The Oregon Ducks football will debut new uniforms when they return from their bye week on October 10 to play the UCLA Bruins. The new uniform design, which Nike has been working on in collaboration with the school for the last two years, is called “Origin of Speed.”
The look is inspired by Hayward Field where the Ducks track team competes. The football team previously played there from 1919 to 1966. According to ESPN the uniforms will showcase, “the speed that always has been an edge for Ducks athletes.” Here’s the description from ESPN:
The base color of “Night Forest” is Nike’s darkest green, while “Green Strike,” a debut shade, combines with the volt color to create a look that pops. The design includes new elements with nods to the past.
The uniform is the final installment of Oregon’s three-year Generation O series.
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The pure amount of symbolism and numerology involved in the design will make Taylor Swift fansbeg Nike to relax. Per ESPN:
The leg side panels boast a word mark leaning forward instead of backward. Called the “Oregon Angle of Attack,” it symbolizes a first-place finish and is inspired by former Oregon wide receiver De’Anthony Thomas’ kick return touchdown in the 2013 Fiesta Bowl. When Thomas crossed the goal line to score, he mimicked breaking the finish line in a race.
An Oregon “O” is on the jersey’s shoulder and is inspired by Hayward Field and Autzen Stadium’s architecture. The outline of Autzen is the “O.” The six original Hayward running lanes are featured at the center with Lanes 4 and 5 highlighted in a different color — paying homage to late Oregon football players Spencer Webb and Khyree Jackson, who wore those numbers.
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Say what you want about Oregon and Nike, but they keep things fresh. A Google search for Oregon football uniform history returns a 50 image slideshow on NFL.com. Not because there were NFL players in the pictures, but because people like marveling at all the Oregon uniforms. According to an ESPN article from last season, there had been 50 iterations of Ducks’ football uniforms since 2000. Oregon played 15 games last season and had 15 jersey and helmet combinations.
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Now Nike is apparently inventing new shades of green. The possibilities seem endless and the never ending parade of jersey designs reflects that.
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