2011-2012 Bowl Games: Grading the Bowl Game Uniforms, How Do Oregon & UW Rank?

Were Oregon's uniforms the best of the bowl season?
Harry How/Getty Images

The Oregon Ducks have been the uniform kings of college football for about the last decade, and they once again managed to set the Internet on fire with their futuristic-looking uniforms that they wore yesterday at the Rose Bowl.

Oregon's shiny silver helmets received almost as much attention as the actual Rose Bowl game itself, as Nike proved yet again that the company knows exactly how to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to designing college football uniforms.

Oregon's uniforms were definitely worthy of attention, but they weren't the only cool design we saw this bowl season.

Here's a look at the 10 best uniform designs we saw in this year's bowl games.

10. Arizona State Sun Devils

Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Arizona State may have gotten blown out 56-24 by Boise State in the Las Vegas Bowl, but at least the Sun Devils looked sleek.

Nike created some new devilish-looking duds for the team this year, and while these uniforms weren't as cool as the all-black ensemble that the Sun Devils wore for their Blackout game against Missouri in September, the helmet and uniform design was still pretty eye-catching.

9. Virginia Cavaliers

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Virginia added a little orange flavor to its uniforms for the Chick-fil A Bowl, and while they may not have helped the Cavaliers beat Auburn, they did at least get people talking.

Personally, I liked the style, and I think the uniforms had a certain retro-feel that deserves appreciation.

8. Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin Cajuns

Chris Graythen/Getty Images

Having never seen a Louisiana-Lafayette game before watching the team play in this year's New Orleans Bowl, I have to say, I was definitely pleasantly surprised by the Ragin Cajuns' uniforms.

Since red and black are my two favorite colors, this style of uniform always seemed to be what I ended up with when I would create a team in Madden.

7. Wisconsin Badgers

Stephen Dunn/Getty Images

Adidas didn't exactly go crazy with its designs for Wisconsin's Rose Bowl uniforms, but if you look closely, you can see the rose in the "W" on the helmet, which was definitely a great-looking addition to this basic all-white ensemble.

6. South Carolina Gamecocks

Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images

Maryland wasn't the only school that Under Armour was feeding new uniform designs to this year. The company also gave South Carolina's uniforms a new feel, and the all-garnet ensemble that the Gamecocks wore when they beat Nebraska in the Capital One Bowl yesterday is the best one they came up with.

5. Michigan Wolverines

Adidas created these uniforms for Michigan to wear in tonight's Sugar Bowl against Virginia Tech, and I have to say, I like these more than I liked the "Big M" jerseys that the company came up with for the game against Notre Dame earlier in the season.

Michigan is the type of traditional team that would look weird donning fancy designs and crazy colors, but this basic uniform fits the Wolverines well, and the subtle details that Adidas added are a nice touch.

4. Boise State Broncos

Ethan Miller/Getty Images

We've seen these new-look all-blue jerseys from Boise State before, but i have to say that these are still my favorite uniform designs and helmets that the Broncos have.

Ultimately, I'm glad Kellen Moore got to play his final collegiate game in the all-blue uniform style that Boise State is most known for, instead of those awful orange jerseys that the Broncos wore against TCU back in November.

3. Oklahoma State Cowboys

Justin Blackmon
Donald Miralle/Getty Images

Oklahoma State did a lot of tinkering and experimenting with its uniforms this year, but the all-black design that the Cowboys went with for a few games, including yesterday's Fiesta Bowl victory over Stanford, was definitely the best of them all.

I didn't think it was possible to make star wide receiver Justin Blackmon look like anymore of a badass, but apparently dressing him in all-black will do the trick.

2. Baylor Bears

The uniforms Baylor wore for the Alamo Bowl made me want to say "nice" like this.

Now those are some cool-looking helmets.

1. Oregon Ducks

Harry How/Getty Images

Still, not even Baylor's helmets could compare with the ones that college football's fashion pioneers, the Oregon Ducks, graced Pasadena with yesterday for the Rose Bowl game against Wisconsin.

The Ducks always find a way to stay on the cutting edge and keep people talking, and the shiny silver helmets definitely did the trick once again.

Nike and Oregon are certainly a dynamic duo, and it should be fun to see what the two can keep coming up with in the years to come.