The UCF Knights will once again celebrate their connection to the Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station by wearing space-themed alternate football uniforms during their Nov. 7 game against Houston (8 p.m. ET on FS1).
Entitled “Mission IX,” the all-black uniforms feature a visualization of hyperspace travel within the numbers and sleeve caps, while the TV numbers on the shoulders feature a reflective material that has been carried over from previous space game uniforms.
The logo at the base of the collar places the Citronaut, the school’s unofficial mascot, inside the schematic drawing for HADES, a large-scale hypersonic wind tunnel used for testing flight at ten times the speed of sound (Mach 10 or 7,600 miles per hour).
UCF’s stacked logo is displayed on the side of the helmets and is rendered in a carbon fiber pattern due to the material’s performance in high-temperature environments, while the center stripe – which changes from Canaveral blue to pink – mimics mach/shock diamonds that occur in high-speed combustion.
The front helmet bumper features a “Space U” wordmark, matching the left leg of the pants, while the back bumper includes the phrase “Citius Est Futurum,” Latin for “The Future is Faster.” The uniform is complete with a “Mission IX” patch on the right hip, with its delta shape reflecting the aerodynamic form of hypersonic vehicles.
The Knights are 8-0 in their annual Space Game, including wins over East Carolina in 2017, Temple in 2018, Houston in 2019, Tulane in 2020, Memphis in 2021, Temple in 2022, Oklahoma State in 2023 and Arizona in 2024. Their 2022 design was also black with Canaveral blue numbers and had a “Space U” wordmark across the chest.
Last October, UCF partnered with the United States Air Force to launch the Center of Excellence in Hypersonic and Space Propulsion, also known as the HyperSpace Center, with the goal of advancing the technology that fuels hypersonic travel.
“What we create here and across UCF will define the aerospace and defense industries for generations,” university president Alexander N. Cartwright said at the time. “UCF has always been an institution for people who have dared to invent a better future.”
Photos courtesy of @UCF_Football on X/Twitter.
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