Northwestern Wildcats Unveil Updated Football Uniforms

The Northwestern football program unveiled updated uniforms this week that not only change the placement of their beloved striping pattern but also pay homage to the past.

In 1928 we put what came to be known as 'Northwestern Stripes' on the sleeves.

This season, we put them back where they belong.

Introducing our 2022 @UAFootball uniforms. #GoCats | @coachfitz51 pic.twitter.com/puBUTrVBfR
— Northwestern Football (@NUFBFamily) June 21, 2022

The Wildcats have worn what we’ve come to know as Northwestern stripes on and off again since 1928. They’ve been prominently featured on the front and back of their jerseys for the last 10 seasons.

Those uniforms – which drew inspiration from the Wildcats’ look in 1909 – were initially paired with an elbow-length base layer that also included the stripes. Players stopped wearing them after a few years, though, creating a plain-sleeved design.

Northwestern’s new uniforms carry over several elements from the previous set, which was introduced in 2012, including the wordmark across the chest, number font and primary logo on the hip. The stripes, however, have been moved to the sleeves.

There are three different jerseys in the set – including a purple home, white road and black alternate – as well as three pairs of stripeless pants and three helmets that can be worn interchangeably. The same goes for the black and white facemasks.

The purple home and white road jerseys notably have single-color contrasting stripes that were inspired by the Wildcats’ uniforms from 1928-56 and 1976-77. They also feature single-color numbers.

The black alternate jersey, on the other hand, has a thick purple stripe surrounded by two white stripes, just like Northwestern wore from 1992-96. It features white numbers outlined in purple.

The new uniforms will make their debut when Northwestern travels to Dublin, Ireland, to take on Nebraska in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic on Aug. 27. Kickoff is set for 12:30 p.m. ET on FOX.