Florida to wear special military appreciation uniforms against Arkansas

Florida has announced that it will wear all black uniforms to honor armed forces, veterans and local responders on Nov. 4 against Arkansas.

The Gators will sport a black helmet, black jersey and black pants for the matchup against the Razorbacks in early November.

You can view the uniforms for the “Saluting Those Who Serve” game here:

11.04.23

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— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) August 15, 2023

This marks the first time in school history that Florida is wearing alternate black uniforms.

Florida has also announced that Gators players will wear terms on the back of their jerseys “that are synonymous with the principles embodied by those who serve.”

The five terms were selected by a representative of each branch of the military, as well as first responders. They are — Commitment, Courage, Excellence, Honor and Integrity.

“I know Gator Nation is excited about the team wearing black uniforms, but I don’t want us to lose sight of the intent relative to creating awareness and showing gratitude and appreciation for all branches of our military and first responders,” Florida coach Billy Napier said in a statement. “We’re doing something that’s going to be a lot of fun, but ultimately, we’re hopeful that we can recognize and show appreciation for a lot of selfless people that have chosen a profession of service and put their lives at risk each day.”

Florida also announced that it will honor those who serve throughout the week leading up to the matchup with the Razorbacks. A member of each United States military branch will address the team at the end of every practice that week.

“I think there’s a lot we can learn from these special people. Last year we were able to invite members of the military to talk to the team and it was pretty awesome to hear from them. I know it impacted our players and staff in a positive way,” Napier said.

“It’s really important to me in terms of creating a level of respect and gratitude for some of these things that we take for granted at times.”

Napier has made it clear since taking over at Florida that honoring those who serve and wearing black uniforms is important to him.

He explained why he’s keen on the Florida black uniforms shortly after taking over the program.

“We’re going to use it as a deliberate opportunity to educate the players and really make a big deal about our branches of military, first responders even,” Napier said. “We’re going to take these black jerseys every year and we’re going to auction some of them off. We’re going to take the money and we’re going to give it to families of people in the military that were wounded or maybe had some type of setback.”

The Northwest Florida Gator Club, where Napier revealed the plan to, exploded with applause. Clearly the idea for the Florida black uniforms is a big hit in the Gator Nation.

“So, it’s a win-win for everybody,” Napier continued. “We get to black out the Swamp. We get military appreciation. We get to create some awareness and education so we can be grateful for these freedoms that sometimes I think we take for granted.”