Army, Navy unveil special uniforms, helmets for annual college football clash next month
The long-anticipated release of the uniforms for the Army-Navy game has arrived.
Army will wear tan “road” uniforms for the Dec. 9 clash in Foxborough, Mass. The uniform – designed by Nike – will recognize the U.S. Army’s 3rd Infantry Division and its Dogface Soldiers for the 20th anniversary year of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Army uniform highlights:
The use of tan denotes the desert in which the division operated, as well as the camouflage patterns and vehicle paint schemes. The black numbers and stencil of “Army” is on the back of the uniforms. On the back of the collar is the Iraq Campaign streamer in green, black and red, plus a bronze Campaign Star. The 3rd ID patch is on the left shoulder.
WATCH: 2023 Army-Navy Game Uniform unveiling: 3rd Infantry Division
The mascot of the 3rd ID, “Rocky the Bulldog,’’ is displayed on both sides of the tan-colored helmet. The concept of the logo was created by Walt Disney in 1965, and harkens to the division’s song, “Dogface Soldier’’ dating back to 1942.
The words “Dogface Soldier” appears above the helmet visor. On the rear, an insignia representing the division’s three brigades will be displayed: First Brigade – Raider; Second Brigade – Spartan; and, Third Brigade – Sledgehammer. On the other side, the unit’s crest, entitled “Nous Resterons La” (which translates to “We Shall Remain Here’’ will be displayed. Also displayed is the nickname “Rock of the Marne.’’ The letters R-O-T-M are on the side of the pants, plus the downward-arrows representing the markings of the armored units.
The 3rd Infantry Division was activated in November 1917 and first served in World War I.
Navy uniform highlights:
Navy, the “home” team next month, released its uniform kit on Monday. The Midshipmen will honor the Silent Service, the U.S. Submarine Force.
The jersey color is Eclipse Navy, the darkest shade of blue used by maker Under Armour.
The team name, in all capital letters, is NAVY with a large, white numeral underneath the wordmark, designed to mimic classification numbers of a submarine hull. The back neck features the “Silent Service” slogan and features the silhouette of a U.S. sub on top of a sonar screen that is dotted with stars to indicate targets.
The sleeve patch features the Naval Academy athletics logo locked-up with the Submarine Warfare insignia or “dolphin/fish.” There is also a patch honoring the USS Massachusetts, an obvious nod to the game being held in the Commonwealth for the first time.
The pants are the same color with the U.S. Marine Corps globe insignia and uniform numbers stacked vertically.
The helmet has a hand-painted Virginia Class Submarine on the right side and Navy’s customary Navy anchor on the right side. The front decal on the helmet says “Navy” and the back decal “Silent Service.’’
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More: College football TV, radio, web schedules for 2023
The Army-Navy Game will be televised by CBS Sports. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m.
X / Twitter: @KenMcMillanTHR
This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Army Navy unveil uniforms helmets for December clash
