Jimmy Chitwood
Hall of Famer
you guys are just plain weird.
Football Equipment Thread
- Thread starter Colonel_Reb
- Start date
Gi-15
Mentor
PhillyBirds said:
With their advanced technologie, it's becoming a non-issue with recent oakley's visor, I guess it's the same for nike and under armor ones. The only downside is rain. oh and the fact that there is not as much air going to your face than without one. It's not an issue for most people, but that why I don't wear mine. My cardio isn't as it used to be, so I can use all the air I can get!
Colonel_Reb
Hall of Famer
Austin Collie is at it again. Close to mid-season he switches helmets and facemasks. As long as he keeps playing like he is, I don't care. Here's the new set up.
Edited by: Colonel_Reb
Edited by: Colonel_Reb
Gi-15
Mentor
I really like those new schutt helmets, they really keeps the good old riddell looks. I hated their first DNA version.
Colonel_Reb
Hall of Famer
I know a couple of us here have talked about the way uniform rules have changed since the 60s. I found a great article that touches on this in the context of Tennessee, the SEC, and the NCAA. I knew Ole Miss and Tennessee both wore home jerseys at selected games after "The Game of The Mule" in Jackson in 1969 (in the pictures below), but I didn't know specifically when until now. I hope you enjoy this interesting read!
http://blogs.knoxnews.com/knx/mattingly/2007/09/a_treatise_o n_the_white_jersey.html
<H1>A TREATISE ON THE WHITE JERSEYS</H1>
<DIV ="text">
SEPTEMBER 20, 2007  After the story on the 1971 Florida game appeared, someone called and asked why wearing white jerseys on the road was apparently such a big deal. After all, everybody else does it. Why not Tennessee? It was a good question.
It was, however, a big deal in those uncertain times in 1971. The Vols had worn orange jerseys on the road up until that time, with three exceptions, all losses. (They had also worn white jerseys at home in 1935, the other "Vol historian," Allan Spain, tells us.)
<A name=more></A>
In fact, many Tennessee opponents wore their home jerseys when they played in Knoxville, Alabama in crimson, Kentucky and Ole Miss in blue, UCLA in powder blue, and so forth.
QUESTION: Why are home jerseys in school colors in football (except at LSU and a few other places) and white in basketball? Think about that one for a moment.
There are some vintage pictures of Tennessee in orange and Alabama in crimson in long-ago copies of Sports Illustrated, the classic ones being a cover shot of Mike Jones and Dennis Homan going for the ball in the 1967 game and a two-page shot of Hal Wantland diving over the Tide line in the 1965 game, both in Birmingham.
When Tennessee and Alabama squared off in those days, everyone there knew it was football played the way it supposed to be.
Orange jerseys on the road ended with an SEC "Gentlemen's Agreement" in 1971, giving the home team the choice of taking the school-colored shirts and the visiting team wearing the white shirts, except at LSU and, for a year or so, at Vanderbilt.
The genesis of the white jersey rule may have come from the 1969 Tennessee-Vanderbilt game at Neyland Stadium. It was a sunny November day, Vanderbilt in gold, Tennessee in orange. Only the helmets distinguished one team from the other.
It was noted after the game that Tennessee would wear white in Nashville the next season, but, as things turned out, the Vols didn't. It was a cloudy day and the differences between the two sets of jerseys were more pronounced.
To his credit, Tennessee head coach Bill Battle voted against the agreement ("You're darn right I did," he said when quizzed about it years later), thus defending the honor of the orange jersey.
The Vols did wear orange against Mississippi blue in Memphis in 1974, 1977, and 1980. The 1975 game against the Rebels was one of the more confusing in recent history, with Ole Miss in red and the Vols in orange. There wasn't a great deal of contrast, and, besides, Ole Miss won 23-6. Ole Miss wore its blue jerseys in Knoxville in 1972 and 1976.
The Vols did likewise against Mississippi State in 1978, when they were the designated home team, playing nearly 400 miles from Knoxville. The Vols also wore orange in the 1978 Notre Dame game at South Bend.
In 1982, the NCAA changed the "jersey rule," requiring teams to wear dark colored jerseys for home games. LSU wore purple jerseys for all home games from 1983 to 1994, including games against Tennessee in 1989 and 1992. That looked strange for Vols fans who grew up with LSU in white, Tennessee in orange, regardless of the venue.
When Gerry DiNardo became LSU's head coach in 1995, he personally met with each member of the NCAA Football Rules Committee about changing the rule. DiNardo's efforts were successful, and the Tigers were allowed to wear white jerseys again beginning in 1995.
A stipulation of the new rule was that the visiting team would have to give the home team permission to wear the white jerseys. The first team to deny LSU's request was DiNardo's former team, Vanderbilt, in 1996. Instead of going back to purple jerseys, the Tigers took to the field in new gold jerseys and won 35-0.
The SEC later adopted a league rule stipulating that the home team has sole discretion in determining its jersey color. The opponent took what was left.
When Tennessee wanted to wear the "throwback" jerseys in 2004 against UNLV, all kinds of machinations with the NCAA were required to pull that off, but the effort was successful.
One more comment about the white shirts.
Perhaps the most radical change in uniforms came in the McDonald era in 1963, with a get-up called the "Halloween Uniforms," so named because the shirts were light orange with black and white stripes on the shoulders.
The Vols also unveiled a white version, with orange and black stripes on the shoulders, in a 35-0 loss to Alabama and these shirts were not seen the rest of the season.
Former Vol Mallon Faircloth, the last of the single-wing tailbacks, was present that day the Vols trotted onto Legion Field in their new white shirts.
"We had new orange jerseys that season and new white ones had just come in," he recalled. "They were the jerseys with stripes across the shoulder. I guess Coach McDonald wanted to change our luck. He didn't discuss it with any of us. I think he told us that week we were wearing them."
Tennessee has won a number of big games in white shirts since that time, the same way they have in orange. There was the first "Blue Grass Miracle" in 1971, when Carl Johnson saved the day with an 87-yard run with a fumbled pitch, just when it looked as if the Wildcats were going in for the tying or go-ahead score.
There were two wins against Notre Dame, in 1991 and 2001, and a marvelous 10-6 win at Miami in 2003. The Vols broke through at Alabama in 1995, as Antonio Wardlaw made the cover of Sports Illustrated with his blocked punt and recovery for a touchdown at Georgia in 2006, wearing a white No. 38.
Despite some initial trepidation, Vol fans have accepted the white shirts with open arms, win or tie, but don't tie too many. Just like they have over the years with the orange shirts.
Edited by: Colonel_Reb
http://blogs.knoxnews.com/knx/mattingly/2007/09/a_treatise_o n_the_white_jersey.html
<H1>A TREATISE ON THE WHITE JERSEYS</H1>
<DIV ="text">
SEPTEMBER 20, 2007  After the story on the 1971 Florida game appeared, someone called and asked why wearing white jerseys on the road was apparently such a big deal. After all, everybody else does it. Why not Tennessee? It was a good question.
It was, however, a big deal in those uncertain times in 1971. The Vols had worn orange jerseys on the road up until that time, with three exceptions, all losses. (They had also worn white jerseys at home in 1935, the other "Vol historian," Allan Spain, tells us.)
<A name=more></A>
In fact, many Tennessee opponents wore their home jerseys when they played in Knoxville, Alabama in crimson, Kentucky and Ole Miss in blue, UCLA in powder blue, and so forth.
QUESTION: Why are home jerseys in school colors in football (except at LSU and a few other places) and white in basketball? Think about that one for a moment.
There are some vintage pictures of Tennessee in orange and Alabama in crimson in long-ago copies of Sports Illustrated, the classic ones being a cover shot of Mike Jones and Dennis Homan going for the ball in the 1967 game and a two-page shot of Hal Wantland diving over the Tide line in the 1965 game, both in Birmingham.
When Tennessee and Alabama squared off in those days, everyone there knew it was football played the way it supposed to be.
Orange jerseys on the road ended with an SEC "Gentlemen's Agreement" in 1971, giving the home team the choice of taking the school-colored shirts and the visiting team wearing the white shirts, except at LSU and, for a year or so, at Vanderbilt.
The genesis of the white jersey rule may have come from the 1969 Tennessee-Vanderbilt game at Neyland Stadium. It was a sunny November day, Vanderbilt in gold, Tennessee in orange. Only the helmets distinguished one team from the other.
It was noted after the game that Tennessee would wear white in Nashville the next season, but, as things turned out, the Vols didn't. It was a cloudy day and the differences between the two sets of jerseys were more pronounced.
To his credit, Tennessee head coach Bill Battle voted against the agreement ("You're darn right I did," he said when quizzed about it years later), thus defending the honor of the orange jersey.
The Vols did wear orange against Mississippi blue in Memphis in 1974, 1977, and 1980. The 1975 game against the Rebels was one of the more confusing in recent history, with Ole Miss in red and the Vols in orange. There wasn't a great deal of contrast, and, besides, Ole Miss won 23-6. Ole Miss wore its blue jerseys in Knoxville in 1972 and 1976.
The Vols did likewise against Mississippi State in 1978, when they were the designated home team, playing nearly 400 miles from Knoxville. The Vols also wore orange in the 1978 Notre Dame game at South Bend.
In 1982, the NCAA changed the "jersey rule," requiring teams to wear dark colored jerseys for home games. LSU wore purple jerseys for all home games from 1983 to 1994, including games against Tennessee in 1989 and 1992. That looked strange for Vols fans who grew up with LSU in white, Tennessee in orange, regardless of the venue.
When Gerry DiNardo became LSU's head coach in 1995, he personally met with each member of the NCAA Football Rules Committee about changing the rule. DiNardo's efforts were successful, and the Tigers were allowed to wear white jerseys again beginning in 1995.
A stipulation of the new rule was that the visiting team would have to give the home team permission to wear the white jerseys. The first team to deny LSU's request was DiNardo's former team, Vanderbilt, in 1996. Instead of going back to purple jerseys, the Tigers took to the field in new gold jerseys and won 35-0.
The SEC later adopted a league rule stipulating that the home team has sole discretion in determining its jersey color. The opponent took what was left.
When Tennessee wanted to wear the "throwback" jerseys in 2004 against UNLV, all kinds of machinations with the NCAA were required to pull that off, but the effort was successful.
One more comment about the white shirts.
Perhaps the most radical change in uniforms came in the McDonald era in 1963, with a get-up called the "Halloween Uniforms," so named because the shirts were light orange with black and white stripes on the shoulders.
The Vols also unveiled a white version, with orange and black stripes on the shoulders, in a 35-0 loss to Alabama and these shirts were not seen the rest of the season.
Former Vol Mallon Faircloth, the last of the single-wing tailbacks, was present that day the Vols trotted onto Legion Field in their new white shirts.
"We had new orange jerseys that season and new white ones had just come in," he recalled. "They were the jerseys with stripes across the shoulder. I guess Coach McDonald wanted to change our luck. He didn't discuss it with any of us. I think he told us that week we were wearing them."
Tennessee has won a number of big games in white shirts since that time, the same way they have in orange. There was the first "Blue Grass Miracle" in 1971, when Carl Johnson saved the day with an 87-yard run with a fumbled pitch, just when it looked as if the Wildcats were going in for the tying or go-ahead score.
There were two wins against Notre Dame, in 1991 and 2001, and a marvelous 10-6 win at Miami in 2003. The Vols broke through at Alabama in 1995, as Antonio Wardlaw made the cover of Sports Illustrated with his blocked punt and recovery for a touchdown at Georgia in 2006, wearing a white No. 38.
Despite some initial trepidation, Vol fans have accepted the white shirts with open arms, win or tie, but don't tie too many. Just like they have over the years with the orange shirts.
Edited by: Colonel_Reb
Colonel_Reb
Hall of Famer
A couple of publications that covered college football years ago were notorious for insisting that players pictured on their covers not wear facemasks. Here is a great example in Florida RB Larry Smith from the 1968 preview by Street and Smiths.
Colonel_Reb
Hall of Famer
PhillyBirds said:
Phillybirds, it is a new Revolution helmet, but not a prototype. It's called the Revolution Speed. Check it out: [url]http://www.riddell1.com/newsite/product_info.php?cPath=104_7 6&products_id=1605[/url]
Gi-15
Mentor
... and it is their ugliest helmet yet
Colonel_Reb
Hall of Famer
I agree Gi-15. The facemasks seem to get stranger all the time as well.
Colonel_Reb
Hall of Famer
When I saw the highlights of the Buffalo/Miami game last night, I noticed both schools were wearing home colors. I knew something was up as this is against NCAA policy. Well, here's the result of my curiosity:
"Both teams were given an NCAA exemption to wear their home colors for the Election Night game. Miami donned its home reds and Buffalo its traditional royal blues to reflect the 2004 election results of both school's home states."
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=283092084
This is the first time I can rememberwatching two teams wear their home colors live.
"Both teams were given an NCAA exemption to wear their home colors for the Election Night game. Miami donned its home reds and Buffalo its traditional royal blues to reflect the 2004 election results of both school's home states."
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=283092084
This is the first time I can rememberwatching two teams wear their home colors live.
Gi-15
Mentor
wow, thats actually pretty cool!
btw, Chris Cooley dropped the new revolution helmet and went back to the old revolution, fortunatly for our eyes!
btw, Chris Cooley dropped the new revolution helmet and went back to the old revolution, fortunatly for our eyes!
PhillyBirds
Mentor
Gi-15 said:
I wish it were so, but according to his blog, it's only because he smashed it in anger earlier in the game and was forced to wear an alternate!
http://chriscooley47.blogspot.com/
(Scroll to November 4th)
Gi-15
Mentor
thanks for the info PBird, is cooley reachable? somebody needs to tell him that those helmet are the worst thing to wear on a head since... ever. And obviously not very durable...
Colonel_Reb
Hall of Famer
I saw Cooley playing Sunday in the new mask, so I guess he decided he liked it better than the old Revo mask.
Speaking of facemasks, I finally was able to get the right facemask for my high school helmet replica. Here it is, complete withmy original mouthpiece from '93. I originally posted about this helmet on page one of this thread, but wanted to show the corrected version here.
Speaking of facemasks, I finally was able to get the right facemask for my high school helmet replica. Here it is, complete withmy original mouthpiece from '93. I originally posted about this helmet on page one of this thread, but wanted to show the corrected version here.
PhillyBirds
Mentor
That mask is pretty heavy-duty, Col! I am to presume you were a lineman?
By the way, I think the white facemask looked really slick on the first one you posted.
By the way, I think the white facemask looked really slick on the first one you posted.
Colonel_Reb
Hall of Famer
Philly, the first pic was taken in bad lighting andthe mask just looks white, but its grey like the other one. I discovered you can buy football equipment and make a pretty good profit by selling stuff on ebay, so I sold that first facemask. Yeah, I was a lineman. In 10th grade, my last year of football, Iwas LG on offense, DT on defense, right gunner on the punt team, and back up deep snapper. In 7th grade I was WR/CB but hardly saw the field, and in8th grade after I put the hurt on a few people in practice, Ibecame C/DE and never left the field. Quite a lot of positions considering I was 5-6, 150 in 10th grade.
Colonel_Reb
Hall of Famer
Anyone remember the Pro-Cap? This was a fairly shortlived attempt to provide better head protection, but they didn't hold up so well to use. I remember several players wearing these in the early 90s. It was supposed to be the wave of the future, kind of like the black QB. The new helmet designsfrom 2002and laterrendered this, and probably anythingsimilar toit obsolete.
Steve Wallace wearing one
As you can see, use didn't treat his very well.
Even the awesome Bills Safety Mark Kelso wore one.
Edited by: Colonel_Reb
Steve Wallace wearing one
As you can see, use didn't treat his very well.
Even the awesome Bills Safety Mark Kelso wore one.
Gi-15
Mentor
lol this looks ridiculous
Colonel_Reb
Hall of Famer
Yeah it does look funny, Gi, but this wasn't the first time a company tried to make outer padding for a helmet. During the 50s, right after some college teams switched from leather to plastic helmets, there was limited use of a padded helmet. The design didn't last too long, as some studies found they actually caused, rather than prevented, more head injuries. Most of these externallypadded helmets were McGregors, but not all. Here's a pic of a rare Riddell model.
Here are a few McGregors, first the Chief's Willie Lanier
Next we have Ohio State, who used them a lot in the early 60s.
Here is 1977 and 1978 All-American OL Greg Jennings wearing one in practice,a commonthingat OU during that time.
Here are a few McGregors, first the Chief's Willie Lanier
Next we have Ohio State, who used them a lot in the early 60s.
Here is 1977 and 1978 All-American OL Greg Jennings wearing one in practice,a commonthingat OU during that time.
Gi-15
Mentor
There were no padding at all inside those helmets?? Weren't they trying those things before putting them on the market? thats insane!
Colonel_Reb
Hall of Famer
Gi, there was padding on the inside ofsome of them. It was a whole different setup. You see, suspension helmets were the first type of plastic helmets. The suspension design had been refined somewhat through the leather helmet period. The early plastic unitshad a cotton/nylon (depending on the year)suspension webbing system inside them. Riddell pioneered those in 1939, but most colleges and NFL teams didn't switch to them until around 1950. McGregor had a fully padded interior (leather) helmet that was a favorite of Archie Manning for years. I wish I could have tried one on. Suspension helmets slowly gave way to air/water cell and plastic padded helmets from the late 1960s through the 1980s. Suspension helmets are light as a feather and very comfortable ( I have worn a repro), but they aren't considered heavy duty or safe enough for today's game.
Here's the6 point webbingof an early Riddellsuspension helmet.
Here's the later 12 point webbing design.
Here's Archie's leather padded McGregor from the early 70s.
Edited by: Colonel_Reb
Here's the6 point webbingof an early Riddellsuspension helmet.
Here's the later 12 point webbing design.
Here's Archie's leather padded McGregor from the early 70s.
Gi-15
Mentor
oh I see, suspension like a construction helmet. Thanks for the explanation Colonel
Colonel_Reb
Hall of Famer
No problem man, we're all in this thing together.
Electric Slide
Mentor
- Joined
- Jul 14, 2007
- Messages
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Col, what do you think of Army's camo pants and helmets? Has this ever been done before? I think one time the San Diego Padres wore camo uniforms. I would think camouflage would be prohibited though since you blend in too much with the souroundings? Haha.
Seriously though I wonder if anyone has considered banning it. I know there's certain things that can't be on uniforms, supposedly one time a high school stitched the image of a football on their jersey which confused the other teams defense. There was another that made the jerseys a similar color as their footballs. I guess it could help on play-fakes. Either way, it's interesting to see what impact uniforms have in competition.
Seriously though I wonder if anyone has considered banning it. I know there's certain things that can't be on uniforms, supposedly one time a high school stitched the image of a football on their jersey which confused the other teams defense. There was another that made the jerseys a similar color as their footballs. I guess it could help on play-fakes. Either way, it's interesting to see what impact uniforms have in competition.