After 'Iron Wings' release, check out 5 of Louisville football's top alternate uniforms

After hinting at a uniform drop early Thursday morning, Louisville released its “Iron Wings” uniform a few hours later – the latest unique threads the program's players have suited up in.

The gray jerseys, accented by silver stripes on the sleeves and around the shoulders and collarbone, are set to go on sale Monday. The release came with mixed reviews from many fans on social media.

The Cardinals have had plenty of uniform combinations in the past that deviated from their normal look, many of which were well-received by fans. As far as players go, U of L linebacker Monty Montgomery said his favorite overall look is a staple of the Cardinals': the “Candy Cane” all-white uniform with red cleats and helmets the team wore against Florida State in 2019, Boston College in 2020 and NC State this past season.

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Here are the five of Louisville’s most popular uniform combinations from over the last 10 years:

1. Showtime vs. FSU (2014)

The Cardinals are no strangers to gray uniforms. The matte gray “Showtime” unis included darker gray tracks at the top of the jersey with black numbers outlined in red. A red Cardinal head outline on the left side of the gray bottoms and a black camo helmet capped off the look.

Despite the top-notch look, Louisville lost to Florida State 41-32 at home but ended the season with a 9-4 record.

2. Young Patriot vs. Wake Forest (2016)

Louisville’s military appreciation uniforms were featured on national television when the Cardinals played Wake Forest on ESPN2 in a 2016 night game. The clean, all-black jersey top came complete with white stars down the right shoulder and black and white stripes on the other. The numbers were a solid white, with a thin black outline just below a patch of the American flag.

The Cardinals even had matching black and white cleats with stars across the side of the shoe. They ended the night with a 44-12 win over the Demon Deacons and finished the season 9-4.

3. Primeknit vs. Clemson (2015)

The all-black jerseys Louisville broke out against Clemson in 2015 include chrome-shaded numbers and wing images on the shoulders, black pants with the program's English "L" logo on the hip in chrome and red, and black helmets with an outline in red of the traditional Cardinal bird logo.

In another night game, the uniforms were a hit, although the mojo couldn’t help the team – Louisville fell to the Tigers in a close one, 20-17.

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4. Louisville Uncaged vs. Auburn (2015)

U of L’s 2015 season featured not one but two alternate uniforms with the team starting with its “uncaged” look in the season opener against Auburn in the Chick-Fil-A Kickoff game. According to a release from the program, the design was supposed to symbolize the team’s style of play: fierce, attacking and always on the offensive.

The all-white look, which was also former quarterback Lamar Jackson’s collegiate debut, is accentuated with faded chrome and red wing designs on the shoulders, faded black wings on the sleeves of the undershirt and black filled numbers outlined in red. The white pants came complete with an “L” on the left hip, and the helmets included a distict and detailed glaring Cardinal.

The afternoon contest ended in favor of Auburn 31-24 but the Cardinals ended the year with a 27-21 win over Texas A&M and an 8-5 mark.

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5. Muhammad Ali theme vs. Boston College (2019)

Louisville channeled The Greatest on the afternoon of Oct. 5, taking down Boston College 41-39 in the uniforms inspired by the city of Louisville’s most famous native. Save for the gloves, red is nowhere in the look, with the uniform sticking with the black and white color scheme. ‘Louisville’ is written in black text, forming a half-circle around solid black numbers.

The white pants have a black band around the hip, which appears to be an ode to the boxing shorts Muhammad Ali wore when he knocked out Sonny Liston on May 25, 1965.

Louisville ended the 2019 campaign with an 8-5 record.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville football: 5 memorable alternative uniform combos