South Carolina football coach Steve Spurrier holds up one of the jerseys his and Maryland's football team will wear for their Nov. 14 games. (AP photo)
The Maryland and South Carolina football teams will wear camouflage designs on their uniforms for their games Nov. 14 to honor veterans and promote the Wounded Warrior Project.
The program helps troops wounded in combat deal with the non-medical issues they face as they transition back to duty or into civilian life. All gear including camouflage shoes (pictured below) will be auctioned off after the games with proceeds going to the Wounded Warrior Project
“We’re honored to be associated with these brave men. I like that word courage. We’re trying to encourage our football players to play with a little more courage like the way these guys do for our country,” South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier said at a news conference in Columbia, S.C.
Fans will have a chance to purchase camo clothing and makeup designed specifically for Nov. 14 who want to show their support for their team. Those proceeds will also go to the Wounded Warrior Project.
Maryland will play No. 15 Virginia Tech and No. 23 South Carolina faces No. 2 Florida in the nationally televised games. The jerseys will not mimic the full camouflage made by Nike that Army’s football team wore last December against Navy. Instead, the camouflage will only appear on the sleeves. However, the jerseys will have motivational statements like COMMITMENT and DUTY written on the backs where the names typically appear. It’s still unclear if the teams will wear all camo pants and helmets.
Army’s jerseys received mixed reviews from some alumni describing them as motivational while others said the jerseys made the players look like walking billboards. Maryland and South Carolina’s Under Armour jerseys are more subtle and support a worthy cause two days before three days after Veteran’s Day.
“It’s certainly an honor for us to be involved in this project. I think our kids are very excited about it,” said Maryland football coach Ralph Friedgen.
AP photo
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The story mentions (next to last paragraph) that this is being done 2 days before Veterans Day. The football games are on November 14th which is 3 days AFTER Veterans Day. Veterans Day is and always has been on November 11th, Armistice Day. This assumption that Veterans Day will be on the 16th since that is a Monday and thereby provides a 3 day weekend is incorrect and dishonors the original purpose of the holiday.
SFC Howard: Thank you for the correction. I changed it in the post. I apologize for the oversight. Thanks again.