UCF is breaking out one of its most classic road combos for the team’s game against East Carolina on Saturday. The Knights will be pairing gold helmets with white jerseys and black pants.
But the added (and fantastic) twist is that the throwback State of UCF decal is being featured on the helmet. And it looks downright awesome.
Other than a heavily modernized version in 2016, this is the first time the classic State of UCF logo will appear on a gold helmet since 1995. This is the third time we’ve seen the retro logo in recent years, after getting it on a white helmet in 2021 and black helmet in 2018.
It’s a super simple and awesome way to make a standard road combo in the middle of the season really stand out.
This combo is also continuing a season-long trend filled with on-brand looks each game. After wearing a gold uniform component in just one game last season, this will already be the fourth time in 2022 that the Knights have worn gold helmets or pants. The new uniform design certainly emphasizes “brand” looks with the elimination of the gray alternates.
I’m typically not a big fan of tri-color combos, but this is one of a handful that actually do tend to look good. Plus, even though this is just the fourth time this combo is being worn in the modern era, GWB has always sort of felt like the standard UCF road combo to most fans. Tossing a throwback logo into the mix just makes everything that much better.
I’m also trying to not continuously harp on the Polaris star design every single week, but this is yet another look that’s tied together even better thanks to those stars on the pants matching with the helmet color and jersey number trim. It’s such a tiny touch that has just made every combo feel a bit more complete this year.
In a weird quirk, this combo (or a version of it) has also more or less been UCF’s go-to when playing in Greenville for years. The Knights most recently wore it for their trip to ECU in 2020 and wore a version of it with anthracite pants in 2018.
All in all, the last time UCF wore something other than a version of this look to Greenville was 2016.
The Knights are a perfect 3-0 in this combo all-time and 2-0 in the throwback decal, so it’s certainly a solid choice as UCF looks to get to 6-1 and jump into the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2020.
Combo Notes
- The Knights have already worn gold helmets this year as many or more times than they did in 2021, 2019, 2018 and 2017
- This is the first time UCF has worn gold helmets on the road since Oct. 31, 2020
- The Knights have worn a gold uniform component (helmet, jersey or pants) in four of seven games this season
- This is the first tricolor combo UCF has worn since October of 2021, when the team wore White/Black/Gold against East Carolina
