As the intensity of rivalry week wears on, the Michigan State football team revealed the uniforms the Spartans will wear for this Saturday’s matchup versus rival and No. 2-ranked Michigan.
After teasers had been dropped on social media all week long, MSU made it official Thursday evening, posting a video reveal featuring clips from past matchups in the rivalry. The reveal, which was narrated by former Spartan running back Javon Ringer, featured Ringer donning the uniform for the week: the long-awaited “Shadow” uniform.
The uniform features a black helmet with a green Spartan head, black jersey and black pants with a green Greek key pattern.
With a much-hyped reveal this July, the MSU faithful have been waiting patiently to see these uniforms make their debut on the field. The black uniform was expected to be worn in MSU’s early-season marquee matchup with Washington, but a change was made the week of the game, a source told Spartans Illustrated.
Some quick facts about this week’s uniform:
-This is the seventh unique uniform combo Michigan State has worn in seven games this season. MSU has not repeated a uniform within its own season since 2019.
-This is the first time in school history MSU has worn a helmet with a black shell. This is the 43rd helmet design worn in school history.
-MSU will be wearing black socks and shoes, as the Spartans have done at home against Michigan dating back to 2014.
-This is the first black jersey Michigan State has worn since 1946, when the Spartans wore a black jersey with gold numbers.
This will likely not be the only time this season that we see the “Shadow” uniforms. The black uniform pieces are said to be regular wear (not alternate) for Michigan.
Obviously it took seven games, but this week we finally will have our first appearance. MSU has two remaining home games (if you include Penn State at Ford Field in Detroit) and a road fixture at Ohio State (the Buckeyes will wear light gray at home) that will allow for up to three more chances for black jerseys.
MSU may also wear some combination of black helmets and black pants, without the black jerseys, as well.
