A short while ago the Arizona Sun Devils dropped what they’re calling the “Ghost Story” uniform on social media. So far, just four partial looks at the full uniform exist.
At first glance, the front of the jersey shows it’s black with gold numbers outlined in white.
However, in the second shot (presumably in black light, or some similar lighting), the white outlines appear to glow a bright greenish-yellow (note too the PAC-12 logo and makers mark are also aglow):
There is also a partial view of the side of the jersey, which is a wide side panel depicting a gray image of the state flag.
Finally, there is a shot of the pants, which will also be black, and will feature the “pitchfork” logo in gold down the side.
The team notes they will wear the “ghost story” uniform on October 7, against Colorado.
Looking at the Sun Devils’ schedule, that will be ASU’s “Sun Devil Hall of Fame” game, and the time has as yet not been determined. If the outlines on these jerseys are truly fluorescent or phosphorescent (giving them the glow-in-the-dark property shown in the second image), they would likely be better suited for a night game. The outlines don’t appear to have reflective properties.
It’s an interesting uniform choice, considering the date. The Sun Devils have a home game on October 28, which is much closer to Hallowe’en, and would be the ideal time to wear an alternate like this. However, note that October 28th is also Homecoming, so the Devils will probably be wearing maroon and gold for that one.
The school store already has these jerseys for sale, although no mention is made of that jersey having any special phosphorescent or glow-in-the-dark properties.
I wonder how these will end up looking on the field — and if there will be any noticeable GITD affect. My guess is the team will “charge” the uniforms up in the locker room. If the white outlines on the jersey are indeed phosphorescent, the mechanism for producing light is similar to that of fluorescent paint, but the emission of visible light persists for some time after it has been exposed to light. It becomes “charged” by the light. Then they’ll dash onto the a darkened field (assuming the game is played after sunset) with the numbers glowing. Once the lights are on, they’ll probably look just like any other alternate jersey.
I love things that glow in the dark. This is dumb.
Great comment
It’s a neat idea, but yeah, once the lights come on, I doubt it will even be noticeable to fans in the stands or watching television. Maybe they’ll look cool if they have the lights out/dim for the initial rush onto the field…?
The old MiLB Casper Ghosts had glow-in-the-dark uniform elements, and the effect was never visible on the field or in play. Same with the current MiLB Columbia Fireflies. It’s a great gimmick for merchandise – I love my Ghosts and Fireflies caps – but that’s the extent of it.
Not sure if the short-lived Beast of New Haven (AHL) had jerseys that glowed…but they sure look like they could have:
link
I’ve got one of those hats – they were delightfully stupid.
Mike Lansing field was an incredible place to see a game
I went to a Fireflies game last year and bought my obligatory cap but I don’t remember any glow in the dark properties. Maybe I’ll wear it tonight and find out! I’ve always wanted a Casper Ghosts cap partly because of the name and partly because of the glow in the dark logo.
Just went to a Firefies game (at Carolina Mudcats) this week and we got to sit in the first row in Zebulon. The Flies wore highlighter-yellow jerseys but under standard nighttime lighting, they just looked like highlighter-yellow jerseys.
Perfect if you believe you will have a power failure during the game.
With recent trends of downing the lights in score celebrations… could be cool if it worls
October 7 in Arizona? Of course, that game’s being played at night. Early October can still hit 100 around here.
I completely agree.
October 7 in Arizona? Of course, that game’s being played at night. Early October can still hit 100 around here.
I figured it would be, but the schedule still says “TBD.” If you’re going to wear something that glows in the dark, you’d probably want to wear it when it’s, ya know, dark.
I whole-heartedly disagree.
“but the emission of visible light persists for some time after it has been exposed to light. It becomes “charged” by the light.”
In the world of watches, that’s referred to as “lume,” as in luminescence.
For a college uniform, I think this is actually kind of cool. You know college kids are going to eat it up. In terms of a practical design element? It’s lame because the glow in the dark will never be used in a proper college football game.
I hope Colorado wears black pants and black helmets out of spite for ASU not wearing maroon and gold.