{"id":50250,"date":"2023-12-08T14:30:00","date_gmt":"2023-12-08T14:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2023\/12\/08\/west-point-historians-inform-the-army-navy-game-uniform-selection\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T04:14:36","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T04:14:36","slug":"west-point-historians-inform-the-army-navy-game-uniform-selection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/off-duty\/military-sports\/2023\/12\/08\/west-point-historians-inform-the-army-navy-game-uniform-selection\/","title":{"rendered":"West Point historians inform the Army-Navy game uniform selection"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Each year since 2016 both the Army and Navy have unveiled special football uniforms<\/a> ahead of the storied annual rivalry matchup<\/a> in December.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, the unveiling is a chance to highlight the Army\u2019s history and connect the service with its veterans and current soldiers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Army Times talked with the leader of the team at the West Point<\/a> history department who spearheads selecting which unit the school will honor, teaming with the athletic department and Nike, which creates the uniforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lt. Col. John Zdeb<\/a> first enlisted in the Army in 1997 from his hometown of Schaumburg, Illinois but within a few years decided to go the officer route. That led to his acceptance at West Point, where he graduated in the Class of 2004.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The armor officer served tours in Iraq, Afghanistan, eastern Europe and Kuwait. He got to return to his alma mater as a teacher in 2013 before heading back out to big Army.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zdeb came back to West Point to teach military history in 2020 and quickly volunteered to help with the history department\u2019s uniform team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so humbling to be honest,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s certain things you get to do in life, things you never expected to have input and be involved with.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The lieutenant colonel said there\u2019s much more to selecting the uniform and various features than people might think. It\u2019s actually a two-year process from inception to unveiling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though don\u2019t expect any sneak peeks at next year\u2019s uniform in this article, participants are sworn to secrecy and must sign a non-disclosure agreement to work on the team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere\u2019s so much anticipation,\u201d he said. \u201cKnowing the reveal is coming, anticipating how it\u2019s going to be received. It took on added importance for me this year, being a division I served with.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Units honored with past Army uniforms:<\/p>\n\n\n\n