West Virginia will usher in the Neal Brown era with brand new Nike uniforms, which will be unveiled during the annual Blue-Gold Game on April 13.
West Virginia has been wearing its current uniforms since 2013. And while there were several tributes to the state’s rich coal-mining history, including a unique number font inspired by a miner’s pickaxe, the state motto (Montani Semper Liberi, Latin for Mountaineers are Always Free) and a canary — which miners once carried canaries into tunnels to detect dangerous gasses — the recent coaching staff certainly wanted to put their own touches on the Mountaineers look.
Talk of a potential rebrand for West Virginia started in late January with the circulation of well-designed but fan-made concepts. The mockups beared a strong resemblance to the simpler uniforms worn by the Mountaineers under legendary coach Don Nehlen.
The overwhelming response to those concepts showed West Virginia’s fans are ready for their team to return to its classic look. We’ll have to wait two weeks to see if that’s what happens, or if Nike has cooked up another modern look for the Mountaineers instead. At the very minimum, we’re hoping black is no longer part of the color scheme.
West Virginia’s spring game is scheduled for April 13 at 1 p.m. at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium.