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          College Football Nation Blog

          Best of the unis: Texas A&M channels Bear Bryant, TCU's 'Liquid Steel'

          • Sam Strong, ESPN Staff WriterOct 1, 2016, 08:00 AM ET
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            • College sports editor.
            • Joined ESPN in 2013.
            • Graduate of UCLA.
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          By now you've heard of Bear Bryant. The legendary coach won more than 300 games over the course of a 38-year coaching career and is responsible for half of the stadium's name at Alabama, along with several other university structures. Even the Crimson Tide's unofficial houndstooth gear was inspired by Bryant's hat.

          While Bryant won more than 200 of those games during his days in Tuscaloosa, it's easy to forget that The Bear's coaching career started elsewhere. First at Maryland, then Kentucky, then Texas A&M. The Aggies are paying tribute to the best team Bryant had in College Station when they wear their "Junction Made" throwbacks Saturday at South Carolina (4 p.m. ET, SEC Network).

          The 2016 Aggies will look like the 1956 Aggies, who went 9-0-1 and were bonded together by Bryant's grueling training camp in Junction, Texas, that later spawned Jim Dent's "The Junction Boys" book -- and two NFL head coaches. The jerseys also include a "9-0" patch. Like the look or hate it, the attention to detail is impressive, down to Riddell's logo from the same era.

          Not to be outdone, another Texas school is going with a more modern unveiling as TCU will host Oklahoma in an all-black look that includes a new "Liquid Steel" helmet.

          A week before sporting its throwbacks, Miami will honor former Marlin Jose Fernandez with a tribute on the Hurricanes' helmets.

          In the Pac-12, there's another new helmet as Washington State has a home date with Oregon in which the Cougars will be seen in anthracite helmets, a departure from the lighter gray they've worn in the past.

          Perhaps UNLV was feeling left out of the new helmet party because the Rebels will debut matte black helmets when they host Fresno State.