I am a bit of a sports uniform afficionado. While I am a big fan of the Oklahoma Sooners’ “Rough Rider” alternates, a lot of people don’t feel the same way.
When Oklahoma Football unveiled their anthracite uniform in honor of former running back Dr. Prentice Gautt, I was shocked. I didn’t see this coming. I never thought the Oklahoma Sooners would dare wear colors other than crimson and cream. Thakfully, they did.
These are clean.
Honoring the past while looking towards a brighter future. #TogetherAsOne https://t.co/wO5IkSeH2p | #OUDNA pic.twitter.com/9RDVqTG4jX
— Oklahoma Football (@OU_Football) October 12, 2022
I love them. I love the anthractie color. I love the helmet. I love the red numbers. Most of all, I love the story behind the uniforms.
This is how you make an alternate uniform with a modern look while honoring the past.
Good for Caleb Kelly. He didn’t get the ending he deserved as a player and to see him introuduce these uniforms in this video was very cool to see.
๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐๐๐ โ๐จ๐ป๐ถ๐๐โ ๐๐ป๐ถ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ
A player-led movement developed over generations of student-athletes. A symbol of unity, togetherness and a legacy greater than football. #TogetherAsOne https://t.co/wO5IkSeH2p | #OUDNA pic.twitter.com/AgiIHyzGzW
— Oklahoma Football (@OU_Football) October 12, 2022
The reactions to these uniform on social media, from what I’ve seen, have been largely positive. That being said, I have also seen some negative feedback. The most common negative things that I’ve seen have been that these uniforms “dishonor tradition” and “you don’t see Alabama doing this.”
The Sooners have changed helmet designs several times during their long and storied history. They used to put numbers on the back of the helmets. A change in color doesn’t damage the history or tradition of this program.
This isn’t Alabama. What they do shouldn’t affect how the Sooners operate.
This is something that the players have been wanting for years. It’s a clean uniform that will look spectacular under the stadium lights, whenever that may be.
As for the โrough riderโ uniforms. I haven’t seen anything that says they are out of the rotation or not. They are still being worn by recruits on visits, so perhaps we haven’t seen the last of them.
I love when teams take risks with new uniforms. The fact that several former Sooners were involved with the creation of these jerseys makes it even better. I can’t wait to see these in action against Kansas on Saturday.
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