Every 2026 College Football Blackout Uniform, Ranked and Graded: Louisville's Is an F

via Washington Football / adidas

Three programs put out a black alternate jersey inside of about thirty hours this week. Nebraska, Washington and Louisville all went dark, all three are adidas schools, and all three are chasing the same night-game atmosphere.

We should say the quiet part first, because it colors everything below: we do not like all-black uniforms. Not as a rule, not as a category. Black is the easiest thing a designer can reach for and it almost always costs a program the colors people actually recognize it by. So none of these were starting from a high place. One of them still managed to finish well below the others.

Ranked worst to first, and graded.

Every uniform photo in this post, including the cover image, comes from the schools' official reveals. These are their images, not ColorWay Sports originals.

3. Louisville Cardinals

via Louisville Football / adidas

The gold is the problem, and it is a fatal one.

Louisville's colors are red and black. Cardinal red is the entire identity. It is in the name of the mascot, it is what fills Cardinal Stadium, and it is the only thing that separates Louisville visually from a dozen other programs. This uniform does not have any red on it. Not on the jersey, not on the helmet, not on the pants, not on the numbers.

What replaced it is an antique gold that has nothing to do with the school. Louisville arches across the chest in white with a gold outline, the numbers are white with gold, the adidas stripes are gold, the Cardinal medallion at the collar and on the thigh is gold, and the helmet bumper reads CARDINALS in white and gold. Take the wordmark off and there is no way to identify this team.

via Louisville Football / adidas

The reveal leans on a boxing theme, gloves and all, and adidas has talked about a retro nod to the program's 1980s era. Neither of those ideas is bad. Both of them get buried, because the first and only thing your eye does with this uniform is ask where the red went.

This is what separates a bad blackout from a failed one. A bad blackout is boring. A failed blackout deletes the team. Louisville is scheduled to wear this twice, against Virginia on October 4 and against Clemson on November 14.

T-1. Nebraska Cornhuskers

via Nebraska Athletics / adidas

Nebraska did the one thing Louisville did not: it kept its color. The red is all over this uniform, on the chest wordmark, the facemask, the helmet striping, the glove detailing and the number outlines. You know who this is from the back of the stadium.

The numbers are the best decision in the set. They are enormous, white, and outlined in red, and they sit high enough on the chest that they read cleanly on a dark jersey. That sounds obvious and almost nobody gets it right. Most blackouts run tonal or thin-outlined numbers that vanish on television, which is the single most common way these uniforms fail. Nebraska went the opposite direction and the jersey is far more legible for it.

via Nebraska Athletics / adidas

The helmet is where we come off it. Gloss black with a metallic red stripe and a fully red facemask is a lot of shine on a piece that is already the busiest thing in the uniform, and the metallic finish reads closer to chrome than to Nebraska red under lights. GBR on the front bumper is fine. The shell underneath it is trying too hard.

The concept is called "Our Red Burns Brighter," and the details behind it are genuinely thoughtful: the metallic finishes reference the fire towers and fireworks at Memorial Stadium, the crop-row pattern in the helmet stripe carries the same agricultural idea as the 2026 rebrand, and there is a perforated Block N on the back panel inspired by the stadium drone shows, with "A Winning Tradition" inside the collar.

via Nebraska Athletics / adidas

Nebraska debuts this on Halloween, October 31, against Washington, in the second annual Blackout game at Memorial Stadium. Which means the two uniforms tied at the top of this list are going to be on the same field.

T-1. Washington Huskies

via Washington Football / adidas

This is the nicest looking of the three and it still only gets a B-, which tells you how we feel about the category.

Washington kept purple and gold present and used them properly. The sleeve stripes run purple over gold, the helmet carries a purple and gold center stripe on a black shell, the numbers are purple with a gold outline, and the nameplate is gold. Purple and gold against black is a combination that works, because both colors are bright enough to hold their edges on a dark base. The gold cleat and glove detailing pulls it together.

via Washington Football / adidas

Two things keep it from going higher.

DAWGS across the chest. We understand the appeal and the crowd will like it. It is still a nickname where the school name goes, and nickname wordmarks age faster than anything else on a uniform. Washington has one of the better wordmarks in the sport and chose not to use it.

It is a bit bland. Outside of the striping, this is a black jersey and black pants with no structural idea running through it. There is no equivalent of Nebraska's oversized numbers or crop-row stripe, nothing that would make you stop and look twice. Clean and forgettable is a real outcome, and this lands there.

via Washington Football / adidas

Washington has not announced which of its seven home games this comes out for. Given Nebraska is hosting the Blackout on October 31 and Washington is the visitor, the Huskies will presumably save it for Seattle.

The Bottom Line

via Nebraska Athletics / adidas

Nebraska and Washington both land at B-, which is our ceiling for a uniform whose entire premise is removing the team's colors. Nebraska wins on legibility and loses on the helmet. Washington wins on polish and loses on the chest wordmark. They are genuinely even, and they play each other in one of them.

Louisville gets an F, and it is not close. The other two put a black jersey on a team you can still identify. Louisville swapped its defining color for one it does not own, and what is left is a nice looking uniform belonging to nobody.

For the rest of this offseason's college jersey reveals, we graded Arizona State's "Roses & Devils" throwback, Cal's Joe Roth uniforms, Florida's matte blue helmet, Georgia's first white helmet, and Nebraska's full 2026 rebrand.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which college football teams released blackout uniforms for 2026?

Nebraska, Washington and Louisville all revealed black alternate uniforms in mid-August 2026, all three made by adidas.

When will Nebraska wear its blackout uniform?

On Halloween, October 31, 2026, when Nebraska hosts Washington at Memorial Stadium for the second annual Blackout game.

When will Louisville wear its black uniform?

Twice in 2026: against Virginia on October 4 and against Clemson on November 14.

When will Washington wear its all-black DAWGS uniform?

Washington has not announced a date as of August 15, 2026. We will update this post when the school picks a game.

What is wrong with Louisville's 2026 black uniform?

It contains no red. Louisville's identity is Cardinal red and black, and this set replaces the red entirely with an antique gold that is not one of the school's colors, which leaves nothing on the uniform that identifies the team.

Which 2026 college football blackout uniform is the best?

Nebraska and Washington tie at a B-. Nebraska has the more legible jersey thanks to oversized white numbers outlined in red; Washington is the cleaner overall design but puts the nickname DAWGS where the school wordmark belongs.

What grades do the 2026 blackout uniforms get?

Nebraska B-, Washington B-, and Louisville F.