Syracuse Football: Orange Summer Kickoff details, new uniforms to be released

Here are all the details on “Orange Summer Kickoff” and what it is all about. Plus the potential of new uniforms being revealed at this event.

"***UPDATE*** The Syracuse football Twitter confirms that new uniforms will be revealed this Friday, June 21."

The Syracuse football season is set to kickoff on August 31 vs the Liberty Flames. While that is still far away, we’re getting closer every day.

Although there is a really cool event coming up that could help pass the time and it’s called “Orange Summer Kickoff”.

It takes place this upcoming Friday, June 21 at the Turning Stone Resort’s Lava Nightclub and all Syracuse fans are encouraged to attend.

This event is designed to kick off the official start of Summer. It’ll be a two-hour event that starts at 7 p.m. and will be broken down into several segments:

• The first hour is a networking opportunity that will feature some entertainment and a cash bar, per the official press release.
• While the second hour (which starts at 8 p.m.) will be an engaging event involving professional sports personality, Taylor Rooks, who will be hosting.
  • Appearances will be made by Syracuse football head coach Dino Babers and SU Athletic Director John Wildhack.

This is a free event, although all guests must strictly adhere to Lava Nightclub policies and dress code (via their website):

• “Examples of prohibited clothing include: Athletic wear, shorts, baggy attire, torn or cut-off clothing, hats, work boots, and excessive jewelry. Management reserves the right to have the final say.”
• Must also be 21 years or older and have a valid identification to be admitted.

After the event concludes, guests are also encouraged to enjoy all the amenities that the nightclub has to offer for the remainder of the evening. Lava is open until 2:00 a.m. on Friday and Saturday.

But what isn’t in the press release is what truly is intriguing fans.

AD John Wildhack spoke at a press conference on Friday morning to expand upon the contractual agreement between Syracuse University and Nike on a multi-year agreement.

When John was asked about the possibility of new uniforms being a part of that agreement and those uniforms being revealed at this event here’s what he had to say:

"“Often times over the course of an agreement you do see a change in uniforms. I would encourage our fans to stay tuned on that front (he said with a smile). We want to outfit all 20 of our teams in the best gear possible which we are.”"

Over the years Syracuse has experienced more than 30 design changes to the football uniform, some of them being minor (like a stripe pattern for example).

The most recent change to the uniforms came back in 2014, Nate Mink of Syracuse.com gave us the details behind it here:

"“Syracuse football’s most recent uniform set debuted in 2014 and features slogans on the inside of the collar, stripes slanted at a 44-degree angle on elongated numbers meant to symbolize gothic-style architecture seen in New York City and around campus and a military-theme symbol on the neckline as a nod to the program’s relationship with Fort Drum.”"

A lot of fans have complained about the uniforms for a variety of reasons:

• Numbers are difficult to read.
• Lack of identity/branding with “Orange” uniforms.
  • 1920 had Orange jerseys.
  • In 1949 Ben Schwartzwalder went with an all Orange uniform look.
  • While there is an Orange alternate in the current design, it’s not the primary.

AD John Wildhack also spoke about this here:

"“Yes,” Wildhack said when asked if the availability of orange jerseys to fans was something that gets worked into a contract via Chris Carlson of Syracuse.com “We want all our colors available. I’ve heard loud and clear from our fans that they want the orange. I’ve also, obviously, heard they’re not enamored with our current football uniforms. Again, I use the phrase ‘stay tuned’ on that. The deal is done but we still continue to work.”"

Also, John Wildhack reiterated that Syracuse has the final say and input on the design and claimed that “it’s our brand and we wouldn’t leave the design to a third party.”

Nike can sometimes overcomplicate things and make it too “Oregon-ish”, so if the apparel overlords just keep things simple it should all work out fine.