Classic OSU Road Look At Arizona

Oregon State will go with their classic road look for the first time this season at Arizona, wearing their black helmets and black pants with white jerseys. The Beavers came close to this at Michigan, but wore their white helmets over the white over black ensemble.

This is the Beavers best road look, one they should wear more often. And if it were a night game in Tucson, it would be a great idea.

But it isn't, and is another episode of marketing over common sense. The snow-man look, white helmets, jerseys, and pants is easily the least intimidating outfit that Oregon State has, and other than possibly the orange over white sherbet cup combo, arguably their worst look. I personally hate it.

But this is one time when it should be the only choice; wearing an extensive amount of black in triple digit heat in direct sunlight for 4 hours is irresponsible. The all-white ensemble would make a difference in heat retention and fatigue under these conditions, and it makes sense to make the choice that makes a tactical difference. In a near-must win situation in a game most are predicting to be a close contest, the littlest of detail could be decisive. And this isn't even a little one.

Andy_Wooldridge@yahoo.com