South Carolina women's basketball teases new uniforms

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South Carolina teased new uniforms this week, marking the first major change to the Gamecocks’ uniforms in almost a decade.

Under Armour first took over as the Gamecocks’ outfitter for the 2009-10 season. There have been several tweaks to the uniforms but only one significant overhaul. 

The first uniform set had a traditional placement with “South” and “Carolina” separated by the numbers. “Gamecocks” was spelled out vertically on the shorts, enclosed in stripes. The uniforms were white, garnet, or black.

In 2013, prior to its first SEC championship, South Carolina switched to the design that the Gamecocks have used with minor tweaks until now. On the front, “South Carolina” was written in one line atop the numbers. The back had two stripes in team colors across the shoulder, and the collar had a “neck roll” stripe. 

During the 2014-15 season, South Carolina first started wearing pink uniforms for breast cancer awareness. They had a different design that included garnet- and black-striped side panels with pink ribbons. South Carolina continued to wear these uniforms through the 2019 season, but has not worn pink uniforms since.

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One of the unique features during this period was that each of the standard uniforms had what could best be described as black and gray sublimated numbers, even on the black jersey. South Carolina was eventually assessed a technical foul for not having contrasting numbers, necessitating new uniforms for the 2016-17 season.

The changes were minor. Numbers were now garnet on the home whites and white on the road garnet or black uniforms. The side stripes were replaced by sublimated tailfeathers and a block C on the shorts, and the collars were round with team-colored piping. 

In 2019 the uniforms got another refresh. Stripes returned to the side panels, and they moved from the inside of the neck to the outside. The white, garnet, and black uniforms all used the same design. 

For the 2021-22 season, South Carolina got a new garnet alternate uniform. These uniforms were polarizing and fans either loved or hated them. They had white pinstripes and “Gamecocks” written in a baseball script. The shorts also had white pinstripes, along with large white panels that made it look like pliers’ compression shorts were showing.

On the back, Under Armour has always placed the names under the numbers and used a racerback design, although the exact cut has changed over the years. As players’ preferences have changed, the uniforms have gone from baggy, to loose, to fairly tight-fitting. The shorts have also gotten shorter.

There have been a few one-off exceptions over the years, usually early in the season when the uniforms are still being prepared. And Under Armour never found any consistency in how it styled Mikiah Herbert Harrigan’s name, sometimes going double-decker, sometimes single-lined, and sometimes adding an incorrect hyphen.

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South Carolina did not formally announce the new uniforms for this season, but the uniforms in pictures from the team’s media day on social media are what the team will wear next season. Only the garnet version was revealed, but South Carolina will also have white and black uniforms using the same design. The garnet uniforms have white trim and black side panels with a vertical “WBB” inside the panel on the shorts. The most interesting feature is the double-stacked “South Carolina” above the front numbers, a design choice I’m not sure I’ve ever seen before.

Media Day Part 1 ✅ pic.twitter.com/2mqz9gKtu8

— South Carolina Women's Basketball (@GamecockWBB) September 11, 2023

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