How The Michigan Football Uniform Has Evolved Over The Years

On the gridiron, Michigan football likes to stay true to its identity. They hold little room for bells and whistles — it's all business. Because of this, there haven't been many major changes to the Wolverines' uniforms. Here's a brief history of how they came to be and the changes they've endured.

Early in college football's history, there weren't the standardized uniforms that there are today. There weren't shoulder pads, ergonomic pants, technologically advanced helmets, or turf cleats. In fact, helmets weren't even a requirement until 1939. 

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the Wolverines wore sweaters or vests, generally branded with "U of M" or just a Block 'M'. Due to the black and white nature of the photos in this era, some of the colors can not be confirmed, but written accounts claim that the jerseys were generally white or navy. 

Michigan first placed numbers on the backs of jerseys in 1915, and they were officially required five years later in 1920. Around this time, the Wolverines began to wear some extra padding on their uniforms as well. By the 1920s, most players were wearing helmets of some kind, but they were yet to be standardized. In a 1928 game against Navy, Michigan debuted a maize jersey, described in The Michigan Daily as a "brilliant yellow."

When Fritz Crisler became head coach in 1938, he brought the "winged helmet" design from Princeton, a design that has remained a staple of the program's brand ever since. Players gradually began to incorporate more pads on the shoulder and thigh areas, more akin to the modern pad structure. The classic navy blue jersey with maize numbers and accents alongside maize pants that the Wolverines still don in some capacity today began to take form.

By 1956, most Michigan players were wearing masks on their helmets, albeit just one bar in front of the mouth. Numbers were also added to the sides of the helmets to help identify the players. The jersey remained largely the same in the 1940s and 1950s, keeping the navy and maize sweaters.

In 1962, certain players were given a "Wolverbear" patch on their shoulder, a Wolverine wearing a sailor hat with a Block 'M' on it. The idea came from assistant coach Bob Hollway, who was inspired by the Army's tradition of having different platoons have different patches. The players given the "Wolverbear" patch were called the "raiders."

The Block 'M' was added onto the shoulder of the jersey in 1968, but only for home games. When Bo Schembechler was hired in 1969, he brought a new tradition of placing maize, football-shaped stickers on the back of the helmet to recognize big plays from his players. He also removed the Block 'M' from the sleeves and replaced it with the jersey number.

For the Rose Bowl in 1977, Michigan put the players' last names on the jerseys for the first time. Then, in 1980, players' last names were placed on both the home and away jerseys, and they have remained on the jerseys since. Minimal changes happened in the next 13 years, aside from shoulder patches during bowl games.

In 1994, Nike penned a contract with Michigan athletics to become the official apparel provider. Nike didn't overhaul the jersey, opting to keep the look classic. They returned the Block 'M' to the shoulder of the away jersey in 1997 before removing it again in 2005. The 2005 away jerseys also featured maize piping from the shoulders down to the midsection.

Patches continued to be added for bowl games and special occasions, such as the 100th meeting between Michigan and Ohio State.

Michigan signed a new apparel contract with Adidas, ditching Nike. Like Nike, Adidas left the main conventions of the uniform alone, but made minor changes. For example, the years that the Wolverines won the Big Ten title were sewn on the inside of the shoulder.

In its night game against Notre Dame on Sept. 10, 2011, Michigan donned throwback uniforms. They were primarily white with maize and blue stripes on the shoulders and the Block 'M' on the left chest.

The Adidas era didn't last long in Ann Arbor, because as soon as the contract expired, Michigan signed with a different brand.

Michigan athletics signed once again with Nike, more specifically with the Jordan brand. Once again, the jerseys remained largely the same despite the new apparel provider.

In their season opener in 2017, the Wolverines debuted all-maize jerseys, just the second time in history, with the other being the aforementioned game against Navy in 1928. Michigan also added the all-blue variant in 2021 and even wore them in the 2023 (played in 2024) National Championship Game.

In the nearly 150 years that the Michigan football program has been around, the Wolverines have stayed true to their identity. There have been few major changes to the uniform, and that's just how they want it.