Aug. 19, 2007

Orlando, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - The UCF football equipment staff had a busy Sunday afternoon decaling more than 100 helmets for Monday's practice. The Knights went through fall camp without decals on their helmets, but the team will don the decaled helmets for the rest of the season.

Here is a link to a photo gallery of the actual decaling process the staff goes through to logo a helmet. The gallery shows the process of Kevin Smith's helmet being decaled from start to finish.

UCF Football Helmet Decal Photo Gallery

Here is a step-by-step run down on the decaling process:
1. The helmets are cleaned with soap and water
2. The shells of the helmets are checked for stress points, and cracks
3. Facemasks, chinstraps and hardware items are changed. Facemasks are changed when metal is showing or it is spreading. Chinstraps are changed from wear of buckles on the side straps. Hardware is changed with any signs of corrosion.
4. Stripes, side decals, nose bumper and cervical decals are attached. 5. Holes are cut in the stripe for access to air valves and jaw pads are checked for wear.
6. Everything is re-checked for tightness, correct facemask, and overall appearance. 7. The final step is not completed until the day of the game, which is putting a coat of wax on each helmet.

The Knights open the 2007 campaign on Sept. 1 at NC State. The team will make its home debut in Bright House Networks Stadium vs. Texas on Sept. 15. Season tickets for the first season at the on-campus stadium are still available and can be purchased by calling 407-UCF-1000.

For the latest news and information on the Knights, tickets or apparel log on to www.ucfathletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. Also check out UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.