The Illinois football program will wear a special helmet design during Saturday’s Military Appreciation Game against Minnesota, which kicks off at 12 p.m. ET on FS1.
The orange helmets are similar to the 1989-2012 throwback helmets the Illini have worn in select games this fall, with an underlined “Illinois” on both sides, but include 10 stars to represent the 10 former football players who lost their lives during World War II and the Vietnam War.
Meanwhile, the names of the 189 students and alumni who died in World War I are displayed within the blue-white-blue stripe down the center of the helmet. Their names are also etched into the columns at Memorial Stadium, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this fall.
The helmets are complete with an American flag and POW-MIA decals, honoring the soldiers who are prisoners of war or went missing in action. Illinois also keeps one seat on the west side of Memorial Stadium unoccupied in their honor.
This marks the fifth different helmet design for the Illini this season, joining their four stars, arched “Illini,” underlined “Illinois” and hand-painted leather designs.