Georgia will sport new look in Nike Pro Combat uniforms for Chick-fil-A Game
This is the Nike Pro Combat uniform Florida wore against Georgia last season. Imagine it in red,black and silver. (Nike photo)
Georgia will break out new unis when it takes on Boise State in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game in the Georgia Dome on Sept. 3. But this will be no motivational ploy. The Broncos also will be sporting Nike’s new-fangled line of Pro Combat football gear.
It’s a one-time-only promotion that the Bulldogs and Boise State and seven other teams are doing for Nike this year. They’ll wear them only in this one game, just as LSU will be wearing a similar version against Auburn later this season.
But you’re out of luck what the Bulldogs’ Pro-Combat get-ups will look like. UGA is guarding them like a state secret.
“I’ll just say they will be unveiled on Picture Day [on August 20],” Georgia Athletic Director Greg McGarity said Wednesday.
McGarity, who has seen the uniforms and “approved it months ago,” declined a request to describe the new look verbally.
But he did take the opportunity to calm the nerves of UGA purists who might be unsettled by anything other than traditional bright-red helmets with a black Georgia G.
“The Georgia G is preserved in its rightly spot,” McGarity assured. The Georgia G is still as prominent as it has always been and is as it always will be. We’re not messing with the ‘G,’ OK? It’s school colors and all that stuff.”
Georgia’s players got a sneak preview of the uniforms Wednesday night in Athens and apparently loved them. They were under strict orders not to take pictures, but plenty of players tweeted about it.
“Saw the new uniforms. They’re awesome! I Love em!,” tweeted @crob45, known in your roster as junior linebacker Christian Robinson.
“Nike couldn’t have done a better job designing our Pro Combat jerseys. They are legit! #swag,” said quarterback Parker Welch, aka jpwelch2.
Georgia’s has changed its uniforms to varying degrees of on-field success in recent years. “The Blackout” victory against Auburn in 2007 remains one of the Bulldogs’ all-time great performances. But they lost 41-30 trying to recapture the magic against Alabama in 2008 and were annihilated by Florida 41-17 while wearing black helmets and black pants in 2009.
UGA was actually offered the opportunity to don the Pro Combat gear last season but passed.
McGarity said he just felt like this game was the right time for Georgia to do it. Plus, he felt the school owed it to Nike, with whom it has had a long partnership.
“It’s all about our relationship with Nike,” McGarity said. “We’re one of [nine] teams in the country and we’re proud to be one of those teams. This is not a gimmick. It’s for one game and Boise State is doing it, too. This game is so special in so many ways, it just seemed like a good time to do it.”
It’s not hard to guess what the new uniforms might look like. Several schools wore them last season, including the Florida Gators in their game against Georgia in Jacksonville. And there’s plenty of projected versions floating around in cyberspace. Here’s A LINK TO A PIC one blogger claims is what the uniform will look like. And several other teams wore them last season, including Alabama, Miami and Virginia Tech. You can see what those looked like HERE.
For what it’s worth, I’ve heard the helmet described as gray or silver with a wide red stripe down the middle. But, like I said, I haven’t gotten and will not get any official confirmation.
I guess we’ll all find out in a month. In the meantime, what do y’all think about Georgia sporting a new look in a nationally-televised game of monumental importance?
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
196 comments Add your comment
SEC Fan
July 21st, 2011
9:33 am
It ain’t the uniform that wins ball games. Richt better figure that out fast on day one. So far his gimmick uniforms are 50-50 at best. Didn’t work against Bama and didn’t work against FL. I doubt they will help against Boise State.
Bodda Getta
July 21st, 2011
9:37 am
UGA should come to the Auburn game wearing all green.
Green with envy.
npgator
July 21st, 2011
9:42 am
After you lose with those uniforms you guys will want to burn them.
je
July 21st, 2011
9:44 am
calm down eveyone! it’s just a uniform change for one game. its a nike promo thats it. i think it will be cool. stop killing uga for everything.
Tobias Funke
July 21st, 2011
9:45 am
Why are there so many NERDS on here? Get a life you lying, pompous Virgins.
Dirty Dawg
July 21st, 2011
9:45 am
In this case ‘clothes don’t make the man’…just win baby.
Andrew
July 21st, 2011
9:57 am
Haven’t we been through enough with the terrible unis the past few years?
Tobias Funke
July 21st, 2011
10:01 am
Chip
Take the Florida picture down. Blasphemy!
BigTimeTechFan
July 21st, 2011
10:05 am
Last year Bama’s and Ohio St’s Pro Combat uni’s look very traditional. Looked great, TCU were a little more modern looking but also looked great. Va Tech, Miami, and Boise’s were kind of ugly.
BigTimeTechFan
July 21st, 2011
10:07 am
Oh this thread has me talking like Joan Rivers
DC
July 21st, 2011
10:08 am
I like the Unis…if you dont..you are more of an old school kind of person…
Underarmor is still better though. Nike is trying to catch up to the trend though.
BIG Joe
July 21st, 2011
10:10 am
First off, it wasn’t AUBURN that UGA tried to re-capture the magic with in 2008, it was ALABAMA.
Secondly, I believe the helmets should be left RED & the pants SILVER (britches). Changing the jersey colors would be OK, but I would recommend changing on the ’style/design’ , not the colors.
Mad Dog One
July 21st, 2011
10:11 am
For the record I don’t like the nike uniforms. But mabey we should be glad we don’t have to have a chicken sandwitch on the side of our helments to play in this game. But I think coach T’s hard a$$ cond. will have more to do with how we play in this game than the uniforms.
Lindsey
July 21st, 2011
10:11 am
I like it when they change up the uniforms!! GO DAWGS!!! Beat the Bronocs!!!
DC
July 21st, 2011
10:14 am
silver pants are so out dated..so glad Falcons got rid of em!
david
July 21st, 2011
10:20 am
@Whosnext95 that is not a bad looking uniform, compared to the other combat uniforms Nike has made. Miami is going to have another pro combat one too, but it’s a throw back from the 80’s. Which they are going to go back to in 2012.
TRUE Dawgfan
July 21st, 2011
10:21 am
Seriously! What would some of you pathetic people do with your days if you couldn’t complain about something UGA related? I’m ashamed to be a Dawgs fan sometimes because us true fans gets clumped in with all you others who feel entitled to championships when all you do is bash your own team no matter what they do. You all seem to know how to do CMR’s job better than him. I guess that’s why you’re all NCAA head coaches right? Oh wait a minute, you’re not! I don’t get it!? That’s not support. This is a new year people. The past is just that, the PAST! Get over it or find another team to shower with all of your “support”! And Tech fans, you guys are the most pathetic. How do you explain bad mouthing a team that has beat you every year but one in the last decade? And you consider Dawg fans dumb? At least one of our 6 wins this year was against you jackholes!
Jack
July 21st, 2011
10:21 am
Is it true they have a gater with a bulldog in it’s mouth on the helments? If not it should be to shame the dawgs in kicking some Florida butts from here on out!!!
THWGT
July 21st, 2011
10:22 am
I HATE IT!
Jack
July 21st, 2011
10:31 am
Tobias Funke; It’s sad but, until UGA breaks the chains of bondage Florida has on them, that picture rightfully belongs with this blog.
bruce mac
July 21st, 2011
10:33 am
Sounds like another stupid uniform and another embarrasing loss in the offing. When will we learn? Dumb Dumb Dumb!!!!
BrookhavenDawg
July 21st, 2011
10:34 am
I think what most people are forgetting is that this isn’t some marketing stunt thought up by the athletic department but is rather a show of goodwill to a long-standing relationship with Nike. This isn’t a motivational ploy by the coaches either. Bottom line is that this team is focused and will be ready to go come September 3rd. I think great things are in store for us this season with a proven QB and some truly inspiring leaders. I’m all for tradition and for keeping the integrity of the already perfect UGA uniforms but I’m also one to think that if I were in the players’ shoes, I’d be jacked up about the chance to go into one of the biggest games of the year wearing these new uniforms. As much as we all live and die by the UGA football team, it’s all about the players and I, for one, am happy that they will get to represent UGA in these uniforms for this one game.
cattle dawg
July 21st, 2011
10:35 am
My God folks its Nikes idea to do it. As many have said its all about the money, and it makes since to me. Honstly I dont care if the Dawgs wear a turkey terd green uniform as long as they win!
Fort Worth Dawg
July 21st, 2011
10:37 am
I know all Alabama colleges look alike, but we lost 30 – 41 to Alabama in 2008. That was the season where I saw the opener against Oklahoma State and the bowl game against Texas A&M, and drove to both games.
Rusty Shackleford
July 21st, 2011
10:41 am
Hopefully they look like those JUCO unis UGA wore in Jacksonville a few years back.
PreyDawg
July 21st, 2011
10:42 am
@JJ we all understand that winning is more important okay. This was an article about Unis so we are discussing unis. Dont freek out. We all want to win badly.
Now for the grumpy old man…here it comes. I think that the only teams that should get to do this are the Military academies. I do agree that they look very cool but I don’t like it. We are selling our school spirit so that Nike can sell more overpriced shirts.
I get sick of all these teams (college and pro) having 15 different uniform combos. They are playing us fans so we will feel like we have to buy the next cool looking color. I dont do it. I have one traditional red jersey. That is all of my money they are getting. I pay enough for gas, food and tickets. I dont need to cave to their marketing gimmicks to give them more of my hard earned money. (This goes for Falcons and Braves as well)
Took my family to two Braves games last week. Two nights hotel, Drove 300 miles to get there. Resturants 9 times for 4 people, tix. And then the kids see these special Braves hats (they both have Two Braves hats each) and they just HAVE to have those. I didn’t buy them this time but it just ticks me off…all this hyper marketing.
Delbert D.
July 21st, 2011
10:43 am
Imagine this: silver pants, incorporating the infamous red, ahem, “bikini shorts”, ala Superman. Black belt with red “G” buckle. I’m having trouble with the jersey…some combo of black and red with silver numbers. Classic Butts era silver helmets with …never mind.
PreyDawg
July 21st, 2011
10:44 am
All that being said, this is inevitable. These are kids playing for the Dawgs. The other teams got to do it. Our kids want to do it. It is understandable. It will look cool. I just dont want to have to buy it. But come Christmas time…I probably will.
NIKE Rules!
July 21st, 2011
10:46 am
nike runs college sports—they throw out a bone and get teams to wear their jerseys and make millions from the marketing!
Silver helmets would be cool
July 21st, 2011
11:00 am
Until Vince Dooley took over in 63, the UGA uniform had a solid silver helmet, no G. The pants were silver with the familiar red jerseys and the away white jersey with the silver pants and helmets. I am unsure of the specific black or white trim accents on britches and or the jersey.
THAT OLD SCHOOL look could be retro fitted and updated and it would look cool. The G could be on the hip of the silver britches and the pad area of the jersey.
A school has to do this when the entire conference is involved, I think. It has to be approved too by the conference,etc.
This Boise game thing is for big $$$, I suspect. It IS all about the money.
UGA man,
class of 71 & 73
Big Ten Champs Nebraska....Dawg
July 21st, 2011
11:03 am
Nike, the same corporation that utilizes cheap child labor that also re-signed Vick to an endorsement contract. I can see the connection here. Sleazy corporation cozies up to the less than desirable’s to make millions. That’s it UGA fans….Keep buying merchandise that only cost $3 to make, yet sells for hundreds, just so they can pass the money along to losers like Vick, Tiger and the UGA program.
Mean Machine
July 21st, 2011
11:08 am
Once again, a sad commentary on the current state of college football. It’s all about the money. Advertising and marketing rule the day, while tradition has been tossed to the curb, because, in the words of McGarity, UGA “owed it to Nike”. Pure garbage! I had hoped UGA would have refused to wear those atrocious-looking uniforms. Damn!
Delbert D.
July 21st, 2011
11:09 am
It would be good if the uniforms are donated to a high school team afterwards.
Lyle Alzado
July 21st, 2011
11:10 am
This should have been McGarrity’s response to Nike:
“Sure we’ll wear the new Pro Combat Uniforms under these conditions: 1. We play in Silver Britches period.
2. We play in Red Helmets with a White Oval and a Black G in that Oval.
3. We play in Red or White Shirts.
Aso long as the procombat unis look like this we are on board.”
Do you ever see Alabama or Penn State changing their uniforms. NO. I love our uniforms. They should never change them. Furthermore…if I were AD when Richt trotted the team out in black helmets–I would have fired him on the spot…contract or no contract with NIKE. And if NIKE isn’t happy with getting the TV exposure in our normal uniforms, there are a bunch of other companies that would love to be our uniform provider. We dictate terms to them not vice versa.
ATL Sports Fan
July 21st, 2011
11:13 am
Mean Machine, yes UGA does owe it to Nike. Are you aware how much money Nike pumps into UGA? Obviously not with your dumb comment. Nike gives on annual 3 to 5 MILLION DOLLARS to the UGA Athletic Association. On top of that they provide athletic equipment and appreal for all sports.
Lyle Alzado
July 21st, 2011
11:13 am
Plus if this game is about bulding our brand or reaching a wider audience–How stupid is it to wear unrecognizable uniforms!?
Lyle is not happy. Lyle is not buying a Jersey this year now.
j
July 21st, 2011
11:15 am
boise state will crush you puppies. samuel at 240 lbs is your number one TB?
hahahahaha
.
DawginLex
July 21st, 2011
11:15 am
Watching Richt on ESPN 3 and wondering(I’m sure I’ll get bashed for this)
how fortunate we are to have this guy as the spokesman for our football program and what a genuinely nice man he is
ATL Sports Fan
July 21st, 2011
11:15 am
Lyle Alzado, maybe thats why your on here posting and not running a multi million dollar athletic association. Like I said before Nike pumps in millions upon millions of dollars to UGA. Yea, a lot of other companies would like to have the UGA contract but guess what? I’ll take a page from Cam Newton ” They don’t pay as well as the other”.
RS GATA
July 21st, 2011
11:16 am
Get over it folks, but it is entertaining to hear you all whine….ha.
Next time we are at the dome it’ll be in December dressed in traditionals.
Lyle Alzado
July 21st, 2011
11:17 am
ATL Sports Fan…and for that $5 mil, they get 3.5 hours of air time 12 or 13 games a year with their swoosh prominently displayed. Bowl Game air time alone is probably worth 2/3rds of that $5 mil. Plus that swoosh is on every coach or player every single day in practice, in every interview, probably in every class! NIKE gets what they pay for, nothing more–we don’t owe them anything.
Lyle Alzado
July 21st, 2011
11:18 am
I should say ‘New Year’s day or after Bowl game is worth 2/3rds of that $5 mil.’
ATL Sports Fan
July 21st, 2011
11:19 am
Lyle your not business smart are you? All that appreall they are wearing, is FREE!! If they were to change and go with another company guess what, they will be wearing that as well. Your just like every other mouthy liberial who doesn’t know what honoring a contract is.
ATL Sports Fan
July 21st, 2011
11:21 am
Excuse me, I left off a figure when I posted 3 to 5 million a year. Its actually closer to 23 to 25 million a year Nike gives UGA for wearing their gear plus all the free equipment and appreall.
zulucanibal
July 21st, 2011
11:22 am
Owe it to nike? what the heck is that??? lets see nike do this to Penn State. I hate this so much…just leave the uniforms alone.
F*cking A
July 21st, 2011
11:37 am
It’s like when you were a kid and got a new pair of shoes that you thought they made you run faster… Maybe these uniforms will make UGA feel like they are running faster…
BAMA dude
July 21st, 2011
11:40 am
Just a uniform, doesn’t matter much. As far as the game, you just don’t know what Boise brings to the table. Last time these schools played you had a UGA team that would go on to win the SEC vs. a Boise team that would go on to lose to Fresno, Oregon St. and Boston College. Perhaps the tables are turned this time (based on preseason rankings it seems that the pundits think so) but it’s just so hard to tell about Boise. One thing’s for sure though, Kellen Moore could play anywhere.
THWGT
July 21st, 2011
11:45 am
i don’t care, i hate all things NIKE! especially their PRO-COMBATS.
THWGT
July 21st, 2011
11:46 am
We should drop NIKE, the swoosh is _ _ _ !
Georgia Nike Pro Combat Uniforms To Be Unveiled August 20 | News Georgia
July 21st, 2011
11:46 am
[...] Pro Combat uniforms, and multiple players clearly got the message loud and clear. AD Greg McGarity says the one-time redesign will be made public on August 20, while also downplaying concerns that UGA’s G logo will be altered or [...]