Tim Beckman explains "Only Orange" - The Illinois uniforms/helmet thread

[Groundhogday]

Originally Posted by DrewD007

I don't know... the more I look at it, the more I'm seeing a matte navy blue.

Edit: I went into Paint and used the color picker to get different colors off the helmet and it's definitely a navy blue/grayish color...

I brought it into photoshop. Black.

Originally Posted by AHSIllini32

The sticker is just meant as a sort of placeholder until they can actually get the logo printed on the helmets. We would never roll out anything that tacky and unprofessional looking for actual unis.

I agree. I think that is just some sort of of off-the-shelf demo black matt helmet with an Illinois sticker pasted on the side. I think we can rest assured this will not be our helmet.

[ebakola]

Originally Posted by Groundhogday

I don't ever want to see "ILLINOIS" on our helmets again. Personally, I think the best programs generally have a clear visual identity and stick with it. Oregon can get away with the craziness to an extent because they have NIKE working around the clock on their behalf. We would be better off emulating Iowa. Hayden Fry did a nice job creating a visual identity 30 years ago and they have stuck with it.

I'm so with you. I've always hated that about the helmet. Illini or Block I is fine, but the current helmet has to go.

[GilThorpe]

honestly, it looks like a matte navy blue to me. you cant see it well with the light, but it looks like a prototype anyway, with a slightly arched ILLINI on the side. that looks like something quickly put together to give the recruits an idea what the new helmets might look like. I bet we have both orange helmets and matte navy blue next year.

[ebakola]

That helmet is probably part of an alternative all-black uniform... or blue-black uniform.

[tdub35]

if we have black uniforms for a game next year ill turn the game off.... thats a terrible idea

[Groundhogday]

Originally Posted by tdub35

if we have black uniforms for a game next year ill turn the game off.... thats a terrible idea

I won't turn a game off, but agree that it is a bad idea.

[ebakola]

Not my first choice, either. I'm fine with the blue jerseys and orange pants; just the helmet irks me.

[U of I 89-05-10]

Originally Posted by Ander1345

It's a matte black, ala Oklahoma State.

Are you sure? Look at the facemask ....... I'm almost positive that it's navy, and if that's the case, I kind of like it. Honestly, at this point, we just need a NEW LOGO! Whether that's something as simple as ALWAYS adopting that circle I logo Nike uses or coming up with a completely new look, it needs to be done soon, and I agree that it'd be huge to get it done by this football season to add some excitement!

[Groundhogday]

Originally Posted by U of I 89-05-10

Are you sure? Look at the facemask ....... I'm almost positive that it's navy, and if that's the case, I kind of like it. Honestly, at this point, we just need a NEW LOGO! Whether that's something as simple as ALWAYS adopting that circle I logo Nike uses or coming up with a completely new look, it needs to be done soon, and I agree that it'd be huge to get it done by this football season to add some excitement!

The strap around the kids neck is navy blue. Compare that to the facemask. Black. There sure are a lot of people determined to see the emperor's new clothes.

[Ander1345]

I wasn't really talking about the facemask.

But if we want to get technical.... I think it looks awful. I would hope that Coach Beckman and Mike Thomas wouldn't pay Nike for some atrocious black for the sake of black as a color uniform they wear one time.

The helmet is black. But even it's navy I don't want it. I think it looks like something you buy at Dick's Sporting Goods and stick a sticker(fairly easy to make your own stickers) and used it as a prop to set the atmosphere as a recruiting dinner.

We have tradition here at Illinois, and it doesn't involve wearing a black alternate helmet. I love the blue and orange, and while I wouldn't turn off a game, I would lose a lot of faith in the program's image. I don't care if it works from a recruit selling point. If your recruit is committing because you wear shiny uniforms, is he really that devoted to your scheme, your family, and your team?

I want a redesign of our current uniforms using our current colors that shows pride... ILLINI pride. If we want to get one and done uniforms made after a successful rebranding or whatever you want to call it... I'd be OK with it then and only then.

Helmet is also most definitely black.

[DrewD007]

Originally Posted by Groundhogday

The strap around the kids neck is navy blue. Compare that to the facemask. Black. There sure are a lot of people determined to see the emperor's new clothes.

So that #20 jersey in the background is black too then? The lanyard is more of a royal blue and doesn't match the blue all our athletic programs wear.

[AHSIllini32]

Originally Posted by Groundhogday

The strap around the kids neck is navy blue. Compare that to the facemask. Black. There sure are a lot of people determined to see the emperor's new clothes.

Originally Posted by DrewD007

So that #20 jersey in the background is black too then? The lanyard is more of a royal blue and doesn't match the blue all our athletic programs wear.

Agreed Drew. GHD, there's no way you could make a matte helmet that color. A navy helmet with a matte finish would look pretty damn close to that color. I don't think it's out of the question to say it's Navy but you seem determined to tell us we are all wrong by comparing the helmet to other things that 1) aren't football helmets 2) aren't a true navy blue and 3) don't have a matte finish.

[Ander1345]

Originally Posted by DrewD007

So that #20 jersey in the background is black too then? The lanyard is more of a royal blue and doesn't match the blue all our athletic programs wear.

Would you be able to stomach a uniform that included that blue jersey and this black/blue helmet at the same time?

[AHSIllini32]

Originally Posted by Ander1345

Would you be able to stomach a uniform that included that blue jersey and this black/blue helmet at the same time?

Depends on how they look together...at this point there's no way to say how the uniform would look until we see them together so trying to make opinions on how they would look together is not really useful.

[Ander1345]

I'm thinking it's just a prop or a demo helmet. I don't think it's a legit helmet. I wouldn't want it to be one either.

We could do better.

[Illini125]

So far we have 1 picture of the cousin of a recruit wearing a helmet that we have no way of knowing if it is a representation of what our players will be wearing in the future. I think it's too early to be complaining about "ruining our image" etc.

Besides, that #20 jersey looks exactly the same as the ones we wore this year. Shouldn't that matter in this discussion?

[Groundhogday]

Originally Posted by DrewD007

So that #20 jersey in the background is black too then? The lanyard is more of a royal blue and doesn't match the blue all our athletic programs wear.

Originally Posted by AHSIllini32

Agreed Drew. GHD, there's no way you could make a matte helmet that color. A navy helmet with a matte finish would look pretty damn close to that color. I don't think it's out of the question to say it's Navy but you seem determined to tell us we are all wrong by comparing the helmet to other things that 1) aren't football helmets 2) aren't a true navy blue and 3) don't have a matte finish.

The jersey in the background is clearly blue. You can see the blue. It is NOT the same color as the helmet. You guys seem to be claiming that the helmet is blue but so dark you can't actually see the blue. Hint: if you can't actually see the blue, it is BLACK. :laugh:

This is the new fad. Ever since Oregon came out with the all-black uniforms earlier this year, everyone has to have them. Wait, maybe those Oregon helmets are really very, very, very dark green. In fact, so dark that with the matte finish you can't actually tell they are green. {PS- I haven't reached a conclusion that we are going to go all-black next year. At this point it seems more likely that they are just showing off a pro-combat helmet and talking about how we are going to have some special unis next year.}

[AHSIllini32]

Originally Posted by Groundhogday

The jersey in the background is clearly blue. You can see the blue. It is NOT the same color as the helmet. You guys seem to be claiming that the helmet is blue but so dark you can't actually see the blue. Hint: if you can't actually see the blue, it is BLACK. :laugh:

I see that no matter what you are going to think you are right and not allow the POSSIBILITY that it COULD be blue. It's not a very good picture of the helmet and the jersey in the background is a good distance away from the camera.

You can't say it is one thing or it isn't another thing at this point.

[Groundhogday]

Originally Posted by AHSIllini32

I see that no matter what you are going to think you are right and not allow the POSSIBILITY that it COULD be blue. It's not a very good picture of the helmet and the jersey in the background is a good distance away from the camera.

You can't say it is one thing or it isn't another thing at this point.

Of course there is a possibility that there is a tiny hint of blue so small that it isn't discernable to the naked eye. But normally we don't look at something that appears to be black and speculate that it might in fact be blue but the lighting an sun spots and finish and whatever are playing tricks with our eyes.

The lighting is very good, there are plenty of contrasting colors to use for reference, this really isn't a tough case. The kids jacket liner is black. The ID strap is blue. The uniform in the background is dark blue. The chin strap is white.

[AHSIllini32]

Originally Posted by Groundhogday

Of course there is a possibility that there is a tiny hint of blue so small that it isn't discernable to the naked eye. But normally we don't look at something that appears to be black and speculate that it might in fact be blue but the lighting an sun spots and finish and whatever are playing tricks with our eyes.

The lighting is very good, there are plenty of contrasting colors to use for reference, this really isn't a tough case. The kids jacket liner is black. The ID strap is blue. The uniform in the background is dark blue. The chin strap is white.

Thanks for the color lesson:rolleyes: My point is that there's enough of a question, as evidenced by the significant questioning going on in this thread, that you can't sit there and proclaim that it is indeed black just because you think there's enough of a contrasting color argument and because you think it is unquestionably black.

There's no reason to mock and try to put yourself above others just because you feel there's no question it's black. It's pretty ridiculous to do that in fact.

[wILL-INI]

I'm going to answer some questions we all have been having.

A. The helmet is absolutely NOT black. It is matte, it is possibly a new helmet, and a different design. But it is not black. It's a navy matte helmet. Navy which is an already dark color, it darkened by matte, taken by with a horrible camera phone, and when light by inside lighting it will darken even more. If it was black it would look more grey. It is hard to tell, I understand that, matte has weird effects on color. But when you see it in the sun, it will be blue... It's not black...



B. This helmet does not mean we are getting Procombats. Procombats teams have not even been announced yet, nor would Nike ever EVER let a helmet leak this early.

[Ander1345]

If we're having this much of a discussion about the color of the helmet, then it's not blue enough.

Do not want.

[Sybok]

I love the matte helmet.

[Paignt It Orange]

I would love to see a new helmet. I like orange, but I think a metallic orange helmet would be nice. The matte navy would be sweet for an alternate uniform.

[Ander1345]

No Illini fans tweeted to him about it?