Bryant, Delaware, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island (2024)

The uniforms of 2024 continue with the Colonial Coastal Crumbling Athletic Association, which is slated to lose two longtime members in '25: Delaware to FBS (Conference USA and Richmond to the Patriot League (!). With the CAA adding random schools left and right over the last few years, I'm sure the folks there will find a couple community colleges in the Midwest to fill the void left by the Blue Hens and the Spiders.

OK, onto the unis ...

We begin with league newbie Bryant, which realized quickly that the CAA, even in its declining state, ain't the Big South (where the Bulldogs had a winning record in 2023). The only change in the uniforms was the addition of the CAA jersey patch, replacing the Big South versions. (Check out the gold jersey — it appears Bryant slapped a big square bearing the CAA logo over the Big South logo patch.)

Delaware didn't change a darn thing from 2023, although I suspect the Hens will make some alterations once they move up in the world.

Maine did some odd things in 2024. In '23, the Black Bears changed their road jerseys, using a number font similar to that on their iconic hockey jersey. In '24, Maine changed the home shirt to match the road versions ... only to change the road shirt in midseason, adopting drop-shadow numbers (which slowly appear to be making a comeback, perhaps thanks to the NFL 49ers reviving their 1994 uniform). The pants also went a midseason change, as the stripes down the sides were removed. The awesome power-blue alternate shirt, which was used in publicity photos, never saw game day action.

New Hampshire dusted off an old friend this past season — the "NH" helmet logo used from 1976-99. The Wildcats had used the logo occasionally in the past (a few Homecomings and a few times on a blue alternate helmet in 2017-18). My only suggestion would be to add a stripe or two down the middle, a la the "classic" look.

Speaking of stripes, UNH's silver helmet is no slouch itself in the classic helmet department (it's been used since 2003 and has been worn by many an NCAA FCS tournament team), but in midseason it randomly lost its stripes and looked rather naked without them. 

Rhode Island made no changes this season, although like UMaine, the Rams trotted out two different sets of road uniforms, something they also did in 2023.

There was one minor but significant addition to the jerseys late in the season — the NCAA patch symbolizing participation in the NCAA FCS tourney. Rhody reached the postseason for the first time since 1985 and the glory days of Tom "Air:" Earhardt.

Bryant, Delaware, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island (2023)

Our next look at the year in uniforms takes us to the Colonial Athletic Association Coastal Athletic Association Coastal Athletic Association Football Conference. How about "The Conference With Too Many Damn Teams"? or "Why won't the America East Conference add football already?"

Anyway, here's a look at the four CAA teams covered on this site, plus Bryant, which is leaving the Big South for the CAA next year, which will raise the conference's membership to 743.

Bryant — anyone else remember when the Patriots trained there in days of yore? — added a white shirt to more closely match the black jerseys introduced last year when the Bulldogs switched to New Balance uniforms. The gold alternate jersey worn last year was left on the bench in '23.

Delaware, which will be leaving the CAA for FBS and Conference USA in 2025, changed its blue jersey to match the white road version, and the blue pants now match the white and yellow versions with the big ol' hen on the right pant leg.

Maine made a few changes this year, which doesn't hide the fact that my Black Bears won two games for the second straight year. The helmet stripe colors were reversed and the script "Maine," last worn in 2015, returned, replacing the Maine logo with the black bear head. Only problem is that the size of the revived logo is tiny — did Maine borrow the decals from the hockey team or something?? And speaking of hockey, Maine added new road jerseys with numbers that mirror those worn by the pucksters. 

Finally, Maine changed its white pants, with a striping pattern that matches the ones on the helmet and navy blue jerseys.

New Hampshire didn't change much from last year, although the white helmets underwent a couple changes throughout the season: The Wildcats had a white wildcat logo for one game, switched to the throwback "NH" logo for homecoming and used a blue wildcat logo the rest of the way.

Rhode Island kept its multitude of jerseys and pants from 2022, and for good measure, added an alternate white uniform, giving the Rams four different shirts and FIVE different pants. But only one helmet? Yeah, I know, helmets are expensive. 😎

Bryant, Central Connecticut, Merrimack, Sacred Heart, Stonehill

Let's continue our look back at the uniforms of 2022 with four Northeast Conference teams, plus one that departed the NEC.

Bryant is the oddball of the bunch, having ditched the NEC for the Big South (well, Bryant is in southern New England, at least); the remainder of its athletic teams left the NEC for the America East Conference. The move is reflected with the addition of the Big South patch on the jerseys. The Bulldogs replaced Adidas with New Balance as their uniform supplier, but as they still used some of the older Adidas gear, they had to cover up the logo. (Look closely at the graphic above, especially the pants; you'll see a faint square where the Adidas logo used to live.) Bryant added a nice-looking gold alternate jersey, but resisted the urge to wear them with the gold pants.

OK, onto the NEC ...

Central Connecticut kept everything very simple this year; I think the three uniform combos are the fewest of any team covered in this little ol' project. The Blue Devils even passed on the breast cancer awareness helmets from last year. When that's the biggest change, you know there's not much going on here. Ah, for a simpler time ...

Merrimack kept things on an even keel as well. The Warriors' white pants and jerseys continued the recent trend of traditional stripes, a welcome return if there ever was one. Sadly, they didn't continue the screaming yellow zonkers look from last year.

Sacred Heart's biggest change was the addition of new pants, which have "PIONEERS" running down the sides. Frankly, they kinda resemble pro wrestling pants to me. Old favorites such as the star-spangled helmet and the all-gray alternate uniform returned for another year.

Finally, we have the new kid on the Division I block, Stonehill. The Skyhawks played only nine games this year (I wonder if that had something to do with their move up from D-II?) and won four, pretty respectable for a first-year D-I program. Stonehill kept its uniform pretty simple, rotating between two jerseys and two sets of pants. The helmets have a logo on one side and a number on the other; I'm not a fan of that look, but let's face it — there are more important things to worry about, right?

Bryant, Central Connecticut St., Merrimack, Sacred Heart (2021)

Time for the latest round of the uniforms of 2021, this time with a trip through the New England schools in the Northeast Conference. You can see the Ivy League here, the CAA teams here and the FBS indies here. The review will continue with Colgate and Holy Cross and wrap up with Boston College after its bowl game. 

Bryant made its most significant change since the program's founding in 1999, dumping the plain gold helmet it had worn since day one for a black version, with a number on one side and the bulldog logo on the other. The home and road jerseys also underwent a change and have a consistent look for the first time in a few years. The bulldog logo on the helmets and sleeves marks the first it has been featured on the uniform someplace other than the pants, a definite upgrade. (For a few years Bryant had a goofy-looking "B" in a shield on the sleeves.)

Central Connecticut State, which also has a logo on one side of the helmet and a number on the other, replaced the "CC" logo from seasons part with the blue devil head. CCSU, which sat out last season because of COVID-19, continued to wear all-blue at home and all-white on the road. The Blue Devils also wore a pink stripe down the middle of helmet for several games in October for breast cancer awareness. If you look closely, you can see the word "FIGHT" imprinted all over the stripe. 

Merrimack added some flair when it unveiled an all-yellow uniform at Homecoming, giving the Warriors three jerseys and two sets of pants. (Some teams, like Bryant, UNH and Maine, have two jerseys and three pants, which I don't understand. Third jerseys > third pants; you can make more fun combos.) The shirts retained the same basic pattern as the home and road versions, although the road whites continue to lack shoulder numbers. 

Finally, Sacred Heart, which won its second straight NEC title, trotted out eight different combos, including the star-spangled and gray alternate uniforms, which returned after a year's absence. The Pioneers also wore a helmet with a 9-11 tribute logo on the right side for their  first two games.

Bryant (2018-19), Central Connecticut (2018-19), Merrimack (2019), Sacred Heart (2018-19)

Talk about a mental lapse the size of an offensive line. I knew Merrimack College (North Andover, Mass.) was moving up to Division I from D-II for the 2019-20 school year; it wasn't until the last week or so when I realized, "Oh, yeah, I've got a new team to add to the site!" So welcome aboard, Merrimack; that boosts the number of current D-I programs featured here to 20. Let's take a look at this year's uniforms from Merrimack and fellow Northeast Conference teams Bryant, Central Connecticut and Sacred Heart. Since I basically blew off the NEC teams last year (apologies!), we'll include the 2018 uniforms from Bryant, CCSU and SHU, too.

Bryant (6-5, 2-4 in 2018; 4-8, 3-4 in '19) kept its basic black-and-gold look in 2018 before it phased out the gold pants in '19 (worn just once) in favor of black and white versions. The Bulldogs modified their home and road jerseys, but there are subtle differences; the homes have the Bryant wordmark in the school font and the numbers in a traditional font; the roads have Bryant in a traditional block serif font (like last year), but curved numbers. 

Central Connecticut (6-5, 4-2 in '18; 11-2, 7-0 and an NCAA FCS Tournament berth in '19) kept the basic look it's had the last few years, but the Blue Devils modified their road unis in '19 to better match the homes. The '18 jerseys come with and without the NEC patch on the front.

Merrimack (6-5, not eligible for NEC title but 1-3 against NEC foes) had a winning record, although three wins were over non D-I teams and a fourth was over fellow D-I newbie LIU (formerly D-II C.W. Post). The Warriors' uniforms are pretty simple, but the program's first uniforms from the late '90s (coming soon to a post near you!) make the current duds resemble Oregon's. Yale was the only other team on this site to not wear any alternate helmets or jerseys, or mix and match their unis. One oddity: The home jerseys have shoulder numbers, while the roads do not.

Sacred Heart (7-4, 5-1 and co-NEC champs in '18; 7-5, 4-3 in '19), on the other hand, did plenty of mixing and matching, particularly with the helmets in '19. The Pioneers wore their regular helmets; the star-spangled helmets they usually wear the first couple games of the season; and a helmet with a throwback pioneer logo used in the 1990s (look closely; it bears a passing resemblance to a certain beloved NFL logo). The jerseys and pants, including the hideous all-gray ensemble, remained unchanged. The 9/11 star-spangled jersey, first worn in 2017, wasn't worn in '18 but returned in '19.

Brown (2017), Bryant (2017), CCSU (2017)

It's that time of the year again -- hop on the sleigh, stuff the stockings and review the uniforms for the 18 active teams in our little project. We'll go alphabetically, more or less. (Since my files list Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire as UConn, UMass and UNH, they'll have to wait a bit.) We'll also skip Boston College for now, since the Eagles still have a bowl game in a couple weeks. So without further ado ...

Brown (2-8 overall, 0-7 Ivy League) didn't change a thing from last year's uniforms, which means the ugly black alternates are still around. Repeat after me: If black is not one of your primary colors, you shouldn't use it for an alternate jersey. Which is too bad, because Brown's regular home and road unis are among the best in the Ivy League, and the helmet logo, with the ivy weaving through the "B," is among the classiest around.

The Bears also added a black "JM" patch to the jerseys this year; I'm embarrassed to admit that despite tons of searches, I have no idea of the patch's significance. Readers?

More unis from the sons of Bruno: 2016, 2015, 2014, 2012-13, 2004-08, 2001-03, 1997-2000, 1984-89, 1981-83, 1978, 1975-77, 1973-74, 1972, 1967-71, 1959-65, 1957-58, 1951-56, 1914.

Bryant (6-5, 4-2 NEC) kept its uniform from last year, but brought back the white pants last worn in 2015. With the exception of one game, the Bulldogs wore the all-white uni on the road.

I like how the basic elements of Bryant's uniform have gone mostly unchanged since the program's founding in 1999, with the exception of those gray pants the Bulldogs wore for a couple years (see links below). The plain gold helmet is just that -- plain -- but it's also the only design Bryant has ever worn in an age of nonstop change and alternate helmets, and that's reassuring.

A few more barkin' Bryant unis:  2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2004-06, 1999-2000.

Central Connecticut (8-4, 6-0 NEC, NEC champs, first FCS playoff appearance in team history) switched to a white helmet from a blue helmet, which the Blue Devils had worn forever, although I kept waiting for the blues to make at lest one appearance this year. The helmets still have the logo on one side and the uniform number on the other, a disease that seems to permeate many teams that wear Nike uniforms. The white pants, which were last worn in 2015, returned and were worn exclusively with the roads. 

With only two uniform designs used all season, CCSU is the first of four teams this season to receive a "KISS" Award -- Keep It Simple, Stupid. Well done.

Some more garb from CCSU: 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 1968.

Bryant Bulldogs (1999-2000)

Long before Bryant College fielded its first football team in 1999, the Smithfield, R.I., school was well known in football circles as the site of the New England Patriots' training camp from 1976-2002. Any mention of Bryant, and you knew the NFL preseason was right around the corner. (Well, other than looking at the calendar, duh.)

In the late 1990s, Bryant decided to get into the gridiron game itself and fielded its first team at the Division II level. Surprisingly, the Bulldogs were a strong team out of the gate, going 5-4 overall in 1999 and 4-4 in the Eastern Football Conference (a forerunner to the Northeast-10 Conference). On Sept. 11, 1999, Bryant defeated Assumption, 20-13, in its first game. On Oct. 2, Bryant won its home opener over Mount Ida, 31-20, before 4,817 fans -- a mighty impressive number for D-II in these parts. There were a few clunkers along the way -- a 60-20 loss to American International -- but all in all, the Bulldogs carried themselves very well for a first-year team.

The first Bryant Bulldogs team, 1999.
No truth to the rumor the school was named after Bear Bryant.

The uniforms haven't changed much over the years. To this day, the Bulldogs wear a plain gold helmet, black jerseys and gold pants. The helmet has never featured any logos, numbers or alternate versions. How many schools this century can say that? No, not even Penn State. (OK, Alabama and Auburn are two, and I'm sure there are others.)

Some early Bulldogs in action, 1999.
Note the odd location of the "Bryant" word mark.
Also note the "BC" for Bryant College in the sleeves.
The school has since changed its name to Bryant University.

The numbers on the front are HY-OOGE -- almost like the vintage Seattle Seahawks  jerseys. Also note the odd location of the "Bryant" wordmark, which is off to the side and not below the neckline, where wordmarks usually reside.. (It did move to the neck on 2001.) And true confession time: I'm not exactly sure what's on the patch on the jersey front. All I've been able to discern is that it features a yellowish football with bluish lettering underneath. I suspect it's an Eastern Football Conference patch, but I've been unable to find a copy of the logo, not even after a couple hours digging through archive.org. I don't believe it's an inaugural season patch, because it also was worn in 2000.

The rather sad-looking Bryant logo from '99 (top)
and the more bad-ass bulldog adopted a few years later (above).

A few more Bryant unis:  2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2004-06.

   

An advert for Bryant's 1999 homecoming, which also
featured the Bulldogs' historic first home game. And Victoria Jackson!

Bryant Bulldogs (2016), Central Connecticut Blue Devils (2015-16)

We continue our look at the uniforms of 2016 with a pair of Northeast Conference teams.

Bryant (5-6 overall, 4-2 NEC) might have the most improved uni of 2016. The tired Adidas template and unnecessary steel-gray pants from last year were ditched in favor of a more basic look, with a word mark and numbers that are more readable. One minor nit-pick: The "B" shield on the sleeves that looks more at home on a superhero. Uniform numbers would have been better.

A few more Bryant unis:  2015, 2014, 2013, 2004-06.

Central Connecticut (2-9 overall, 1-5 NEC) also made a major upgrade, having ditched its overly busy home jersey for a more basic look that uses the same number font as the roads. The striping is different on the home and road jerseys, but that's a very minor quibble. One downer: The logo-on-one-side, uniform-number-on-the-other-side helmet. I HATE HATE HATE that look, especially since the CCSU logo is a good one.

As far as I know, the white pants from last year weren't used in 2016. Pics from CCSU football are hard to find, for some reason, so who knows?

As an added bonus, I corrected the 2015 road jersey (the same shirt the Blue Devils wore in '16), which upon further review uses a slanted number font.

Some more garb from CCSU: 2014, 2013, 1968.

Next up: Columbia and maybe even Cornell.

Bryant, Central Connecticut State, Sacred Heart (2015)

We continue the 2015 round-up with the NEC 3. This leaves us with only UConn, which I'm saving for after next week's bowl game.

Bryant

The Bulldogs, who went 5-6 overall, 3-3 in the NEC, kept the exact same look from last year. 

Central Connecticut State

The "other" Blue Devils kept the same home jersey and pants, but introduced completely new -- and vastly improved, sez I -- road versions. Hopefully, there'll be an accompanying home version in 2016. One oddity: When CCSU opted to wear white pants at home against Dartmouth, it chose to wear last year's pants instead of the new white pants. Give CCSU credit for continuity. The Devils were 4-7 overall, 3-3 in NEC action.

Sacred Heart

The normally staid Pioneers decided to mix things up a bit this fall. They added red alternate pants and an all bluish-gray alternate uniform that kept the same basic design as the home and road shirts. It's not as good as UMass' gray uni, but it's far better than Penn's. Last season's NEC champs were 6-5 overall, 3-3 league.

Bryant Bulldogs (2004-06)

Here's another team I haven't done much with -- the Bryant Bulldogs, the baby of this project, having been around only since 1999 and in D-I since 2009.

This is what Bryant wore when it was still a member of the Division II Northeast-10 Conference, which I don't believe has ever had 10 football-playing members, but that's for another time. The '06 team went 8-3, shared the NE-10 title and reached the NCAA D-II tournament. The '07 team repeated the feat, this time claiming the NE-10 title outright.

Looking at pictures from this time period really strikes me as to how much football uniforms have changed over the last decade -- this style predates "revolution" helmets, over-the-top fonts and jerseys and pants that look as if they were spray-painted on the athletes. Funny, 2006 seems as if it were three weeks ago ... Here's the 2014 uniform for comparison.

The patch on the sleeve is the Northeast-10 logo, rendered in Bryant black-and-gold.

The cover of the '06 media guide.

Brown (2014); Bryant (2014); Central Connecticut (2014)

  For the next few weeks, we're going to look at the 2014 uniforms for all the teams in our project. Some used the exact same style as last year (Harvard), some made major overhauls (UNH, Dartmouth) and some made minor tweaks, like two of the three teams shown today.

  We'll do this in more-or-less alphabetical order, but we'll skip Boston College until after its bowl game. 

Brown

  We already posted Brown's uniform here, but for the sake of completeness, here it is again. The big change was the addition of a throwback alternate jersey to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the school. The Bears were 5-5 overall, 3-4 (fifth) in the Ivy League.

Bryant

  Bryant's uniforms were the same as in 2013, with two notes: 1) The new NEC logo patch, and 2) The black shirt/white pants combo from '13 was not used.

  The Bulldogs were 8-3 overall, 4-2 (third) in the NEC and were ranked in the FCS top 25 for much of the season.

Central Connecticut

  CCSU's uniforms stayed the same as last year's, only with the addition of a fourth combo and the NEC patch. The white pants were also slightly altered. The Blue Devils were 3-9 overall, 1-6 (tied for sixth and last) in the NEC.