Last Thursday, Baylor football unveiled a new throwback uniform featuring a gold-chrome helmet with a retro logo, a green jersey with white bear paws on the shoulders and B-A-Y-L-O-R displayed across the chest.
The classic look was an instant hit in the locker room, with senior safety Micah Gifford emphatically saying, “They’re fire. It's actually crazy that they kept it all a secret from us. Only [DJ Lagway, Jacob Redding and Louis Brown IV] knew. When we got out of practice yesterday and got back to our phones, we saw it, and the whole locker room was going crazy.”
Head coach Dave Aranda weighed in, saying, "They're awesome. When I saw those, it was so cool. I was like, we need to wear this more than once."
Over social media, the Bears’ retro look received widespread praise from Baylor fans, conference rivals and the college football world as a whole. The throwback uniforms will be worn for the Big 12 opener against Colorado on Saturday, Sept. 26, at McLane Stadium.
“We are definitely in a season where we are focusing on the fan,” Baylor deputy athletics director Jovan Overshown said in an interview with SicEm365. “It's everything we've talked about. This is the philosophy and how we're moving forward with Doug [McNamee] as our leader. It's just really, really special to see something like this have such a strong positive reaction, especially ahead of the season and everything that's to come.”
The uniforms pay homage to the era of Hall of Fame coach Grant Teaff, who led Baylor from 1972-92. B-A-Y-L-O-R stretches across the chest in white lettering, bear paws return for the first time since 1992, and 10 stars adorn the front of the gold-chrome helmet, a nod to Teaff, who led the Bears to their first 10-win season and 10 victories over Texas.
“The players loved it,” Overshown said. “It's interesting because that is a design that is from a very different era from where we are now, and you're bringing it into the modern day. There were moments where I was a little bit nervous about how our current-day players would respond to that. Do they feel like the paws are cool on the shoulder? They loved it. I think you see it even through the images. Just the way they embody the energy of that time and the success of wearing that uniform — pretty cool.”
Across the last decade, minimalism has dominated modern uniform design, often stripping away the distinctive details that defined previous eras. This uniform combination, however, blends the program’s past and present.
“I think this is a great example of doing something that's distinctively us,” Overshown said. “I understand the process of where we've come from and where we got to, but I think this is the time where you really need to be able to add touches that make things distinctively your own.”
What people might not realize is how much work goes into creating a new uniform. In this case, the expedited process began just over six months ago, shortly after Doug McNamee took over as Baylor’s athletic director.
“There was always this hope that we could do the next iteration of what it would be from a tradition standpoint,” Overshown said. “Doug coming in was the signal that we needed that this is the time, and this is a really unique opportunity to modernize what has been such a special period in Baylor football history.”
Although Nike typically places its partner programs on four-year uniform cycles, this particular throwback was created off-cycle, meaning Baylor took the lead in designing it. Overshown credited Joe Gonzales, assistant athletic director of digital media, and Will Glassock, assistant athletic director of equipment services, with helping bring what was once a fun idea to fruition.
“We designed it and pushed it through Nike's builder platform, and it's interesting because you want it to be as close to the original as you can,” Overshown said. “Obviously, a fresh take, but you are, to some degree, working within the confines of your existing shell because it's not a full redesign. We really got creative and pushed the boundaries within the process that we could.”
When asked about her favorite detail, Overshown was quick to say, “I love the B-A-Y-L-O-R across the chest. It's something that our guys really will feel proud to wear when they walk out on that field. That was actually some of the feedback. Our guys really loved it, the ones that were part of the shoot. I also love the stars on the helmet. I think it's so cool that we were able to tie that piece in.”
The throwbacks might not be limited to a single appearance, either, with Overshown confirming that Baylor is not restricted in how many times it can wear the new set.
“There’s no provision for us wearing it just once,” she said. “I think the hope is that, at least for now, when we are wearing it, there's some connectivity and storytelling that go along with it, for this first season. That doesn't necessarily mean it just has to be the Colorado game.”
The throwback uniforms have also been successful in bridging eras, especially for senior linebacker Trey Laurence. His father, Donnie Laurence Jr., lettered at Baylor from 1992-95, while his grandfather, Donnie Laurence, played for the Bears from 1962-65.
“I’m sure y’all saw Trey Laurence’s post, but his dad and his grandad are all Baylor people and have played at Baylor, and Trey was so excited,” fifth-year senior defensive lineman Kyler Jordan said in a press conference last Friday. “He’s a legacy. He loves this place.”
Jordan added, “They’re so cool. I remember watching RG3 play [Texas] Tech in Dallas in uniforms very similar, and it was just like, ‘Man, that's freaking awesome.’ I'm excited to wear them. It's gonna be a lot of fun.”
It’s a similar story for quarterback DJ Lagway, who posed in a uniform reminiscent of those his father, Derek, once wore.
“Seeing DJ in the uniform, knowing he's one of our legacy players, and the connection to his dad,” Overshown said when asked what the coolest moment of the reveal was. “I think it's just the generational connection and seeing him posed in a photo designed to look weathered. It's just neat. That's what we want to do right now: connect generation to generation. Seeing him in that jersey was just something really special.”
