#RThoughts on the Redblacks new 3rd jersey

On Monday, August 18th, the Ottawa Redblacks revealed their inaugural third jersey. After a decent amount of speculation and a few fun teasers, here’s what we got:

Social media was abuzz with reaction and opinion, ranging from love to hate and most points in between. Frankly, reaction was far closer to 50/50 than expected.

With that in mind, here’s Defend the R’s chat/review of the Redblacks ‘Signature Look’ (most photos from ottawaredblacks.com):

HELMET

@OTTRoughRiders: I love the plaid helmet. I probably would have kept the R logo on it, however. And probably the black version.

@RedblackGade: Yep exactly, it’s strange to see an Ottawa helmet without the iconic R on it. But otherwise it’s incredible.

JERSEY – SHOULDERS

@OTTRoughRiders: Love the plaid on the shoulders. Perfect amount of plaid for the uniform, if they had ended it there.

@RedblackGade: Agreed once again with the plaid on the shoulders, they got that part just right.

JERSEY – FRONT

@RedblackGade: I like having the main logo on the front – hockey-style – but it’s looks too cartoonish being white, they should’ve outlined it to make it pop.

@OTTRoughRiders: I pretty much like everything about the jersey but the logo on the front. Standard numbering & they would be awesome. Or maybe if they used the black logo instead of that white version?

@RedblackGade: I like using the logo on the front of the jersey, but it’s really shitty that it’s white. Don’t get that part.

@OTTRoughRiders: I wouldn’t have had the plaid running down the side of the jersey. Shoulders are enough.

(Here’s how it would look in black, by the way:

Thanks to @BrodieBrady for putting this together.)

PANTS

@RedblackGade: I love the ‘Ottawa’ stripe going down the side of the leg too, that’s a really nice touch.

@OTTRoughRiders: Like the black pants – glad it isn’t a fully red set, like the home & away. But don’t think they needed plaid down the side. Again, bit too much.

@OTTRoughRiders: I do like OTTAWA on the pants as well. Just wouldn’t have had the plaid background. Also like the red socks.

@RedblackGade: I like the plaid background there.

OTHER THOUGHTS

@RedblackGade: The gloves are fantastic, really love those.

@OTTRoughRiders: Gloves are really cool, but what is that logo? They’ve never used it anywhere. I’m not a fan, at this point. May warm up to it.

@RedblackGade: I also find that the actual thing itself looks much better than the “enhanced” and edited images. The red looks better in video/live.

@OTTRoughRiders: For sure. I want to see it in person. Things look different without all the touch ups/filters.

@OTTRoughRiders: Would have been cool if they used #RNation on the back of the helmet, like the Argos did with #ArgosLive

There you have our thoughts from Monday. No doubt the uniform is fun and interesting, especially the plaid helmet. A number of American news outlets picked up the news, including Bleacher Report and ESPN’s Keith Olbermann. No such thing as bad press, right?

What are your thoughts on the Redblacks Signature Look? What would you do to improve them?

While you think about it, here’s what @Senturion would do:

Huge improvement.

UPDATE: Here’s a concept I came up with (please excuse the less-than-stellar Photoshop work):

If we have to have a logo on the front, I think this works quite a bit better. Appreciate any feedback.

Thanks for reading and Go Redblacks!

@OTTRoughRiders

Game #4; LeFevour Reams Redblacks

By: Santino Filoso

On Saturday night, in front of a small but rambunctious crowd at McMaster’s Ron Joyce Stadium, and playing a winless Ticats team without their starting QB, the Redblacks wasted a golden opportunity to even their record at .500.

Pre-Game:

– It was Henry Burris’ 190th CFL start and his first against the Ticats since being released in the off-season after leading them to the Grey Cup, other ex-Ticats looking to have a big game included RB Chevon Walker (#29) and WR Matt Carter (#85)

1st Quarter:

– Brett Maher (#3) kicks off for the Redblacks and 1st round pick Antoine Pruneau (#6) quickly makes the tackle

– The Ticats come out roaring and after a 23 yard pass, QB Dan LeFevour flips a reverse to WR Brandon Banks who tiptoes 53 yards down the sideline for a TD, 7-0 for the McMaster Marauders

– Burris rumbles 20 yards on the Redblacks first play from scrimmage as the Redblacks answer the quick score with a long 14 play drive that features runs by Walker and DJ Harper (#28), and catches by Kierrie Johnson (#10), John Delahunt (#49), Henry² (Marcus Henry #16) and a 10 yard TD catch from a diving Matt Carter (#85)

– Dan “Spider Legs” LeFevour gallops up the middle of the field for an easy 34 yard gain before CJ Gable rushes 47 yards into the end zone, restoring the Ticats 7 point lead

– Justin “Captain” Phillips gets his leg rolled up on during the ensuing kick return and breaks his fibula, all of Ottawa (specifically Arnprior) weeps, even though the man himself doesn’t

2nd Quarter:

– Burris connects with Henry² for a 19 yard TD

– DB Jovon Johnson (#2) proves that the Redblacks defense isn’t entirely allergic to tackling and sacks LeFevour

– Maher fakes the punt and hits FB Patrick Lavoie for a 25 yard completion on 3rd and 10, making it three straight games that the Redblacks have faked a punt

– Despite back to back catches by Walker, the Redblacks drive stalls at the Ticat 3 yard line, so they settle for a 10 yard Maher FG

– LeFevour and Gable continue to run wild through sloppy Redblacks tackles and the Justin Medlock splits the uprights from 12 yards out to tie the game at 17

– Henry² continues his night of dominance and makes another first down catch

– Burris’ streak of 144 passes without an interception ends when his deep pass intended for Dobson Collins (#80) is picked off; it was slightly underthrown but Collins make zero effort to battle back for position on the ball

– Using both his arms and legs, LeFevour moves the Ticats into position for a field goal as the half expires, ending the half with a 20-17 lead courtesy of a 36 yard Medlock FG

3rd Quarter:

– Redblacks receive the ball to start the half but quickly go two and out

– Wallace Miles (#84) makes his first catch as a Redblack, picking up 17 yards and putting the Redblacks in field goal range

– Maher’s 38 yard FG attempt is good

– Dan “Houdini” LeFevour avoids getting sacked in a collapsing pocket and strolls around until he spots a wide open Cary Koch 49 yards down field

– Ticats take the lead off an 18 yard Medlock field goal

– Redblacks go two and out and Maher booms a 50 yard punt to the Hamilton 22

– On a 28 yard LeFevour scramble, Ticats WR Andy Fantuz ear holes Brandyn Thompson (#25), knocking him into early next week

– Eric Fraser (#7) fails to get to LeFevour on the safety blitz, stop me if you’ve heard this one before….

– Jovon Johnson makes an incredible individual effort and rips the ball out of Koch’s hands to pick off LeFevour, unfortunately the Redblacks offense chooses to look a gift horse in the mouth

– Kierrie Johnson is seen on the sidelines icing his forearm

4th Quarter:

– Henry² x3 for gains of 27, 17 and 14 yards respectively

– Following a Burris sack, Maher boots a 24 yard FG to tie the game up at 23

– Gable cuts Redblacks defense like Big Joe splits watermelons and bursts 82 yards until he is horse collar tackled by DB Jerrell Gavins (#24)

C.J. Gable — You’re gonna have a bad time when your entire defense tails the running back

– Dan “The Specialist” LeFevour sneaks the ball in from 1 yard out to put the Ticats up 30-23 with 5:04 left in the game

– The Redblacks drive bogs down at midfield and on 3rd and 2 Head Coach Rick Campbell decides to gamble and go for it with 2:31 remaining; Burris’ pass is tipped at the line and despite getting a hand on it Paris Jackson (#19) fails to make the catch

– LeFevour uses LeLegs to move the Ticats into range for another FG

Final Score: 33-23 for LeTicats

Key Stats:

Burris went 27 of 44 for 290 yards (2 TDs & 1 INT)

Walker had 8 carries for 37 yards

Henry² made 10 catches for 137 yards (1 TD)

Jerrell Gavins made 6 tackles

Closing Thoughts:

In a game where the Redblacks offense finally came to life, the defense that had been so stout the past few weeks came apart at the seams as Dan LeFevour stole the show with 470 yards of total offense (361 passing yards and 109 rushing yards). The Redblacks offense ran through Henry² on a night when Walker and the run game was shut down. Every catch Henry² made went for a first down but the Redblacks receivers as a group still need to do more as they left several plays out on the field due to drops. The defense was plagued with poor tackling and stubborn coaching decisions, ex: Continuing to blitz the safety even after repeating being burned on screens and dump offs. If the Redblacks are going to win games they simply cannot have their defense giving up 7 plays of 20+ yards per game. Adding insult to injury is the loss of Special Teams Captain Justin Phillips, who will miss significant time as he recovers from a broken fibula; WR Kierrie Johnson also left the game with an injury though the severity as of right now is still unknown. Some will point the finger to Coach Campbell’s decision to go for it on 3rd and 2 with two minutes remaining but personally I like the decision and agree with his logic.

“We had the ball at midfield, we were down by seven,” said Campbell. “I thought it was a good opportunity to stay on the field. It didn’t work out. We’re preaching to our players that we’re playing to win the game.”

Losing to an Eastern opponent stings, especially one without that was previously winless and without their starting QB but the Redblacks don’t have time to feel sorry for themselves with the Fake Riders coming to town next week. Maybe a little bit of love from R-Nation and a change of uniform is all they need to get back on track, after all, we’ve undefeated when we wear black.

@RedBlackGade

P.S. Cool to see the Redblacks twitter using the Henry² nickname, but don’t forget that you read it here first, way back in the pre-season!

-All images via CFL.ca, the Ottawa Sun and the Ottawa Citizen

A closer look at the new Ottawa Redblacks jerseys

For an expansion franchise, the uniform unveiling is pretty much the last major milestone before the games begin. And the Ottawa Redblacks did their unveiling in style, in front of 1,200 season ticket holders at the Ottawa Conference And Event Centre on Tuesday night. We weren’t able to be there in person, but #RNation did a great job bringing us there. Thanks to everyone for the providing the photos below. Hope to eventually source them all properly.

Without further ado, let’s take a closer look at each uniform:

HOME UNIFORM

ROAD UNIFORM

That was fun!

My thoughts:

– Very cool that we have different home & away helmets. The traditional black looks great, but I love the white!

– Jersey number font is the same style as we saw at mini-camp, but with an outline. The outline looks fine, but I think I could have worked just as well without a stroke.

– Interesting choice to have red numbers with a white stroke on the home jersey, rather than the opposite. Makes for an overall darker look. Not a bad thing.

– Interesting choice of font for player names. Again, thought they would go with something simpler to balance off the buzz saw-style numbering. But it isn’t too much either. Not my first choice, but it works.

– Would have thought red socks and some red shoulder striping for the home uniform, but again, I don’t mind the ‘black out’ look either.

– The ‘Redblacks’ word mark on the front of the jersey looks a little bigger than what we normally see on a football jersey (though not Montreal big). Also, I would have liked to see one of the jerseys with the ‘Ottawa’ word mark.

– While I’m really not a fan of the ‘flashes’ under the arm on the Sens home & away jerseys, I like the black trim on the Redblacks whites. Especially that it extends to the shoulders. Works very well. Strong look.

– As expected, the entire saw blade Redblacks logo was used on the helmets, as opposed to the R on its own. It looks really good. Perhaps we’ll see the R on its own after a few years?

– Nice looking black striping down the side of the white pant. Completes the white jersey nicely.

– Do we think the black jersey with white pants will work well? Not sure, given the striping on the pants. TBD.

– Hard to see at first, but the Rouge et Noir word mark is actually used on the front ‘bumper’ of the helmet, as pointed out on SportsLogos.net. Here’s a closer look:

Overall, a great first set of jerseys. Folks worried about plaid design can rest easy. While OSEG opted for a more modern style, they also kept things generally simple. A happy median.

For those who we’re hoping for a red jersey, don’t forget what owner Jeff Hunt had to say a few weeks ago. Don’t think we’ll be waiting too long.

An exciting day, filled with anticipation. As much fun as it was to speculate these last several months, the final product did not disappoint. A great looking uniform. Looking forward to picking up one of each jersey in the very near future.

One final thought: Props to the Redblacks for keeping the new uniform designs completely under wraps. Not a single leak, none of the rumours out there about plaid accents were even close to true and not a single jersey concept was really close to the final product. Nicely done!

@OTTRoughRiders

Redblacks jerseys coming May 6th + a few more concepts

5/5 UPDATE: The Redblacks posted the following teasers on Sunday and Monday prior to the unveiling. Didn’t give up much, but here’s what we got:

Appears to be the R in the Redblacks wordmark, which most teams place below the CFL crest on the front of the jersey. Also, seems likely that this is the road jersey, as the background is white.

Appears to be another shot of the road (white) jersey. This time, showing the CFL crest stitched into the base of a black collar.

Based on the limited amount we see here, it doesn’t look like OSEG have overdone it, opting for a simpler, more traditional look that fans seem to be clamouring for. I guess we will know for sure on Tuesday evening.

That reminds me: if you are attending tomorrow night’s unveiling, please tweet us lots of photos.

Thanks in advance!

—

Redblacks fans and jersey geeks: the wait is almost over. After months of anticipation, the Ottawa Redblacks have scheduled their jersey (entire uniform, actually) unveiling for May 6th at the Ottawa Conference and Event Centre. The event, open only to season ticket holders that reserve a (free) ticket, will begin at 7:00PM ET. According to an email sent to STHs on April 29th, Henry Burris and several other Redblacks players and coaches will be on hand “for the Ottawa football fashion event of the decade.” (Their quote, not mine, I assure you). No word yet on whether the event will be televised or streamed online. (UPDATE: no stream)

So we have a date and a time. #RNation is pumped. So is WR Kierrie Johnson. Now all that’s left is to wait… and check out a few more concepts!

Here’s a solid concept update from @mediumguts incorporating the new numbering:

And here are a couple of great updates from @NevillCarney:

Really like the striping on that black Gabriel jersey. Here’s Nevill’s take:

I wanted to create a look that I would want to wear and be proud to wear.

I based them off of what he have seen on various Redblacks merchandise, like the hat that Henry Burris is wearing for the home opener ticket pack, was the inspiration for the arm stripes on the black home jersey.

The numbers were based off the ones that were worn by the players for the mini-camp in Virginia. I included two versions with the numbers on the jerseys: one color number and one with an outline. Depending on which era of Ottawa football history you are looking at, the numbers varied in design after the 80s with a red outline included and that continued through to the end of the Renegades.

Finally, this great hand-drawn take by @Sports_Drawings of soon-to-be fan-favourite Jordan Roberts:

Be sure to check out the other concepts we’ve come across here and here. And here‘s a reminder of what the mini-camp jerseys looked like.

So, will they go with red or black for the home jersey? A traditional look or something original? And what about the helmet – classic black or break with tradition and go with red? We’ll know in just a few days, but what are you hoping for?

@OTTRoughRiders

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