Penn State Nittany Lions

Penn State ditching jersey names for tradition in 2015

Published Jul. 16, 2015 10:51 a.m. ET

foxsports

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Penn State's football jerseys will have a throwback look this season: no names.

The university said Thursday it's returning to the style it sported for 125 years before player names were added the last three seasons.

Coach James Franklin says there's only one name that matters: Penn State.

Former Coach Bill O'Brien added names to Penn State's solid blue and white jerseys in 2012 as tribute to players who stayed in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child-sex abuse scandal.

Now the Nittany Lions are again embracing plainness and individual anonymity, even adopting the slogan it used en route to the 2008 Big Ten Championship: "Black Shoes. Basic Blues. No Names. All Game."

Franklin says despite the change, the commitment of the 2012 players to stick with the university won't ever be forgotten.

*Editor's note: As part of the announcement, Penn State released the video above, a reflection on the school's iconic uniforms that concludes with a nameplate being ripped off a PSU jersey.