Now that the Lobos have clenched a bowl game and we’re all just waiting to find out if they’ll get to play in the New Mexico Bowl or if they’ll travel elsewhere, I figured that now would be the perfect time to take a look back at the entire season. And by that, I mean look back at all of the different helmet combinations the team wore. In the 12 games that they’ve played so far, they’ve worn seven different combinations, which is near Oregon-esque. I’m a sucker for these kind of things, so I went through all of the combinations to definitely determine the rankings of what we saw the team wear out on the field, starting from the bottom and working our way to what might be the best helmets the team has ever worn.

7. Silver Helmet, American Flag Shield/Stripe

Game Worn (Record): Tulsa (0-1)

This was a special helmet combination worn during the “Salute to our Heroes” game and, although it was a nice idea, it kind of ended up a little too busy. The stripe looked fine, with half blue with white stars and the other half red and white stripes, but the shield just looked… off. The more I look at it, the more I start to think that the overlay of Old Glory makes it look like the lobo is wearing a mask and lipstick.

6. Silver Helmet, Turquoise Shield/Stripe

Game Worn (Record): Nevada (0-1)

I’ve gone on the record as saying that I’m always okay when the Lobos incorporate more turquoise into their uniforms, so I wanted to like this helmet combination more than I did. I like that they used turquoise as the primary color but still included red borders, but against the silver helmet the colors didn’t pop as well as they should have. I think that the decals would have worked pretty well on a white helmet, so if the Lobos feel like adding a third helmet, there you go. A white helmet would have actually helped the American Flag combination out too, now that I think about it.

5. Grey Matte, Red Shield Left Side, Red Number Right Side

Games Worn (Record): Utah State, Air Force (2-0)

While putting this together, it became pretty obvious to me that I really like the grey matte helmet and am glad that they’ve added it to the mix. That said, this combination was my least favorite of those to use that helmet. The monochrome shield was a little blurry from distance (I think it looked better last year on the silver helmet) and I’m not crazy about putting the numbers on the helmets. That said, we beat Utah State and Air Force wearing this combo, so I’ll go ahead and advocate that we just wear these all the time.

4. Silver Helmet, Standard Shield, Red Stripe

Games Worn (Record): MVSU, Arizona State, Wyoming, San Jose State, Boise State (3-2)

The “standard” helmet, this combination is perfectly serviceable and completely unexciting now that they’re playing with other options. The Lobos refused to wear the grey matte helmets on the road, so these helmets were worn four out of the five road games (with the turquoise helmet being the exception). I really don’t have anything against these helmets and would be completely fine keeping these as the standard issue were it not for some of the other combinations they wore.

3. Grey Matte, Old Logo Left Side, Silver Number Right Side

Game Worn (Record): Colorado State (0-1)

This was the second time they brought out the old logo this season, which was a pleasant surprise. As someone who grew up with that logo, seeing it on the helmet again, and looking cooler than ever, really tapped into some major nostalgia. Again, I’m not a huge fan of the numbers on the helmet, but having them in silver worked better than the red.

2. Grey Matte, Old Logo Both Sides

Game Worn (Record): Hawaii (1-0)

This helmet combination was great all around. The old logo allows itself to be oversized much better than the shield does and the shiny cherry and silver really stand out against the grey matte helmets. This combination was interesting, unique, and a great twist on a retro look. I know that the university is not going to drop the shield entirely, as that is a major part of the Lobos brand identity right now, but I hope that they keep this look in the rotation.

1. Grey Matte, Zia Both Sides

Game Worn (Record): New Mexico State (1-0)

If I had to pick a single helmet for the Lobos to stick to, this would be the one. Like the old logo combination, I love that it’s a large logo and that it’s on both sides of the helmet. Plus, the cherry and silver really stick out here, keeping the school colors front and center. Plus, the Zia symbol is just a fantastic design in its own right and is so heavily associated with our state and our state pride. I mean, let’s be serious: how many people do you know with a Zia symbol tattoo? If that was our primary helmet, it would not only be distinctive, it would be instantly recognizable as New Mexican. On top of all that, we beat the Aggies wearing these, so even more incentive to keep them around.