Josh Heupel on Tennessee dark mode uniforms, alternate uniforms moving forward

Tennessee takes on South Carolina every year, but this season’s game will have a slightly different look in Knoxville. 

Tennessee’s “dark mode” uniforms for Saturday’s contest feature black and orange jerseys and pants. The Volunteers will don white helmets with the orange block “T” outlined in black as well. 

First-year head coach Josh Heupel, who spent the previous three years as the head coach at UCF, arrived in Knoxville in January and said uniforms were discussed in his initial meetings at Tennessee, albeit after some of the more pressing issues that come with taking over an SEC football program. 

“The first meeting that I had with the football team the day that I got introduced, I told you we spent an hour and 15 [minutes], hour and 30 minutes in there talking about a lot of things that matter,” Heupel said Thursday. “Some things that they felt like were important. Jerseys were at the end of that conversation.”

While Heupel made clear that there were more pressing matters for a program that had a losing record three of the last four years than the uniforms the Volunteers wear each week, he believes having a say in the jerseys enhances player experience and even has benefits beyond those related to players currently on the roster. 

“To me, the player experience is at the forefront of everything that we do,” Heupel added. “There’s non-negotiables for myself and our coaching staff in how you gotta attack everyday, whether that’s in the weight room, whether that’s class, whether that’s on the football field.

“But then there’s some things that you want to give them ownership in and make the player experience as good as it can be, on and off the field. Uniforms is something that, it’s important to them, and in some ways it’s important in the recruiting world as well.”

Especially over the last decade, alternate uniforms have become more popular amongst college football teams. A trend originally popularized by Oregon in conjunction with famous alum and Nike CEO Phil Knight, flashy, shiny, non-traditional uniforms are now worn every week by teams across the country. 

Heupel added that after he had been in Knoxville for around two months and he had gotten everything and everyone situated, the uniforms were something they formally spoke with the administration about. They decided on the black and orange after considering several options, many of which were hindered by supply chain backups due to COVID-19. 

Looking into the future, Volunteers fans can expect additional eye-catching combinations. 

“I do think we’ll have an alternate uniform that will appear periodically throughout the season,” Heupel added after joking it is probably not in the program’s best interest to have him have a huge say in what the Volunteers wear each week.

However, all things considered, Heupel loves the original look. 

“The orange and white, the classic look, there’s nothing better, man.”

Tennessee is a 10.5-point favorite over the 3-2 Gamecocks for the game which kicks off at noon ET on ESPN2.