Idaho To Unveil New Uniforms On Saturday

The Idaho Vandals will step onto Arizona’s gridiron sporting Nike designed uniforms and a helmet design change for Saturday’s season opener against the 'Cats. Gone is the old, tired look of the Adidas uniforms. The traditional silver and gold is always present, but there will be a healthy dose of black, the Vandals “unofficial” uniform color.

The change to Nike uniforms is a perceived improvement for the Vandals (by players and fans), and we agree. Along with the welcome uniform change, from a "fan" standpoint we at GoVandals.Net also look forward to the new design making it easier to differentiate between similar numbers (like a 6 and an 8) from the stands.

Sources at the University of Idaho also claim that the contract from Nike is to equip ALL Vandal varsity athletes, and the coaches also have better commercial terms. The “re-tooling” of the fan’s apparel will continue for several months, as we are told that the UI Bookstores will convert to the new brand, but several months are required to receive the new gear. Even though the Bookstores had less than 60 days to restock, some Nike apparel is available at all Idaho bookstores.

The 2008 football captains modeled the new uniforms for media purposes on Tuesday. The pants are gold with the infamous Nike “swoosh” logo in black. The away jerseys are silver (white) with black numbers surrounded by a small gold trim. Home jerseys are black with gold numbers. For the first time in almost 10 years the players name will appear on the back of the jerseys.

Idaho's new NIKE home and away football uniforms for the 2008 season, worn by Offensive Captain Adam Korby (72), Defensive Captain Shiloh Keo (10), and senior team leader Eddie Williams (18). Not shown are the player names on the back of the jerseys.

Vandal helmets will also show a change on opening day for the first time since the Chris Tormey era (Idaho experimented with an "I" on the helmet last season). The traditional gold paint was upgraded to include a subtle “metallic” tone and the color is very near that of real gold. The real change to the helmets is the graphics. Gone is the script “Vandals” logo, which was replaced with the official school “I-Vandals” logo, surrounded by silver trim. Nike visors will replace the old Oakley brand visors.

The University of Idaho's new football helmet featuring the Idaho "I" emblazoned with the traditional "Vandals" text, on a helmet painted with a new gold color for the 2008 season.

The Vandals will wear new Nike footwear this fall as well. The shoes are generally black, but the inside of each shoe is white.

New footgear for the 2008 season.