Navy is turning 100 years of history into a football uniform. On September 15 the Naval Academy and Under Armour revealed a commemorative set honoring the 1926 national championship team, the only national title in program history, and it goes on the field Saturday, October 31 against Notre Dame at Gillette Stadium.
The hook is the striping. This is a modern take on the Chevron Stripe jersey Navy wore in 1926, and the stripes are not decoration. There are nine of them, four on the front and five on the back, one for every win that 1926 team produced.
Image: Navy Athletics and Under Armour
What Navy Is Actually Wearing
The jersey is navy with gold chevrons cutting across the chest and shoulders, and gold numerals underneath them. The helmet is the plain gold shell Navy wears every week, no side logo, navy facemask, NAVY across the bumper. The pants are gold. Navy socks finish it.
The details are where the anniversary lives:
Image: Navy Athletics and Under Armour
The collar line is the deepest cut in the whole package. "Navy Blue and Gold" is the alma mater, and it was first performed on April 24, 1926, the same year the team on the patch went unbeaten.
The Team It Honors
The 1926 Midshipmen went 9-0-1 and shared the national championship. The season ended in Chicago at Soldier Field against Army, in front of a crowd reported around 110,000, and Navy walked out with a 21-21 tie that preserved the unbeaten year. A century later, the program still has exactly one national championship, and this is it.
That is why the nine stripes work as an idea. A throwback that just copies an old jersey is a costume. A throwback that counts something is a record.
Why the Notre Dame Game
Navy is the designated home team for the 99th meeting with Notre Dame, and the game is at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, a first for the series and Notre Dame's first game in the building. The date was announced back in 2024.
Navy building a uniform for a neutral-site Notre Dame game rather than saving it for Army in December tells you how seriously the academy takes this anniversary. The Army-Navy Game gets its own set every year, and that one is still unannounced.
Our Grade
ColorWay Sports Grade
B-
The Helmet and Pants Are Perfect · The Chest Is Doing Too Much
The gold helmet and gold pants are the best parts of this, and they are the parts Navy did not touch. Plain gold shell, no logo, navy mask. It is one of the cleanest looks in college football and it needs nothing.
The chest is where it gets crowded. Stacking chevron stripes directly above the numerals means the eye lands on stripes, numbers, an anniversary patch and a conference patch inside the same few inches. The idea behind the stripes is genuinely good, and the count is a real detail rather than a marketing line, but the execution reads busy rather than sharp. A cleaner version exists where the chevrons live on the shoulders and let the numbers breathe.
Honoring the only national championship in program history is worth doing, and doing it with something that means something is better than another all-black alternate. We just wish the front of the jersey were quieter.
The Bottom Line
Navy wears the 1926 centennial uniform once, against Notre Dame at Gillette Stadium on October 31. Nine chevron stripes for nine wins, Class of 1926 numerals, an anniversary patch, and the untouched gold helmet and pants underneath. The concept is one of the best of the college season. The chest is one element too many.
For the rest of Navy's season, including the December tribute set that has not been revealed yet, see our Navy 2026 uniform schedule. Their opponent's calendar is in the Notre Dame 2026 uniform schedule, and the other academy's is in the Army 2026 uniform schedule.
Frequently Asked Questions
What uniform is Navy wearing against Notre Dame?
The 1926 centennial uniform: a navy jersey with nine gold chevron stripes, gold numerals in the Class of 1926 pin typeface, a 100th anniversary national championship patch, the standard gold helmet and gold pants. Navy announced it on September 15, 2026, and wears it Saturday, October 31 at Gillette Stadium.
Why does the Navy jersey have nine stripes?
One for each win by the 1926 national championship team, which finished 9-0-1. Four of the stripes are on the front of the jersey and five are on the back.
When did Navy win a national championship?
In 1926. The Midshipmen went 9-0-1 and shared the national title, finishing with a 21-21 tie against Army at Soldier Field in Chicago. It remains the program's only national championship.
Who makes Navy's uniforms?
Under Armour, which built this commemorative set with the Naval Academy.
Where is the Navy vs Notre Dame game in 2026?
Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on Saturday, October 31. Navy is the designated home team for the 99th meeting in the series, and it is the first time the game has been played there.
Is this the Army-Navy uniform?
No. Navy builds a separate tribute uniform for the Army-Navy Game every December, and the 2026 version has not been revealed. This one is for Notre Dame only.
Uniform images courtesy of Navy Athletics and Under Armour. Navy announced the uniform on September 15, 2026.