UNC Kicks Off College Football Season With New Jordan 1 Low and 4 Cleats

The NCAA Football season kicks off this weekend, and that can only mean one thing: new Jordan cleats for the squad at the University of North Carolina. The GOAT shows out for his alma mater every year, and for the 2026 football season, UNC is lacing the team with fresh pairs of Carolina Blue 1s and 4s.

In what has turned into a yearly tradition for the UNC Equipment Department, the Tar Heels posted two new pairs of Jordan cleats to Instagram ahead of the team’s season opener next week against TCU. The Jordan 1 is grafted onto a Nike Vapor Edge cleat in classic UNC white and blue color blocking, with a subtle camo graphic worked into the university blue panels. The back of the Jordan 1 cleat has the Air Jordan wings logo, and the tongue gets a UNC logo tag.

The Jordan 4 cleat reimagines the Nike Alpha Menace in a full coat of university blue leather, with white netting and navy blue on the wing overlay, wing eyelets, and heel tab. Unlike their off-the-field Air Jordan 4 PE earlier this year, the back of the cleat gets a classic Nike Air logo in more university blue.

With so much Jordan imagery tied to UNC, the Jumpman always pays special attention to UNC PEs, releasing a weathered Jordan 1 cleat for last year’s Tar Heel football season, and a reimagined Jordan 12 cleat the year before.

These pairs are strictly for the UNC football team, so unless you’re reading this between two-a-days on campus in Chapel Hill, you’re almost certainly out of luck. UNC kicks off the 2026 football season on national TV at home next Monday, so look out for both the 1s and 4s on the line of scrimmage.

Zach Harris

Zach Harris is a writer based in Philadelphia. His work has appeared in Rolling Stone, Vice, Complex, High Times, and more. He is obsessed with skateboarding and bowling. He is still looking for his first 300. For tips, reviews, and anything in size 10.5 - zach.h@soleretriever.com