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          College football red carpet: A look at the best uniforms for Week 3

          • William E. Ricks
          Sep 17, 2021, 09:00 AM ET

          As we enter Week 3 of the college football season, some squads will be looking to turn heads with their play and fashion sense. Teams have revealed what they will be wearing for their respective games this weekend, and they are making sure their players will be taking the field in style.

          One of college football's greatest traditions returns this week, and that is Penn State's White Out game at 7 p.m. on ABC.

          ESPN college football analyst David Pollock calls it one of the best atmospheres in the sport, and head coach James Franklin and his team will be dressed appropriately for the occasion.

          Although fans will be wearing white in the stands, No. 10 Nittany Lions will wear their traditional blue tops with white pants on the field. It might not be the flashiest uniform combo, but it contrasts with what the audience will be wearing and still looks pretty smooth.

          The University of South Florida decided to go with a black and green uniform colorway for their contest against Florida A&M. The lime green accents on the jersey number and logos against the solid black give a glow-in-the-dark feel to these uniforms. The chrome green helmet adds the swag factor, which has the Bulls looking sleek and ready for kickoff.

          North Texas of Conference USA is paying homage to its past and a Hall of Fame player (now Hall of Famer) with their uniforms this week. They will be repping the vintage "Joe Greene" era jerseys for their matchup against UAB. The pastel green jersey is complemented with a white helmet with old-school lettering representing the school's initials. Greene played for the Mean Green from 1966-68, earning consensus All-American honors his final season.

          The University of Houston is also honoring its history in Week 3. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the school's athletic program, so their football team has a special outfit to celebrate. They will don white jerseys and pants with mesh, with Houston red as the accent colors for the jersey number and shoulder stripes. The helmet is also white and features a vintage school logo, similar to the one the school used from 1962-1994.

          The Louisville Cardinals are seeing red, and it's probably from looking at their outfits. They will be wearing beautiful red jerseys, with white lettering popping against that color perfectly. The rest of the uniform is black, with the helmet being a smooth matte finish. This Louisville-UCF game might be the most fashionable matchup of the week.

          Even though it's still summer, the UCF Knights are turning down the temperature with their stone-cold uniforms. The team is pulling out their all-white threads for the first time since 2019. Fans should also notice that there is no stripe on the helmet, which has been a staple for this squad's wardrobe. This will be the fourth time the Knights will wear a helmet without stripes since 2007.

          White seems to be the theme for this week's uniforms, and the University of Cincinnati continues the trend. The No.8 Bearcats are also sporting all-white attire with a black helmet to contrast. The team's Twitter account said it is "keeping it classic on the road," and they are doing just that with a reliable and clean look.

          Indiana will be sporting retro uniforms honoring their teams from the 1980s and '90s. The big block letter "I" returns to the helmet as the decal overtop a smooth red finish. The jerseys are also red and read "Hoosiers" across the chest, a difference from their current uniforms that have "Indiana" as the text. White numbers with red dots accent the top of the fit, while red pants with a white stripe complete the bottom of the ensemble. Hopefully, looking like the Hoosiers team of yesteryear will help them get the win this weekend.

          Stony Brook continues the all-white theme for this week's red carpet. The clean look is accented by the school's red and navy colors. What might be better than their uniforms is how they announced what they were wearing. Since they are playing the No. 4 Oregon Ducks, the Seawolves' media team used the 8-bit video game theme referencing a console classic: Duck Hunt.

          Out of all the fits that you'll see during college football weekend, Northwestern State University might have the best of the bunch. They are debuting a new uniform set, going with an all-purple design. The deep purple used for the new threads is sleek and adds some spunk to the Demons' wardrobe. White is used as a filler color for the wording and numbers on the jersey, and a subtle orange outline brings the uniform together. An A+ outfit for the NSU Demons.

          Georgia Tech is repping "The A" with their icy all-white look for Week 3. The 404 on the back collar of the jersey gives a nod to Atlanta -- the city's area code. The classic gold color serves as an accent for the jersey number and facemask, and is also used for the stripe on the helmet. Additionally, "ATL" is imprinted on the front of the helmet.

          This week's look at college football fashion ends with Coast Guard Academy, who are debuting new uniforms with historical significance. Their new uniforms honor Station 17, which was a part of the United States Life Saving Service. The station is located on Pea Island, North Carolina, and was the first to have an all-Black crew. The uniform honors this milestone with a Station 17 decal on the back of the helmet, while the jersey has U.S.L.S.S on the front. The academy has two versions of this uniform, with navy blue and white swapping as the primary and accent colors in each.