College lacrosse jerseys don’t care about wins and losses.
You’re going to read a lot of lists that explain who the best teams are this preseason. Most of them will provide things like rosters and stats and logic to determine the best teams. Facts and logic are useful. They’re the sort of thing that says an MCLA team won’t beat an NCAA DI team, certainly not for a title they’re not eligible for.
But facts and logic have no sway here. Nope, this is the top 10 men’s college teams in the country based entirely on the kit they rock on the field. The All-Swag Top 10, perhaps. Skills are a side dish at this party. Bring your best fit, and we’ll go from there.
Top 10 Men’s College Lacrosse Jerseys
#10: Johns Hopkins (NCAA DI)
This might be a little low for some people, but I’d say being in the top 10 of several hundred teams (remember, this is every division) is a pretty huge win. Hopkins has a ton of options, but our favorite is the all-whites. A lot of teams have gone with the stormtrooper look in recent years, but few, if any, do it better than the Bluejays.
#9: Princeton (NCAA DI)
Princeton has one of the most classic, clean looks in the land. For a while there, I feel like it tried to get a little gimmicky, but its current kits are perfect for today and any year. It’s an excellent marriage of retro and modern, simultaneously harkening back to the program’s title-winning glory days while still being relevant today as a prime college lacrosse jersey.
#8: Army (NCAA DI)
I’ve always really liked Army’s jerseys. That subdued gold has always done a little bit more for me than the chrome gold, and the Black Knights use it great as a trim color. What really pushes the current unis over the top is the stenciled “ARMY” on the helmets. It’s absolutely perfect for who Army is, and it looks dope on and off the field.
#7: Chapman (MCLA DI)
There might not be a more iconic look in the MCLA than Chaptown’s stripes – the Panthers have been rocking these since Connor Martin roamed campus. The gradient striping adds flavor to both light and dark options, and their helmet was nice enough to get copied by the PLL. Sitting the name under the number also just works for these. Other teams have had better single jerseys in the MCLA, but Chapman has arguably the most consistently great one.
#6: RIT (NCAA DIII)
Look, just because we said Princeton’s classic look was good doesn’t mean we can’t appreciate a modern upgrade. Princeton, with its history, should be rocking a classic. RIT, a fellow black-and-orange Tigers program, finds a way to spice things up a bit. Their helmet, with the massive oversized Tiger on the sides and the chrome orange mask, is maybe my favorite in DIII, and I love the mismatching colors on the name and numbers. The team’s white jersey really pops and earns a high spot because of it.
#5: Onondaga Community College (NJCAA)
Speaking of slight upgrades on previous mentions for this list, OCC does exactly what Hopkins does, only a little better (in this man’s humble opinion). What can I say? I’m a sucker for that particular shade of blue, and I appreciate that OCC is willing to give us more of it. That Carolina blue helmet is a classic, and I love the color pop on the shorts and the gloves. Simple, clean, iconic – no wonder these guys always win the title.
#4: Richmond (NCAA DI)
I mean, guys, c’mon. It’s the freakin Iron Spider. Richmond might be newer to the DI lax scene, but it’s shot off like a cannon, and I refuse to believe that its gear didn’t play a part. That spider logo is fantastic, and Richmond leaning into the whole Spider-Man vibe with its helmets has always seemed like a huge win to me. These, though, with the metallic red helmets that just throw Avengers vibes at every single passerby, take the cake. New school, but in the best way.
#3: Oregon (MCLA DI)
The lacrosse Instagram community will continue asking these guys when they’re going DI until it happens, and that’s mostly because people just really want to buy their gear. The Ducks have followed in their football counterpart’s shoes by constantly being on the front lines of the gear war. Their current kits, specifically that beautiful kelly green with the throwback vibes on the shirt stripes, is my favorite non-NCAA uniform around. Plus, you’ve got options, able to pair it with chrome or classic up top, and with some nice lightning options for the jerseys. For my money, though, the faux-backs are the cream of the crop.
#2: Syracuse (NCAA DI)
Syracuse was the first school to introduce blur to lacrosse after Oregon did it for football. Fitting, as I think of ‘Cuse as sort of the Oregon of lacrosse, gear wise. Nike is always throwing them the latest and greatest, and it’s produced some stunning looks over the years. But ask me to choose just one, and I’m going to go with the throwbacks every single time. They harken back to so many great players, to watching the Gaits and the Powells tear it up in the Dome. Give me a Syracuse throwback jersey every single year, please.
#1: Towson (NCAA DI)
We got a lot of suggestions for porthole mesh jerseys, but we’ve got to give the crown to the guys who brought them back in the first place. Towson has become a surprisingly strong all around contender in the uniswag game the past five or so years, but nothing tops these. The old-school porthole mesh. The helmets that somehow manage to get bucket helmet decals to vibe on a modern S. The fact that they debuted the same day that the Tigers absolutely slapped Hopkins. Everything about these went right for Towson, and they’re my favorite college lacrosse jersey of the past two seasons bar none.
This article was originally published Dec. 2, 2020.
