
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