The Oregon football program will honor Nike co-founders Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman by wearing new “Shoe Duck” alternate uniforms during Saturday’s game against in-state rival Oregon State, which kicks off at 3 p.m. ET on Big Ten Network.
The uniforms are highlighted by matte white marble helmets that feature asymmetrical wings on the sides, mimicking the tail of Knight’s private jet with Oregon’s current wing design on the left side and the wings of Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, on the right.
The wings shift from gunmetal gray on the front, matching the facemask, to gold in the back. The Ducks’ “O” logo is also rendered in gold on the back of the helmet above a gold bar that represents Bowerman’s service in the Army during World War II.
The rest of the uniform is anthracite and resembles Oregon’s “Fly Era” alternate uniforms, with a winged-design on the shoulder, though it doesn’t feature the diamond plate or carbon fiber patterns and swaps apple green accents for gold.
The numbers also feature the same white marble design as the helmets, while the “O” at the base of the collar, Big Ten logo and vintage Nike Swoosh are all gold. The “O” on the hip of the pants includes the marble design with a gold outline, as well.
The uniform – which is named after Knight’s book about Nike’s founding, “Shoe Dog” – is complete with unique patches on the sleeves, one of which depicts a handshake between Knight and Bowerman, who was Knight’s track and field coach at Oregon, as they created Blue Ribbon Sports, the original name for Nike.
The patch on the left shoulder, meanwhile, features the University of Oregon’s motto, Mens Agitat Molem – “minds move mountains” – with Mount Hood outside of Portland on the top and Mount Fuji in Japan on the bottom. The gold-outlined patch also includes duck wings and tiger stripes behind the mountains.
“It really does represent so much of the Nike and Oregon DNA intertwined together,” said Van Horne Brands senior designer Quinn Van Horne, the son of former Nike vice president Todd Van Horne, whose company designed the “Shoe Duck” uniforms.
“For me, it’s very personal,” Todd Van Horne added. “Working for Nike for 30 years, it’s that representation of what Phil and Bill did for me, for my family. My life would be totally different without meeting him.”
Photos courtesy of @GoDucks, @oregonfootball on X/Twitter.
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