Navy honors Jolly Rogers with Army-Navy uniforms

On By Littum

  • Kalan Hooks, ESPNDecember 13, 2024, 8:26 PM ET

The Navy Midshipmen will use their annual battle against the Army Black Knights to honor a historically significant force.

Navy will honor the Jolly Roger’s aviation unit with a themed uniform during Saturday’s 125th edition of the Army-Navy game.

Established in 1943, Jolly Rogers conveys a legacy that demonstrates the tradition of excellence, victory and elegance in the US Navy with the slogans “Fear the Bones” and a call sign, “Victory”.

They have flown nine versions of the fighter in the previous 63 years, with their first airborne craft coming in January 1943 on F4U Corsairs assigned to VF-17 in World War II.

The jersey design is tailored to represent the squadron. The colors and the placement of the elements on the jersey are intended to illustrate the aircraft Jolly Roger’s wing. The dark navy cape reflects the Jolly Rogers craft design, with the stripe on the collar referencing the stripe on the top edge of the jet’s tail fin.

“Navy” is written across the chest in bold letters to resemble the wording on the side of the aircraft. The numbers refer to the numbers on the fuselage, tail flap and wings on the side of the aircraft.

The striped patterns on the sleeves illustrate the Jolly Rogers aircraft stripes with nine triangles – on the shirt and trousers – symbolizing the nine different aircraft types that Jolly Rogers has flown in their history.

The helmet, which is hand painted, features “Fear the Bones” on the helmet along with the striped triangle pattern with the skull and crossbones emblem on the side.

The bottom of the uniform honors the six Jolly Roger squadrons, beginning from 1943 to the present day.

This is the second time Navy football has honored the Jolly Rogers. In 1962, the Midshipmen, formerly known as the Cadets, wore a helmet design in a 34-14 victory against Army.