Georgia did it and lost to Alabama. Nebraska put the thought in the air and lost to Virginia Tech. Now another team is taking the speculative step and wearing black uniforms in a football game. There might be a curse behind the “Blackout” game this season, so is this something an undefeated team should mess around with?
“I think it’s going to be really exciting,” said wide receiver Freddie Brown. “But at the same time, we’re not going to be distracted by that. It’s more important that we focus.”
By now, everyone should know that Utah’s showdown with TCU will be a “Blackout” game. Although the Utes were told to keep this under wraps and have done their best for eight months, the secret’s out. It will be interesting to see the usual Crimson Red covered in darkness, but at the same time, it might come at a price.
Georgia had the football world in the palm of its hand at the beginning of the season. At the time of its loss to Alabama, it was ranked No. 3 in the AP polls and had a lot of promise to climb to the top with its difficult schedule. Once they threw on the black jerseys, they weren’t playing like the No. 3 team in the country and were embarrassed 41-30 on prime-time television.
Nebraska was undefeated at 3-0 when it thought about doing a “Blackout” game and was working its way into the Top 25. Again, this game was nationally televised and Nebraska lost 35-30.
Utah’s game against TCU will be nationally televised as well, rounding out a potential trio of “Blackout” losses in college football.
The fans, coaches and players will all be decked out in black, but what for? What are the players’ and fans’ feelings behind the mystery of the “Blackout”?
“I never had black jerseys before, out of my whole time playing football,” said free safety Robert Johnson. “This is the first time the University of Utah will be wearing black jerseys, so we gotta go out there and show them that the black jerseys will look good on us.”
Most students are excited for a change in wardrobe in Rice-Eccles Stadium. The buzz about the “Blackout” has left students anticipating the game for at least a month. A wall of night surrounding the playing field is something that tickles their fancy.
“We’re definitely going to have a lot of black shirts in the crowd,” said Dan Winn, a junior in mechanical engineering. “I’m pretty sure (the football team) will pull the black on black, the sickest uniform we got.”
Although most students are pumped up about the “Blackout” game, some fans aren’t big supporters of the idea. They like the tradition of the red and white and don’t think changing it during an undefeated season is a wise choice.
“The “Blackout’ hypes up the game too much,” said Kurin Williams, an undecided sophomore. “TCU’s going to come in here and feed off of it ’cause they’re black and purple. They’re going to turn it around on us.”
Other than possibly putting a hex on the Utes’ undefeated season, the “Blackout” uniforms come at a price. Kelly Sharrit, equipment manager for the Utes, said that new Under Armour uniforms cost around $220 per player. With about 50 players standing on the sidelines during the game, the team spent approximately $11,000 for three or four games, depending on how long it will stick with the design of the uniforms.