With just two games left in the regular season, Michigan State is working toward becoming bowl eligible. The Spartans take the field once again this Friday, looking to end their losing skid by taking on Purdue at Spartan Stadium.
The Spartans have branched out in terms of their uniforms the last two weeks, wearing the all-black “Shadows” uniforms at home against Indiana, and wearing a white helmet with Gruff Sparty this past Saturday at Illinois. With another Friday primetime matchup on the docket this week, MSU fans have been looking forward to seeing what uniforms would be rolled out this time.
MSU’s social media team released their weekly uniform reveal video Wednesday evening and presented a never before worn combo by Michigan State: black helmet, green jersey, black pants. In another wrinkle, the black helmet contains a new touch: a green facemask to go with the green key stripe and Spartan logo.
As previously mentioned, this is the first time MSU has gone black/green/black. This uniform marks the seventh unique combo for the Spartans through 11 games this season.
MSU introduced black uniforms for football before the 2024 season, and has worn the all-black look twice: 2023 at home against Michigan, and three weeks ago at home against Indiana. The Spartans also wore a black helmet/white jersey/black pants at Indiana last season. When the black uniforms were revealed, it was noted that the black uniform components were not alternates, but rather that they would be worn in many different ways.
Since the reveal video has been released on social media this week, reaction from MSU fans has been just about universal praise, and I agree with them. This is the type of uniform reveal and combo we have come to expect from MSU in recent years: something unique that keeps the fans on their toes and surprises the fanbase each week. I also think that while a black/green/black combo may look slightly off and possibly bizarre - especially because the green jersey has no black on it at all - the green facemask should help with the contrast.
It is unrealistic for the Spartans to wear a brand-new combo every week, but combos like this sprinkled in a few times a season keep the fan morale up, especially when the on-field product may not be meeting expectations.
As for MSU’s opponent, Purdue, there has been no formal announcement regarding their uniforms for the game. The last time the Boilermakers played in East Lansing was 2018, where they wore black/white/black for the game. MSU won 23-13, while wearing a green/green/white combo.
Next week, Michigan State rounds out the regular season with a home game against Rutgers. As the Spartans celebrate Senior Day, I’d look for them to wear some sort of green helmet/green jersey combo.
