This is just a concept I cooked up this week, being off work and not really having much to do. I have had it in my head ever since Illinois redesigned their entire athletic identity a couple years ago. While the new uniforms are miles better than the dated, piping-heavy uniforms from the 2000's, there are some pretty careless striping inconsistencies and design choices that I just don't agree with, so that being said, here is my take on the Fighting Illini.
I decided to take the current font and return the classic Illinois script to the helmet because I have always had a soft spot for it for some reason, and IMO, the block I is too vertical to be a strong helmet logo. The orange helmet would be a traditional metallic or molded shell, not the anodized look Illinois has sported since the redesign. I tweaked the sleeve stripes on the blue and orange jerseys and also went with a more traditional full stripe on the pants and adjusted the striping proportions. The new uniforms also have single color numbers to evoke a classic feel as well. I don't really see the need for a white or blue helmet because I think the orange helmet is the strongest and is most often associated with Illini football. Obviously each uniform element would be interchangeable so the team could mix and match up to 9 combos, which is plenty as far as I'm concerned.
Hopefully I have actually improved on Illinois' look and I'd love to hear what everyone thinks. Any comments and feedback would be appreciated, thanks for taking a look.