Lynah Faithful ponder the case of the Big Red jerseys
Lynah Faithful ponder the case of the Big Red jerseys
If you were to describe the Big Red men's ice hockey home jersey of recent vintage, you'd probably say it was mostly white with a red stripe at the waist, and white and red sleeves. If you were to describe this season's jersey, you'd probably still say it was mostly white with a red stripe at the waist, with red and white sleeves. But the devil, as they say, is in the details, and a change to the jersey design this fall—making the sleeves mostly red—has the Lynah Faithful in a tizzy.
The players have worn special jerseys in recent memory: pink versions to raise money for cancer charities, commemorative ones bearing the names of legendary Cornell players. In fact, head coach Mike Schafer '86 plans another limited-edition jersey, based on the laced sweater of the early Sixties, to be worn for one game and then auctioned off to support the team's service trip next year. But after these one-offs, the Big Red has always gone back to the familiar design.
Taken at face value, the change isn't drastic—the jersey is still mostly white, and the CORNELL on the front is the same. But the change came without the hoopla you might expect after many years of an essentially unchanged design—and the scuttlebutt on the ELynah.com online forum was that they bore a striking resemblance to those worn by the Detroit Red Wings. Or, worse, by Boston University.
Some people probably didn't notice the change. But for many who've been filling the Lynah stands for decades, it's a jarring difference. After all, even Lynah itself didn't change much when the storied rink underwent major renovations a few years ago, since most of the alterations were outside the "bowl" of wooden-bench seats bolted to cement steps.
A few fans have speculated that the new design was an accident. Others think it might be a scheme to save money—figuring the unique Cornell jersey had to be pricier than one that's used by several other teams. Or could the change have been intended to make the men's and women's jerseys more similar? Whatever the reason, the new design hasn't gone over well. In Lynah's corridors and online discussions, fans have contemplated giving back the game-worn jerseys from past seasons they'd bought as keep-sakes so current players can wear them, or even collectively donating the thousands of dollars a re-order would cost. (Fortunately, the all-red road uniforms have not been changed.)
There are no immediate plans to replace the home jerseys now that the season is well under way—but a new batch will be ordered for 2011-12, as they are every year. Will the team stick with the new version, or will it return to the beloved old design? "Oh yeah," says Schafer. "We're going back."
— Mark Anbinder '89