On Monday, the Calgary Stampeders will don their new third jersey for the first time at the Labour Day Classic.
However, while the players are focused on the rivalry on the field, some fans are focused on a controversial emblem on the uniform.
The new “Outlaw” jerseys are black with red trim and white numbering with crossed pistols on both shoulders.
They are similar to the special third jersey that was first introduced in the Labour Day Classic in 1994. But this year, the guns are a lot more prominent and not everyone is buying in.
“I don’t think they need to put a bunch of guns on a jersey,” said one fan.
Others took to twitter to voice their opinions.
@nottoct tweeted “… are we kidding cross guns on stampeder jersey all we need is more glorification of guns in this city…”
Brandon Sauer drove from Medicine Hat to get his hands on the new look. He says critics have it all wrong.
“They can think what they want,” he said, “but it’s not promoting gun violence in any way.”
Stamps President Gord Norrie said the league actually called him to ask if he was sure he wanted the pistols in the final design.
“We did think long and hard about using it,” said Norrie. “But this is Alberta. This is Western Canada. This is Calgary. This is cowboy country. Pistols don’t kill people. People kill people.”
Players say the emblem needs to be taken with a grain of salt.
New Stampeders jersey has caused some controversy
“I don’t think it’s controversial at all,” said Stampeders quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell. “I know people can, I guess, portray it as we’re promoting that. But, obviously, it’s for a reason. It’s for us being the Stampeders.”
Monday’s Battle of Alberta between the Stamps (7-1) and Eskimos (7-1) will break the current tie for the top spot in the CFL’s Western Division.
McMahon Stadium will host the Labour Day Classic on Monday, September 1, with kickoff scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Tickets are available through the Calgary Stampeders website.
The game will be televised on TSN.
