There was an event held last night on campus where a few of the uniforms were unveiled for a select group. Those images can be seen below as captured on Twitter. The main takeaway is that we have an official don't and our colors have been officially standardized to the palette that Nike has been using for the better part of 3 decades. That is, the bright orange is now officially our color.
Gotten off Twitter via Chris Smith @falsename23
Hope you weren't hyped for something else. Also, looks like the tricolor helmets are here to stay with the maroon lids picking up the Russell Athletic Bowl stripes. Also from the official announcement it appears the chrome orange lids now have a white logo and will be entering our standard rotation, possibly as our standard home helmets.
Also have to say, not a fan of the orange numbers on Maroon Uniforms. They are difficult to read from a distance and rarely translate well over broadcasts.
Comments
Pretty disappointed in these. The new numbers are okay but I was so looking forward to seeing something different than the generic cookie-cutter stripes.
I don't mind the stripes. I'm just not a huge fan of the collar.
Maybe it will grow on me. Probably not.
The numbers are OK.
Agree -- except the new numbers aren't even okay.
I hope the tri color helms are just for away and maroon helms are for home. Not a fan of the tri color on or maroon jerseys :(
Damn. I love the tri-colors, but I'm getting bored of the shoulder stripe look. Can't we go back to the 04/05 unis?
Or even the '09 look
I've said this before...but why did we go away from that? It felt like we got lazy with the throwbacks, and just kept wearing them.
I think we got too ADD with uniform changes and wanted to be changing things up every 3 years for some reason
Then aren't we overdue for another change? (And I'm talking more than just the tweaks we have this go around.)
Yes, the '09 unis had class. But, my favoriteson are the all maroon unis, helmet, tops, pants , and socks. It seems we always mean business when they are wearing them.
I preferred the previous basketball jerseys with the hokiestone design on the back. I guess Nike will be discontinuing that look for all of their schools.
I still want to know when I'll be able to get a basketball jersey from the bookstore.
Edit: I guess it's there if you squint. Point stands about wanting to buy a replica though.
You can still see the Hokie stone pattern faintly on the back in that last picture. Looks like that is here to stay
Hope you're right...and it makes its way to the football unis (and all sports for that matter).
I think the Hokie Stone is still on there, it's just hard to tell because of the lighting and the maroon jersey.
This is a 0.1 improvement. Certainly not the 2.0 we were promised.
As mentioned about the basketball unis (to me at least) are a drop off. I like the Hokie Stone silloette much better.
Wow. This is a big
fail.disappointment.Isaiah looks like his head is sticking up out of an orange home plate.
At first it looked strange, and now I know why.
And Nike is ok with this design? "Come'on mannnnn"
Not a huge fan of those football jerseys in general. But I liked the throwback Beamer look.
I do like the basketball jerseys though.
Numbers look great. Get rid of the collar look and stripes ASAP.
Agreed. I really got my hopes up and was ready to get my wallet out, but not anymore. I already have 2 jerseys with stripes.
Why the hell is our right-handed QB wearing a receiver glove on his right hand?
Because that's Ken Ekanem?
No Ekanot. Don't you Evans say that.
I am so goddamned tired of numbers belonging to more than one dude.
I'm with you on that, brother. We have use of 0-99 for a reason, and it's not like we've retired any of them, right, and what's the most we dress for a home game, maybe 80, 40-50 of which will probably never see action.
I also hate seeing opposing teams both wearing their home unis......disturbing trends. Players being allowed to change jersey numbers in the middle of a game for eligibility purposes. Teams like Oregon, and some copy cats, wearing a different uni every week. All that crap makes the game look bush league, IMO.
We use 1-99 and there are some retired numbers. 10, 73, 78, and 84 are retired.
I don't have a problem with this, as long as there is proper contrast. The "color vs. white" rule was developed due to black and white TV, which obviously is not an issue right now.
Now, if we play Alabama, I don't expect to see us in maroon vs. them in red. But if we played WVU, and they wore yellow jerseys and we wore maroon, I wouldn't have a problem with it.
USC vs UCLA with both teams in home jerseys is pretty good looking.
Agreed. I think it is pretty cool when it works.
VT vs. UNC in the dark jerseys would be fine.
We might see UT in puke orange & VT in allmarooneverything.
Obviously Nike designs these cause no one at Tech would have come up with it
Why do we still have the shoulder stripes! The upgraded font with the throwback stripes looks really stupid.
My first impression was that these looked like Nike's version of UCLA's uniforms, except they're not all Adidas-y with the multi-colored numbers and mesh background all over the place.
I was really hoping for a better upgrade than these, but if we start winning 10+ games a season, they can play in potato sacks for all I care.
Well, with all of the great things that have been going on at the Athletic Dept, I guess we were bound for a little bit of a letdown. I was at least hoping that Nike would put in the Mach Speed template in these uniforms. I'm leaning against the number font; usually Nike creates the font as a link to school lineage (e.g. WVU numbers and pickaxe). I'm not sure how those numbers are "Virginia Tech". I definitely agree that there is too much orange on the maroon basketball uniforms. Hopefully these grow on us.
There is a font called "Blacksburg" that Nike has. And it was even worn in the 2015 Independence Bowl.
By Tulsa.
Blacksburg Bold - It's in the Nike catalog now as a generic font that any school (high school, etc.) can get on their jerseys.
I really liked that jersey font and was hoping we'd go back to something similar or an updated form of that.
Glad to see Vanessa Panousis get a little recognition, she's been incredible for the VT women's basketball program.
Can't tell for sure, but I think the weird collar may actually look good when the helmet is on.
The more I see them the more I like them. Interesting that the Jersey from approx. 2004 that everybody loves also had a large collar.
Same wide collar you see on a lot of NFL unis...Saints, Broncos, etc.
Good catch. Just noticed it on Eagles jersey that Bradford was wearing in his ESPN article picture.
Anything is better than the flywire open front the Nike jerseys used to have in the NFL that looked like a toilet seat around the collar (ie - Saints old collar before them and other teams changed it.)
It looks big without the helmet on but appears much smaller when the kids have those really wide Revo Speed and Speed Flex helmets on.
Looks like the standard maroon helmets picked up the stripes from the Russell Athletic Bowl a couple years ago....
Kind of like Star Trek meets Hokie.
Glad somebody else noticed this. Would have felt super nerdy if it was just me. Except for the E, totally the font popularized in Shatner/Nimoy Trek films, and then again (albeit inconsistently) in DS9.
I LOVE me some Star Trek, but big swing and miss on all of these. Don't like the collar, don't like the helmet striping, seems brand inconsistent for football maroons to have white lettering/numbers and for basketball maroons to have the same in orange.
I actually think VT baseball has been doing a great job with all their stuff; Hope them being creative and fun wasn't the catalyst for this.
Like Leonard Nimoy, we Hokiesports fans are still In Search Of a respectable upgrade in our team unis. Like you all, I was expecting a little more, but until we see them in team action, it's kinda hard to tell how they'll look.
I feel like we've been waiting Generations for new unis, and when we finally make first contact , leaves us a little wanting.
Hope everyone in Blacksburg has fun today, and may your voyage home be safe and without incident.
Leg for the total recall (oops).
But we will not stage an insurrection, because Whit is not our nemesis.
I dont understand the clash of traditional with modern
The upgraded font in the numbers and the collar design say modern and the shoulder stripes scream traditional. The white tri color helmets also are a modern design clashing with the traditional style shoulder stripes
Tech needs to pick one or the other and not a combination of both. We seem very confused with our direction in uniform design.
I personally would have just eliminated the shoulder stripes
I feel like Whit (or whoever had the biggest input in this decision) tried too hard to please everybody and wound up pleasing nobody.
Been trying to put my finger on exactly why I dont't feel great about the unis, and this hits it right on the head.
Also, unpopular opinion, but I have never been a fan of the tri-color helmets. For whatever insane reason, it makes them look really long and reminds me of the Metroid helmet. And now I want to play Metroid.
I don't see any clash in styles. Sure the design elements come from both modern and traditional tastes but it still looks clean. Its not some cluster of stuff like on Louisville or Miami or Maryland or Oregon uniforms.
So I guess we are just LSU now or something. Boring and dumb and awful. Colorado got better uniforms from Nike, Vanderbilt did too. PURDUE got way cooler uniforms from Nike this year.
WHAT HAVE WE GOT TO DO!?
Honestly if they took the stripes off they'd be extra boring but somehow less offensive. Somehow? Just very disappointed, I wanted something cool and unique, and we got the same thing with a template? That's still not their newest one I think? Just sigh...
Yes, the strip around the neck is too wide. By, like, double. And, sure, the shoulder stripes are kind of played out by now... Glad to see we kept the tri-color helmet, which is ab. so. lute. FIRE. I like the new number font - distinctively new, but nothing approaching the monstrosities they wear in Miami, Louisville, Cincy etc. (I mean, adidas. 'Nuff said.) Biggest fear was that they'd unveil some hideous font.
These are our base uniforms - we will rock some throwback stuff, probably unveil some alternate combo if not this year then next. There will be an all-white. There will be an all-maroon. There will be an all-ora---er, hopefully not...
Otherwise, what were folks hoping/expecting to see?? Alternate colors? Matte helmets? I think these are pretty reasonable, small changes that don't scream "rebranding". VT needs something that looks new to its fan base, not some huge overture that comes off as desperate.
They'll look a lot better to folks when we start winning games while wearing them.
& PS: re the hoops uni's - if you can't make out the orange numbers with a big white border around them, it's no fault of the uniform.
IDK, the one on the left in the very top picture (the blonde girl) blends pretty badly. It looks more grey around the number than white to me, and I can see how that would be bad on the TV.
Confused. We finally had the Nike identity team at our disposal and we changed the number font? I was under the impression that more significant changes were coming.
Edit: I'm sure Whit has a few tricks up his sleeve. He's not going to reveal everything at this event. Something will involve anthracite...
Having Nike's team doesn't mean the results will be good. Plus they keep some of the intellectual property created, which is among the good reasons not to do anything with the logo.
Having Nike's team doesn't mean the results will be good. Plus they keep some of the intellectual property created, which is among the good reasons not to do anything with the logo. Also you mispelled grey ;)
Ehhhh..... i'm not sure about these.
I don't give a shit honestly, as long as we win every game, we could wear barney uniforms for all I care
I'm not a huge fan of these. But I love Whits response to the criticism on Twitter and you can't argue with unifying the brand and not listening to Nikes terrible ideas about rounded corners on the VT.
Love them. Hate them. Either way sounds like youd better just get used to them.
Bleh. I dislike the shoulder stripes. Can't we just switch to adidas already
Better than these, at least.
Not sure why we ever got away from these (just without a bright orange left shoulder). They're clean and modern and my favorite jerseys we've ever worn
Yeah, but there are these things called "the times". And they change often.
I loved those uni's. Last 20 years, my two faves are 1) the one Adibi is rocking in your comment, and 2) those all-white gradient FlyWire(?) one's we wore at C'ville and one other game? Maryland?
By the way, looking at the photos you posted? The neck stripe was HUGE back then, too!!!
The orange sleeve unis are my favorite VT uniforms of all time.
One of the best things about this was the half maroon half orange nike under shirt! Looked so good with the unis.
Wow, who the fuck designed these? Who the fuck funded and didn't say "oh hell no" to them!?
Official stuff is out:
http://www.hokiesports.com/brand/
At first I disliked the new font, but then I saw it on the baseball unis and decided I really hate it.
Its straight Star Trek font, which is okay I guess.
Haha I was expecting the end of that sentence to say how much you liked it.
I am impartial, they are a lot better than some we have had, not as great as others.
I don't particularly mind the number font, but the text font is hideous. I also think these football jerseys are good enough to stick with for a while. I think it's a crisp, clean look that translates well on tv. The helmet choices elicit a "yeah, those are fine" from me. Nothing earth shattering, but at least it's not Foghorn Leghorn feet.
The basketball jerseys are just too busy. It's really hard to force every letter of "Virginia Tech" onto the front of a jersey, and it's in a disgusting font to boot. It's like a terrible cartoon set in the future: VIRGINIA TECH 3000 is what the font should be called. I also agree with I think Alum07 when he said he didn't like the orange numbers on maroon background. It makes for a weird visual experience on tv.
I hope the helmet shown for the home uniform isn't using this chrome helmet shown on the table in the picture. Terrible. The metallic from anOSU was good and the best part was the VT was just an outline of white. The full white shown just seems too big and clashes.
Here is the good:
Edit: To see the chrome helmet I'm referencing, you have to click on the picture so that it enlarges. It's cut off in what is shown.
Welp, our season is ruined now.
.../s
New basketball uniforms look like they came straight out of K Mart. Who puts orange numbers on maroon jerseys? Honestly liked the old ones much better. And check this out
What. Is. The. Problem. With the orange numbers???!? What are people seeing that I'm not? I can see the numbers just fine! If anything, the white numbers look like an afterthought.
I don't get the hate either. I like the orange numbers and the basketball jerseys.
I'm glad it was minor. Watching the brand video from the link, sounded like they wanted some major things. I do like thw gray color pallette. Would be cool to see a throw back all gray look.
http://www.hokiesports.com/brand/
I really don't mind the football jersey update at all. From 1998 to 2003, we created an identity with the uniforms we wore, because we wore them every game of every year (except starting in 2000, we wore a triple stripe scheme once a year somewhat similar to what we wear now). Then we switched up and went with a new scheme completely, ditched that in 2008 and went with the side panel scheme, then ditched that in 2010 to go with the triple stripe theme.
We are starting to build an identity again with the triple stripe theme considering this will be the 7th season in a row that we'll have worn it, but it desperately needed an update. Now we can continue to build that identity but look a little more modern.
As for the basketball jerseys, I wish the text and numbers were white and outlined with orange. For some reason, the maroon basketball jerseys remind me of off-brand jerseys you get from chains not named Nike. I do like how they have the same text and number scheme as the football jerseys though. Oregon's text has built a university-wide identity, and we should do the same.
I like them.
I'm into it.
So.
Bye.
The one plus is it looks like our normal jerseys will be AllMaroonEverything
I wanted the shoulder stripes gone. I was hoping for something more like 04-07 which was so cool. I even liked 08-09 more than what we've been on recently.
You know, I've seen so many different VPI to VT uniforms over the decades, I have lost any real care about what they're wearing unless they show up in something stupid. I mean, when the game's on, I'm not sitting there critiquing the fashion choices and seem to get used to about anything we're playing in.
That said, it has been fun reading all the wailing and moaning and hearing the gnashing of teeth.
I suppose my issue is that I think most of our uniform options have been somewhat stupid over the last few years.
I can tolerate the maroon jerseys, and I'm glad we got maroon pants back with the white jerseys. But, coming up with all orange everything was a bad idea.
And while I liked the idea of a blackout uniform in theory, the execution wasn't that great last year.
after going through 70+ comments on this thread, i've come to the conclusion that change is very hard to accept. i'm in the same camp, too, but i usually adjust much faster than those clinging to their favorite, classic designs.
if there are any positive takeaways from this, it's that (1) i'm happy Nike chose us for a "refresh" to unify fonts and logos throughout all sports programs and not just football and (2) if the players like this, then i'm for it, too.
there were selective things i disliked but after walking away from it and reading VT Athletics' take on why they did this, i'm now OK with it. what we're seeing now will become "classic" 20 years from now so i'm of the opinion that i better get used to seeing these uniforms as i get older supporting the alma mater.
as for the "Star Trek" font, i get that it's tied to our "Invent the Future" tagline and our heritage as a land-grant institution with a heavy STEM focus. and it makes sense, too (to me at least).
just my two cents...
I like the new font and I see it as an important step in having a distinctive brand but I think the uniforms are half-assed and I think everyone should be outraged. It's like Nike thinks that they changed our font so they don't need to put much effort in the other stuff. I hope Whit is not going to take this crap and lets it be known to the Nike staff. Maybe I'm looking into it too much but this is a sign of a lack of respect IMO.
I saw on twitter that Beamer was a big fan of the shoulder stripes and he is the one that wanted them. The uniforms were approved and ordered prior to his retirement.
It was on twitter, so it must be true...
But it makes sense. They didn't order these uniforms last week. It lines up with the Nike visit that we know happened last year.
No it doesn't. The effort was all Whit.
I'm sure that Frank Beamer had a huge say in what the uniforms looked like.
I'm sure Frank really didn't care that much about uniforms.
I think he had a big say in what was ordered.
One big reason VT had so many stupid combos in recent years is because Frank didn't really care -- the seniors picked the combos and he was always like "whatever". As long as they weren't neon green and pink with horns coming out of the side of the helmet, I don't think Frank spent a whole of time focusing on fashion - specifically uniform design.
Agreed on the combos, but I think Frank had a say in the actual uniform design/order.
The horns would be a serious deterrent for tacklers. Frank would be into it.
I like the white and I like the font of the number.
I don't like the orange collar.
If I changed it, I would remove the shoulder stripes. They have never bothered me, but it is time for something different. I would have something similar to the Michael Vick years. Maybe add a thin orange and white stripe up the side of the jersey similar to the women's basketball jersey
Clark Ruhland made an edit in photoshop and posted it to twitter. Remove the shoulder stripes on the picture to the right and I'm a big fan.
I will say that I like the maroon helmet with the extra stripes, and I like the orange chrome helmet with the solid white VT. I also like the new font on the lettering. New and modern. If you watch the video in the official release they state that it is almost like it is chiseled like Hokie Stone.
That photoshopped uniform on the right looks a million times better. Its the orange collar that is taking away from the clean modern lines. But I think with the orange collar gone, the shoulder striped should stay. IMHO.
The orange collar must go.
Oddly enough, I liked the collar from last year, so "no changes really needed" was the right answer.
Would like fewer lines so that your eyes know where to focus, but they're not bad other than that. In the list of past uniforms they're a little closer to the top than to the bottom.
Disappointing. I could like-ish most of the individual parts, but I think they somehow clash when put together. I don't mind retro "athletic" such as the stripes, but looks bad when paired with the cartoonish retro disney futureworld.star trek font. Personally, i was hoping for "modern" or "tech" coming through with in a cleaner look, not a cartoon futuristic way. I was hoping for more use of the secondary colors..ie the charcol gray.
The star trek numbers sort of go along with the star trek collar, I think.
Honestly, I think the new font pairs better with the comic sans VT, which I'm glad they scrapped.
The only thing I like about the new branding is the retention of the stripes on the football jerseys. Everything else is either a slightly worse tinkering or a clashing mess.
A big step backward into the future.
SPRING GAME UNIS ARE STRAIGHT FIIIIYAH
#allorangeeverything
v.
#allmarooneverything
I hate those stupid white bike helmets.
i like them ... come at me bros.
I agree. I like them too. Orange collar and everything.
I hope they don't use the grey pants with the maroon top though. Prefer white or maroon bottom.
more opinions on this thread than fans at uva's spring game...
More passion as well.
That's any thread around here.
Even the threads that no one replies to.
Why doesn't the font match the VT logo font? Wouldn't that make sense? The font looks awful especially on the basketball uniforms. I don't want to buy anything with that font on it. I wish I had money now to stock up on gear before it's all new stuff.
I have no problems with the font. I liked the old font and I like the new.
The video said they wanted the font to look like it was chiseled...similar to chiseling Hokie Stone. I think that is cool.
If we hadn't been told that the font was to represent the chiseling of the Hokie Stone would ANYONE have guessed that's what the font represents?
If someone works hard enough, they can rationalize symbolism into just about anything.
Your post really symbolizes what I think we all are feeling.
Do you want a picture of a chisel next to the lettering on the jerseys or something?
Current but not crazy.
I'm good.
I'm pretty indifferent, I like us having a consistent identity. Biggest plus is stripes on the helmet, love it.
Might as well toss my 4 cents in.
Pros: More maroon, color palette has desperately needed standardizing for years.
Cons: Ugh.
1) The stripes. If they have to stay, at least angle them. The VT logo, the brand, hell even the new font shows sharp edges, corners, and angles. The pic with Ford is showing a little angle, but it's no where near enough to go with the angle on the VT logo.
2) The font, is too smooth. Yeah, I know they wanted futuristic, but it is easy enough to get that with sharp edges. I mean hell, the V on those basketball unis looks like a LOLUVA V. C'mon guys, this doesn't take a genius.
3) Lastly, Nike isn't going to let us have wings on the shoulder pads, so switch to someone who will.
Maybe, but will they let us have turkey tails imprinted on our butts? Yellow or orange socks to match the leg color of a real turkey? Instead of a collar, maybe wattles swooshed across the neck line, or an engorged snood on the front of the helmet, above the facemask? Calling Under Armor...
I'm going to put my money on wings never happening. It doesn't really fit their identity and I really think it looks like garbage.
At the end of the day, VT has the coolest colors.
So even if we nitpick about how they're displayed, the uniforms look pretty sharp.
I'm ok with the jerseys. Originally I was upset that we retained the stripes on the jersey but it is what it is. My freshman year was 1999 so those Vick jerseys will always be my favorite and I bet some people who were there for the Tyrod years probably feel the same about those jerseys as well.
I would like to point out we will have an alt jersey and if we start a resistance now maybe we can bitch and moan enough to ensure that the alt jersey doesn't have the stripe.
I would also like to point out that in that official VT guideline to the rebranding they mentioned our secondary colors were black and a few different greys a la Hokie stone I believe.
and I think we will be wearing something with black and grey vs. Tennessee.
I guess I'll chime in too.
Glad they at least tried to get consistency across all sports. That being said, here are my thoughts on the football uniform updates.
1) The collar is big, but it seems like they were trying to incorporate the pylons logo, hence the shape and size.
2) They should have outlined the numbers. I don't mind the font change, but having the edge contrast would set them off better like it does on the other unis.
3) Stripes. I was hoping if we had to keep stripes, they would actually be like the ones on the mens' basketball unis. Double maroon stripes on the sides of the whites, or double orange on the maroons. Or a tight maroon and orange (whites) or a tight white and orange (maroons) like the womens' basketball unis. Lose the shoulder stripes.
4) Like the numbers on the sleeves. Maybe on the shoulders with VT on the sleeves?
5) Hokies over the numbers on the whites and Tech over the numbers on the maroons would have tied things up with the other sports.
6) The maroon helmets with the stripes are okay. Would have liked to see the maroon done like the orange ones.
Hopefully, this will only last a few years and we can get a complete refresh once the current sucky Nike contract is up.
Feel free to disagree. Just my thoughts.
Contract was extended last year through I think 2022 or 2026.
Ain't you just a big ol' ray of sunshine.
J/k.
Don't like what Nike has been doing lately. At least for football.
SOOOOOOOOOOOOO much better than anything adidas or UA can offer.
Judging by a lot of the comments on this post, this fan base has no idea how lucky we are to be a Nike school.
Don't mind being a Nike school. Just want unis that don't look like the summer interns worked on them. Think about the Bama game a few years ago. Could have been so much better. I hope our next refresh looks fresh and not recycled.
I think this depends on perspective. I don't think anyone is doing more modern design uniforms than UA by a long shot. I'm not looking to be cutting edge or traditional; just want what looks consistent and best for our team and fans. That said, it helps a lot to be one or the other. When uniforms become disjointed is often when attempting modern and then at the last minute say "damn, we don't have any legacy in here, let's throw it on top."
I'll never understand why we left these.
Edit: Like them so much I had to change my avatar.
Leg for you! I really love it when we combine the maroon and orange on the same uniform.
As a bonus, the slimming effect of these would be extra deceptive for Settle.
To me, I think this is exactly where we need to be. Good balance of O&M without the Orange being overwhelming. The numbers are modern and the orange trim really makes the pop. Just an overall good jersey and I can't stress it enough. Sleek, subtle, modern.
Because people whined about not having new uniforms.
As long as we beat loluva and 5+ other teams each year does it really matter what we look like?
New Nike gear is starting to become available.
http://www.fanatics.com/COLLEGE_Virginia_Tech_Hokies_Nike
Glad they didn't go in a massively different direction with the football unis, like they did with the 08 uniforms. But I still am hoping for a throwback to the 99 jerseys. I like what Clemson did with their redesign this offseason. Put the orange numbers back on the shoulder pads, stick to the default font for names and numbers, and leave the jerseys a solid color.
I really like what Arkansas did a few years ago with this throwback for a single game:
After seeing this...
...I feel better about the situation. I'm sure if Whit/Fuente want changes in a few years, they will be made.
Ok, this makes everything make a lot more sense. The absolute last thing Whit and Fuente were going to do was change up the look of the football uniform if Frank pushed hard for them to remain the way they were as the last thing he did before retiring. They'll let the freshness of the retirement pass before going with a complete overhaul of the uniforms, but I would fully expect the special uniforms to veer pretty far from the norm.
That said, don't be surprised if you see that triple-stripe stay around the program permanently in some form as an honor to Frank. Even if that's on the inside of the collar, like Nike has done in the NFL
Good Lord, it's a good thing that Greg Hardy is no longer with the Panthers.
Yeah, he certainly took Sam Mills' speech the wrong way....
I guess that proves Frank was involved in uniforms
1. Really like the stripes on the maroon lid.
2. Don't care for the number font.
3. Hate the tricolor and orange lid.
1) Number font is atrocious.
2) no trim looks cheap
3) Stripe thickness change is awful.
Not good Bob...
they're uniforms. I don't really have a strong opinion on what they look like, so long as they win games.
Because this site loves to discuss and such, I found this 3rd party website that breaks down our "rebrand", or as they like to call it, our tweaking.
Clicky Click
The real question I have is: Whose jersey should I get this year?!
Joey Slye
you mean kicker # 46 or WR #1 or QB#4
Number 4. Even if Evans doesn't start at QB, you still get Ekanam. If Evans does start, you got 2 of the best players on both sides of the ball.
Plus from a retro point of view, D. Hall, Eddie Royal, and David Wilson.
Where is the anthracite Whit referenced?
Why the nuevo numbers and helmet stripes with an old-school design?
Why the nuevo font on some of the uniform (not the name on back)? Also, shouldn't we go "all-in" and paint the field with the font (endzone, numbers, etc.)?
This whole thing just seems weird and inconsistent.
I thought about the field at the Spring game. I'm betting we at least re-do the endzones with the new font.
I personally loved the ole custom Futura Bold typeface. It was really sharp. We just jumped to 2035 with this futuristic "NASA-inspired" font.
This is what confuses me the most about the update -- the goal was to keep fonts consistent but we change it almost immediately after repainting the basketball court and putting up the new scoreboard in Lane? I had hoped that we'd be sticking with that font since it seemed that was the start of some consistency...
Edit: I also really f-ing love the futura bold, so I may just be bitter
Font geek! we do need you!
The football uniforms may be a little meh, but IMO, the need of having consistent colors and font across sports far outweighs the dislike of details on the football uniforms. The biggest problem got fixed - that's a win for us.
Also - anyone who thinks that switching FROM Nike is a good idea is off their rocker. 73% of recruits favor Nike.
As a closer to recruits/current players age, 23 year old, I can assure everyone that that 73% is very true and I would have guessed even higher. Nike is top of the line, Under Armour has developed a second rate stigma and Adidas is very love/hate. But very seriously, Nike is far and away the preferred brand of apparel and athletic wear.
Nobody has said the 2003 all maroon unis yet... I really wish Nike would rebrand those.
I understand needing consistency, but I think we went a little too far here. For me, the best thing (uniform-wise) VT did was to unveil MLB inspired baseball jerseys. It looks like those are going to be a thing of the past...which is a shame.
Padres
Astros
Yankees
Orioles
Cardinals
P.S. I need one of each.
It's a f'ing crime that they never made any of these for sale to the public. Talk about a completely wasted revenue stream.
They sold the throw back Astros uniforms.
Sigh...I know.
WHAT?!?!?! WHEN? WHERE?!
DAMNIT
Is that guy rounding 3rd!!????
He;s actually going so fast that he's floating.
I think you are wrong that they are getting rid of all MLB inspired uniforms. They only show one picture on the website and I think that the changes only apply to the regular uniforms that the team wears, not the special ones highlighted in your post. Baseball is pretty different considering they need more uniforms than most other sports.
They're on the way out. When Whit took to twitter to reason why we are standardizing the brand, he specifically used a couple of those uniforms as examples on how the brand became fractured.
He mentioned the typeface but that applies to the standard hokieball uniforms as well as the specialty uniforms. I didn't see the tweets but unless he specifically mentions the MLB inspired uniforms going away I would be surprised if we didn't keep them, especially considering how much the fans like them.
I hope you're right. I used the same argument that the baseball team needs more uniforms. A single road trip would require at least 3 sets of uniforms. I know a few people who attended the function where the uniforms were revealed and they all came away with the belief that they were on the way out.
I think they look pretty good. The super thick collar is standard on NFL jerseys. Number font is meh.
This is what I think:
http://makeagif.com/i/11Ry7c
I have been trying to think of a way to incorporate the war memorial pillars into a uniform design. I initially thought they could be used as shoulder stripes but that might not be apparent enough. I do think it could be used in some way down the sides of the Jersey though. Anybody more creative than me have any ideas?
Quick (and somewhat crude) Photoshop job here, my idea being that the shoulder numbers are framed by the Pylons that VT Athletics is using for its logo:
So in this design, the shoulder numbers sort of emerge from the Pylons, the team and the University built from those principles.
(Symmetric Pylons would be on either side of the number, I'm just not talented enough to superimpose the Pylons in some rippled form to match the uniform exactly.)
This is fantastic. I think it would look strange on any number starting with a 1, but I'd love this on the uniform somewhere. Off the top of my head can't think of a program that incorporates something so important to their school on the FB uniform. I can envision broadcaster commentary in big games identifying the Pylons and speaking to their significance, that is the type of thing I love during dead air time for both VT and other programs' games.
An easy solution to both 1 and 11 would be for Ford and Kendall to get their numbers retired. I think this benefits everyone.
I think it could look doable if the number/pylons were on top of the shoulder not the side. You could do contrasting colors or a faded look like the basketball sweat marks and elongate the pylons.
That's cool.
I think you could even put a small pylon logo on the back of the jersey around the collar.
Dude!!! thats a sweet idea. I would personally move the number to the top shoulder and leave the pylons on the side or vice versa. The pylons would look almost like a stripe on top of the shoulder as another option. Would also maybe flip the pillars so the perspective position is going toward the center like in the original VT athletics logo
This is fantastic!
I... Don't think that is a possibility. With the emphasis on brand standardization, they aren't going to use a minor one like that as a major design element on a major Athletic team, one which gets the most publicity arguably of the entire school. Personally, I tried to incorporate the pylons with some work I was doing for our alumni chapter, and got smacked down faster than a Hoo trying to run up the middle on Settle.
That being said, I have heard that while this standardization and rebrand was done primarily by Whit (the standardization is what ixnayed my efforts) it has been told to me that Whit does whatever he wants with the Athletic Uniforms. More a do as I say not as I do...
I wonder if I can tolerate the white uniform better because in the pictures here, the stripes are shown straight up and down over the top of the shoulder. On the maroon jersey, the shoulder stripes end up going over the edge, where the shoulder meets the arm (which is of course dependent on size of the player and the pads).
I also wonder if I would like the stripes on the maroon jersey better if they were orange on the outside and white on the inside.
I really like the new logo. Has a futuristic feel to it and I just all around
dig it.
The football uniforms I was hoping for some more dramatic changes.
It's a nice update but hope they make some tweaks in the future.
I just saw this new Nike polo. Could we see something in these colors for the alternate jersey?
aandddd that maroon is completely different than any other "new" maroon we have seen so far. Either alternate colors, terrible photo, or someone done messed up.
VT was selling grey and black polo shirts from Nike last year. Also had maroon and white shirts with a grey/silver VT logo as well.
I wouldn't read too much into it.
Sure. I hear ya.
But this is released after the rebranding. Here are the other polos:
This other shirt has black and what looks like a blend of maroon and grey. Just a thought.
Closeup of the other shirt shows a blend of maroon and grey.
Looks maroon and white to me
looks blue and black to me
Dammit Kevin, the dress is gold.
It just occurred to me that we analyze color/uniform combos in the same way French analyzes football plays and schemes. Never change you beautiful bastards.
Those polos have more interesting designs than our new football uniforms
Nike does a standard template for the polos (coaches gear) for teams they sponsor. Bet all the others will have something similar.
That said, they are sweet. Wish our unis looked as good.
I believe these are soccer uniforms and personally, I think they look awesome. That's what anthracite looks like. I'm less of a fan of the pattern they have in the maroon and would probably prefer it say "HOKIES" instead of "Virginia Tech" but they still look slick.
I'd lose the background behind "Virginia Tech".
I think we'll see something in this color scheme for the Tenn game.
Yeah, but it's not something you'll notice from a distance when they are playing unlike the circuit board pattern on the Boise State black uniforms, which I also loved.
I'll put my money on maroon, lots of maroon.
I'll put money on anthracite grey with some hokiestone worked in here and there.
This is why I am skeptical. Tennessee has already used it as an alternate color. It would be kind of like Miami wearing green and Virginia Tech wearing orange.
I thought Tennessee was Adidas or Sketchers or whatever.
That's how they got Crosby, they broke NCAA rules and gave all their recruits these bad boys.
You mean these
Do they come in anthracite?
I'm picking up what you're putting down for sure . However close friend of mine said he "thinks" he saw a metallic like orange helmet in the equipment room with tons of boxes that were just delivered.
This was mentioned a couple weeks ago so who knows. Could be for next next year??
Could be wearing anthracite uniforms for the Notre Dame game
Considering ND wears dark blue and gold at home anthracite would clash big time.
We will find out soon though.
I'll also put my money on something with anthracite for Bristol. Whit spoke at a Hokie Club event last week in Atlanta and said that not all uniforms have been released for the upcoming season and that we should look for something special for Bristol that he thinks we'll really like.
EDIT: Whit also said that he's a big fan of the "traditional look" so I imagine that the shoulder stripes will stay for a little while longer.
NASCAR Uniforms like the Bobcats had
At least those are on-topic, being that NASCAR's home base is there.
+1 to the soccer uniforms. Like the new logo on that background and dark colors.
Of course it's a soccer uniform, but the stone print looks bad. This looks like a replica jersey that costs $10 from China.
Me likey
PS-> If anyone is looking to get some more Hokie Gear Campus Emporium looks to be having a huge sale on a ton of stuff. With the new logo and what not the old stuff has got to go..
PS UCF got updated uniforms too... more anthracite grey color scheme Nike uses. -> UCF
Really Hope VT gets hooked up like this.
I like those. They'll look slick while losing all of their games.
Joking aside, some of the friends I made while living in Oviedo were all diehard UCF football fans and it was hard to watch them suffer last year.
Frost will get it to work I think. So much underrated talent in FL and GA.
Not to mention he has Oregon roots, should be fun to watch this year.
Give him 3 years and then he'll have them humming.
If you take the "chisel' marks out of the letters like H and E, IMO it looks like the same as the old font
Excellent, thanks for posting.
There was so much secrecy around it, it's nice to see what went into it.
The new uniforms don't look that bad, there is a picture online saying 50 days until kickoff and it shows Ford in the new maroon uniforms. I like them, I just hope we see more of the helmets we wore against Tulsa and UVA.
The said tweet.
Leg for you and thanks for doing what I was incapable of, I'm not too good with electronics haha
I agree, those white facemasks are so much fun!
I'm bumping this thread because it just hit me today that after seeing the on field product this year, I was very pleased with the uniforms. That's all.
Those grey/pink bball unis that you couldn't even see "Hokies" though...
via GIPHY