Navy, Notre Dame set to wear alternate uniforms designed by Under Armour for season opener in Ireland

By Bill Wagner

Capital Gazette

Aug 07, 2023 at 2:40 pm

The Claddagh ring symbol that Navy and Notre Dame will wear on the necks of their jerseys. (Courtesy Photo)

Navy and Notre Dame will both wear alternate uniforms designed by Under Armour in their season-opening matchup in Dublin, Ireland, on Aug. 26.

The Midshipmen and Fighting Irish will don Gaelic style jerseys with stylized striping in the Aer Lingus Classic being held at Aviva Stadium. Under Armour unveiled the “Ireland Collection” via social media Sunday with the Baltimore-based apparel company stating that “strength and unity” are incorporated throughout the specialty look.

Adam Dougherty, graphic design manager for team sports apparel at Under Armour, said the strength and unity tagline is a reference to the origins of the Navy-Notre Dame series. During World War II, when Notre Dame’s enrollment was at an all-time low, the U.S. Navy opened a special training base on the South Bend campus to keep the institution afloat.

“As a result, Notre Dame was able to rebound and survive the war and now schedules Navy in a football game every year as a sign of appreciation for their support,” Dougherty said. “We wanted to continue the narrative of that debt of honor by having both teams tell the same story through the lens of Ireland’s knotting art.”

Notre Dame’s striping is modeled after that found inside its Golden Dome administration building, while Navy’s is based on the Carrick Bend, a standard sailor’s knot used to join two lines together.

According to Under Armour, the “Ireland Collection” features a Celtic knot design, which pays tribute to the historic setting in Ireland and the tradition of the series that dates back to 1927. Both teams’ jerseys feature a back-neck locker tag trim showcasing a Gaelic knotted shamrock and a Claddagh ring symbol to express the loyalty and friendship between the two institutions.

The heart represents love, the crown stands for loyalty and the two clasped hands symbolize friendship, Under Armour said in a press release. Both jerseys will also include a three-color swatch indicating the national flag of Ireland.

“Gaelic knot patterning can be traced back to the earliest histories of the Irish people and their culture. It represents the connection of all things and has no start or finish, symbolizing the eternity of life, love, happiness, faith, and friendship,” Dougherty said. “We felt this symbolism mimicked the history of support between the two schools as well.”

Since both programs use the same primary colors of navy and gold with near identical headwear, the “Ireland Collection” somewhat resembles home and road looks with Notre Dame wearing dark and Navy wearing white jerseys.

“Both schools wanted to use traditional home and away uniform blocks in an effort to strengthen brand recognition international markets,” Dougherty said.

Dougherty said designing a new uniform for a college football program is usually an 18-month process. He and other members of the Under Armour design team began meeting with Navy and Notre Dame athletic administrators to come to agreement on an overall strategy of a shared story for the uniforms to be worn in the 2023 season opener.

Once the idea of using Gaelic knotting to build a unique stripe for each team, Under Armour proceeded to build out the story across accessories, footwear, sideline and fan-wear apparel that all align to the on-field uniforms.

In January 2014, Under Armour announced that it signed a 10-year deal to outfit all Navy varsity athletics teams. Navy football debuted its Under Armour uniforms for the 2014 season opener against Ohio State.

Navy football had been with Nike since 2002, while other varsity sports had their own deals with various manufacturers.

Last week, Under Armour announced that it had extended its apparel contract with Notre Dame for another 10 years. Yahoo Sports reported the new endorsement deal is one of the biggest in college sports with Baltimore-based Under Armour committing to approximately $10 million per year in cash and products.

This will be the eighth college football game played in Ireland with three involving Navy and Notre Dame.

Fans can already purchase items from the exclusive Ireland Collection at UA.com.