The OU athletic department announced the football team will be wearing the Nike Inc. Pro Combat uniform Saturday in Lubbock, Texas against the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

The Sooners are one of 11 teams to showcase Nike’s new uniforms before they are officially released for the 2010 season.

OU’s jerseys will feature white shirts and pants with crimson trimming along the sides, red lettering, red numbers and white helmets.

To finish off the entire package, Nike is providing new cleats and gloves that have the OU logo printed all over them.

The jerseys were made to respect past Sooner football teams and jerseys and were inspired by former head coach Bud Wilkinson’s “fast break offense” teams that won national championships during the 1950s.

“It’s almost like a mix of a throwback with jerseys that are made now,” sophomore wide receiver Dejuan Miller said. “It’s a real different feel, but I like it.”

The players said they like the new jerseys and cannot wait to wear them.

“They look pretty sweet,” freshman quarterback Landry Jones said. “I’m pretty excited to wear it, though.”

The only problem that could arise with the new uniforms is the fact Jones has become used to finding a red helmet downfield to throw to rather than the white ones the team will be wearing Saturday.

Jones said he does not think he will have trouble adjusting to the different helmets, but he has never had to throw to any color helmet outside of crimson or his high school’s color orange.

“I’ve never thrown to a white helmet,” Jones said. “I don’t think it’s going to be too big of a deal.”

Head coach Bob Stoops said the team will start practicing in the white helmets later this week but will not wear the actual uniforms until game day.

Other than the new design, the uniforms feature a unique, lightweight technology that makes them 37 percent lighter when dry and 46 percent lighter when wet compared to Nike’s traditional uniforms.

Other schools that are taking part in wearing the uniforms are Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Louisiana State, Miami, Virginia Tech, Missouri, Ohio State, Texas and Texas Christian.

“TCU’s is real good, but I don’t know if they measure with our jerseys,” Miller said. “Our jerseys are pretty fresh.”

Freshman center Ben Habern said he welcomes the concept of going away from OU’s traditional crimson and cream jerseys and it should be a good experience to go down to Texas Tech wearing the new uniforms.

“It will be kind of fun to change things up with the white helmet and stuff like that,” Habern said. “It will be fun going down to Tech and doing that.”