The Loop
Army’s Army-Navy game alternates are here and definitely worth saluting
Forget Ohio State during Michigan week. Forget Oregon every week. Forget whatever the hell Florida is doing. Each and every college football season—even crazy ones like this—the most-anticipated alternate uniform reveals belong to just two schools:
Army and Navy.
In recent years, Army and Navy, with a little help from Nike, have turned one of college football’s most storied rivalries into its biggest fashion statement, rolling out sartorial tributes to iconic infantries and divisions throughout American military history. This season, Army leads the charge, unveiling quite possibly the best college football alternate of 2020 on Sunday night.
A tribute to the Army’s Oahu-based 25th Infantry (better known as “Tropic Lightning”), which survived Pearl Harbor and went on to play pivotal roles in both the WWII and the Korean Conflict, the olive ensemble tips the visor to the Wolfhound regiment with lupine shoulder badges; the Korean War-era flag, which presided over the desegregation of the Army during the conflict; and of course the so-called “electric strawberry.” The 25th Infantry’s insignia (actually a lightning bolt on a taro leaf in the colors of the Hawaiian monarchy) adds a much needed pop of color to uniform, serving as the helmet decal, while also adorning the gloves and cleats.
Army will don the “Tropic Lightning” alternate for the Army-Navy game on Saturday 12/12 at 3:00 p.m. In the meantime, we eagerly await Navy’s Under Armour rebuttals, reportedly coming Tuesday afternoon. ATTENTION!