Back to the College Football Uniforms
First, the beautiful helmet.
A “G” inside an oval wrapped in red and black with a white facemask.
The red jersey and silver pants combo follows, made famous by numerous All-Americans over the years.
Nike hasn’t swayed too far away from Georgia’s rich tradition, but when it has, the results — for the most part — haven’t gone in the Bulldogs favor.
During the Kickoff Classic 2011 opener against Boise State inside the Georgia Dome, Nike took a chance with the home team’s on-field apparel, a futuristic Pro Combat uniform that was not well-received by UGA’s fanbase. Silver is a staple of tradition in Athens, but was used as an outline color on the all-red look. The Bulldogs’ usual helmet was replaced by a shiny, multi-color lid that featured a large red stripe down the middle. A two-toned red and black facemask didn’t seem to work and ultimately, neither did UGA’s defense against the Broncos and Kellen Moore.
Georgia’s best black-look came in the 2008 Sugar Bowl, a 41-10 pasting of previously-unbeaten Hawaii. Led by Knowshon Moreno and Matt Stafford, the Bulldogs scored early and often in black jerseys outlined in red with white numbers. Silver pants with red stripes were a nice touch to compliment the traditional helmet. That same season however, Georgia debuted the black jerseys against Alabama at Sanford Stadium during what Mark Richt called a black-out and the result was disappointing. The eighth-ranked Crimson Tide opened up a 31-point lead at one point over No. 3 Georgia, causing quite a commotion the next day on whether or not the dark tops should ever be worn again by the Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs shocked everyone the following season on Halloween by coming out in black pants and a black helmet against Florida in Jacksonville. The helmet switcheroo seemed almost sacrilegious after the fact — a loss to the Gators. Uniform changes usually energize players and the crowd, but wholesale changes to Georgia’s get up over the years has backfired. From a marketing standpoint though, Nike isn’t worried about wins and losses.
First introduced by Green Bay Packers equipment manager George “Dad” Braisher in 1961, the Bulldogs adopted the iconic “G” three years later. Since 1964, Georgia’s red helmets have had a white facemask in every game but one — the 1991 Independence Bowl against Arkansas featured a black face mask.
