Ivy League 2019

We’ll kick off our look back at the uniforms of 2019 with the Ivy League, since its season is the first to finish among the teams covered here (insert rant about Ivies not being allowed in the FCS playoffs here).

Before we start, a little aside: The Ivy League debuted a new logo before the season, which appears on the home pages of the league and its member teams … along with the old logo, which dates back to the 1980s (I think). Talk about confusion in the marketplace, especially when you read this link. Apparently, it's intended to be alternate logo that emphasizes the athletic aspect of the Ivies. I'd love to know how a change in font and a reduction in the number of leaves does that, but hey, it's a nice logo.

In with the new ...

... out with the old (sorta, kinda).

And now, in order of finish …

Dartmouth (9-1 overall, 6-1 Ivy) grabbed a share of its league-record 19th Ivy title. (The Big Green should have ran the table, but somehow lost to Cornell at home in Week 9, but that’s a rant for another time.) After a few years of mixing and matching styles (in both 2015 and ’16, the Greenies wore NINE different uniforms in 10 games*), Dartmouth has returned to the basics with only three combos: Black and silver helmets and pants were tossed out the door, and the black alternate shirt was one twice. The college football 150th anniversary patch was worn on the green and white shirts but, oddly, not the black versions.

*Trivial trivia: The record for most single-season combos by any team on this site is the otherwise forgettable 2013 UMass team, which trotted out 11 styles in 12 games.

Yale (9-1, 6-1, only loss to Dartmouth) had to rally past Harvard — and a horde of climate activists — in overtime to earn a split of the Ivy crown.  The Bulldogs kept it simple again: No alternates, no mixing and matching … you know what you’re going to get. The only difference from last year is that the Carm Cozza memorial patch was removed, making this year’s uniform identical to that of 2016 and ’17. (No 150 patch? Boo!)

Princeton (8-2 overall, 5-2 Ivy) appeared to have a chance to run the table for the second straight year, but back-to-back losses to Dartmouth and Yale dashed those hopes. The Dartmouth game, played at Yankee Stadium, was deemed the Tigers’ official 150th anniversary game, Princeton having played in the very first game in 1869 and all that. (Princeton should have faced Rutgers, its 1869 foe, this year. I’d give the Tigers pretty good odds, seeing how the Knights have stunk up the Bee-One-Gee the last few years.) Princeton wore some pretty fun — and funky — duds against the Big Green, a mash-up of previous styles over the last century and a half, including big, fat orange-and-black stripes on the sleeves and socks. Not sure what anyone else thought, but I liked it. Everything else was the same was last year, except the orange shirt was matched with the black pants for the first time, I believe.

Penn (5-5, 3-4) remained stuck in its post-Al Bagnoli run of mediocrity. From a uniform standpoint, the highlight was the return of the 1970s red helmet in celebration of the 125 anniversary of venerable Franklin Field. A red alternate jersey, which matches the navy and white shirts, also was introduced. A first-rate uni, sez I. The white alternate helmet, introduced last year, was dropped. 

Speaking of mediocrity, Cornell (4-6, 3-4) had it in droves, both on the field  (well, except for a how’d-that-happen win at Dartmouth, denying the Big Green an undefeated season) and in the wardrobe department. The Big Red tinkered with its helmet for the 2,000th time while still retaining the “C” logo. Then the fun begins; Cornell ditched its plain white pants from last year and brought back its 2017 pants (red and white, each with a different pattern). Next, the Big Red introduced that rarest of birds — a WHITE alternate jersey, which uses curved numbers and names on the back. If you look at the graphic above, you’ll see that Cornell’s three jerseys don’t have a consistent look, unlike, say, Penn or Harvard. The pants, as mentioned, also have their own distinct pattern. In the end, you have a ginormous mess, and a team badly in need of an overhaul. 

One other note: The white road jersey still has that antiquated NCAA Football logo on the front, beamed in from 2002. Does any other team use that patch, other than the game officials?

Harvard (a very un-Harvard-like 4-6, 2-5) kept the same basic look its had the last few years. Two items of note: 1) The Crimson did not wear the college football 150 patch, since it likes to think it invented football in 1874; 2) Harvard wore a special patch for one game to commemorate the 1919 Rose Bowl team (covered here).

Columbia (3-7, 2-5) also didn’t change much from previous seasons, except for the introduction of gray alternate pants. The gray jersey from last year, ironically, was dropped. Also, the black pants, last worn in 2016, was revived. The Lions added the 150 patch, and kept the “67” patch, worn in honor of former player, coach and administrator Bill Campbell.  The Lions' seven uniform combos were the most by an Ivy team in '19.

Brown (2-6, 1-7) didn’t change a darn thing from last year, despite a new coach. Not even a 150 patch. I’ve always been conflicted about Brown’s logo — the ivy-tinged “B” is one of the classiest logos in sports, but it would be nice if a team called the Bears had, ya know, a bear logo in there somewhere. On the field, the Bears won their first Ivy game in three years, snapping a 20-game skid.

Next, we’ll look at the CAA teams featured on this site (Maine, UNH, Rhody, Delaware).