Army vs. Navy uniforms, explained: The stories behind unique designs for 2023 football rivalry game

The annual Army-Navy game is at all times a enjoyable one. The unique uniforms designed simply for the rivalry definitely assist it achieve some consideration.

Each yr, the groups put on uniforms designed particularly to honor their service’s historical past. 

At Gillette Stadium in 2023, the Black Knights will debut the “Dogface Soldiers” package, created as a tribute to troopers of the third Infantry Division. This yr marks the twentieth anniversary of the Marne Division’s starting of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The Midshipmen pays tribute to the U.S. Submarine Force. The uniforms had been designed to particularly embody the group’s nickname, the “Silent Service.”

With the rivalry game being held in Boston for the primary time, it is solely proper the army academies went all out for this yr’s uniforms.

MORE: Why 2023 Army vs. Navy game is being played at Gillette Stadium

The Sporting News has all the pieces you’ll want to know in regards to the significance and historical past of every staff’s look.

Army football ‘Dogface Soldiers’ uniform 2023

Army labored with Nike to create the “Dogface Soldier” uniforms, named for the official track of the third Infantry Division.

The design tells the story of troopers of the opening part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The morning of March 21, 2003, the third ID started its invasion of Iraq. The 1st Brigade Combat Team ultimately seized management of the Baghdad Airport, which gave the Americans a bonus whereas battling the Iraqi regime. Thunder Run, a set of two operations accomplished by the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, helped seize key infrastructure inside Baghdad and break down the Iraqi regime. 

The Army uniform is tan to characterize the deserts in Iraq. “Rock of the Marne” is written throughout the again of the helmet, in addition to down the legs, to the touch on the third Infantry Division’s nickname earned throughout World War I’s Second Battle of the Marne in 1918. Other symbols and motifs featured all through the uniform are:

• Rocky the Bulldog, the division’s mascot, displayed on each side of the helmet
• Helmet sticker with the quantity and corresponding name sign for one of many division’s three maneuver brigades: 1st Brigade, “Raider”; 2nd Brigade, “Spartan”; third Brigade, “Sledgehammer”
• Helmet sticker of the Distinctive Unit Insignia of the third Infantry Division, a two-legged dragon standing on a rock with phrases “nous resterons la” written beneath
• Iraq Campaign streamer on the again of the collar
• third ID patch on the left shoulder
• On back and front of the jersey, downward dealing with arrows that mimic markings utilized by armored models
• Tank marking on entrance proper of pants to characterize thermal patterns on third ID automobiles
• Font on again of the jersey symbolizes these used on Army automobiles

MORE: Army vs. Navy betting lines, props & predictions

Navy football ‘Silent Service’ uniform 2023

The Navy and Under Armour created uniforms that tribute to the U.S. Submarine Force, who earned the nickname “Silent Service” as a consequence of a submarine’s quiet stealth. 

The entirety of the uniforms used Eclipse Navy, Under Armour’s darkest shade of blue, to “mimic the covert design of a submarine hull.” The designs honor service members, who’re submerged within the sea for months at a time, silently working by means of missions.

Kept easy, the designs mimic that of a submarine. Dark with brilliant white lighting up the utilitarian design contained in the vessel. Only areas that should be brightened, similar to names, numbers, Under Armour logos, the Navy wordmark and the U.S. Marine Corps globe, are in white. It was introduced in November that the USS Massachusetts can be commissioned in Boston, leading to a jersey patch for gamers.

Other accents of the uniform are:

• Gloves and sleeve patch include Naval Academy Athletics anchor locked with Submarine Warfare insignia
• Numbers stacked on the facet of pants to mimic depth of a submarine within the sea
• Back neck of the jersey options the silhouette of a US submarine layered with a sonar display screen dotted with stars to characterize targets
• Helmet is hand-painted with the Virginia Class Submarine on the appropriate, and the left depicts the Navy anchor with the submariner pin built-in with color-changing paint
• Front flex panel reveals a sonar
• Cleat sample displays waves