The Gridiron Uniform Database turns 2

It's our birthday.  The Gridiron Uniform Database turns two years old today.

A year ago when we celebrated, Rob, Bill and myself took turns comparing where we were when we started and how far we came up to that point.  We certainly came a long way.

In the year since June 12, 2012, we have come a long way even more.

We added a 1920 - 1932 section to the GUD.  We now have a full uniform database from 1931 to the present.  We hope to add even more uniforms to this era of the NFL as we go along.

We added a complete history of the uniforms worn in the Pro Bowl.  Every Pro Bowl game, every AFL All-Star Game, and even the Shamrock Bowl, the All-America Football Conference's lone All-Star outing.

Of course, the 2012 NFL season came and went, and we added those uniforms as the games were played out, the game by game uniform matchups were added.

We added a lot of stuff to the research tab as well.  Consider:

1) A text description of the history of game officials' uniforms, all the way back to the first season of 1920.

2) A text description of the long departed, but very important College All-Star Game uniforms.

3) Perhaps most important, a history of commemorative helmet decals that have been worn by every team ever.  This is surely the most exhaustive examination of these logos to be found anywhere.

As for now, what is going on currently at the GUD?

Bill - with tremendous help from Larry Schmitt - is updating perhaps the most overlooked aspect of a football uniform, the waistbelt, or more commonly referred to simply, as the belt.  When the GUD first opened shop two years ago, the belts were mostly either just colored in the pant colors of the team, or a very generic black belt.  In recent weeks, the belt colors as well as the belt tunnel/loop patterns have been updated dramatically, in some cases, with impressive results!

Tim is slowly but surely adding additional reference to each season, namely, the weekly uniform matchups for every regular season and post season game played in the NFL and AFL since 1950.  We are roughly halfway through the first step of this project.  The years posted so far are of a "random" variety, but eventually all the holes will be filled and soon you will be able to see every single uniform matchup ever for the last 63 years!

Rob, of course, has the lucky task of taking what Bill and Tim have done and adding all of these goodies to the site itself.

Not to mention the continual and perpetual updates to getting the stripe patterns, numeral fonts, shades of colors, helmet logos even more closer to the way they actually were.  There's no question were have added hundreds of updates to the GUD since our June 12, 2011 launch.  And there will certainly be more as new information is discovered from long forgotten photographic evidence, whether it be on the internet, ancient books and magazines, precious microfilm, yard sales, etc.  If you submit it and we can document it and then confirm it, we will add it to the GUD.

A few areas where we have fallen short, we hope to soon remedy.  We realize we have not blogged nearly as much as we should have since the Ravens took care of the 49ers in Super Bowl XLVII.  This very blog will hopefully get us back in gear.  Our facebook page has been dormant for some time.  We promise to be much more timely and frequent there.  Rob is hoping to make our podcasts, once experimental, more of an ongoing educational presence.  While the blog, facebook and podcasts are important and bonuses to the GUD, the heart of our existence is the website, The Gridiron Uniform Database.  Stay with us in year three of GUD as we promise to add more good things along the way, as well as - of course - the 2013 season, with the Dolphins, Vikings and Jaguars all making major changes to their look(s).

To close, we can't thank you enough for your kind words, encouragement and most of all your generous help, both in information and financially.  A generous financial gift from a very kind benefactor has helped the GUD beyond words.  Rob, Bill and Tim are three grateful guys to all of you for your enduring support.  We hope to make year three of the GUD every bit as good as the first two years.

As always, your comments are always welcome. You can always contact us personally.

Stay tuned.