It’s been said that “clothes don’t make the man.”

Perhaps. But they can make the man look good. Or bad.

Teams put a lot of stock into uniforms because having the right look is important.

Players want it. Many would tell you that how they look will affect how they feel, which, in turn, influences how they play.

And the fans want the right look too. Nobody wants to support a team with a bland logo or ugly colors. Fans want to look sharp just as much as the players do.

That’s why franchises like the Tampa Bay Storm and San Antonio Talons are rolling out new unis for the 2012 season. Now, whether the Storm’s shift to a new logo and bright blue helmet or the Talons’ new black and blue threads end up being a hit or miss is anyone’s guess. But one thing’s for sure – over the last 25 years, Arena Football League franchises have explored all sorts of unique uniform combinations in an effort to find the “right look.”

It starts with the helmet.

The Iowa Barnstormers, for example, burst onto the scene in 1995 with helmets featuring old-fashioned pilot’s goggles. The New Orleans VooDoo developed their very popular skull and crossbones logo for the 2004 season and, of course, despite only lasting one year in the League, the Minnesota Fighting Pike cemented their legacy in Arena Football with an iconic red-eyed fish leaping across a gold helmet.

Last season, the Arizona Rattlers even ditched their trademark copper lids and came back in black, a move that no doubt played a role in propelling the team to ArenaBowl XXIV.

Okay, maybe the helmets didn’t have as much to do with the Rattlers success on the field as the guys wearing them, but Tampa Bay hopes the switch from gold to blue pots will be just the spark they need to return to glory in 2012.

There’s no doubt that helmet design is essential to a winning uniform, but the ensemble can be made or broken with the combination of the jersey and pants.

The Utah Blaze boast one of the League’s most popular schemes in their home black uniforms with orange stripes and numbers. Likewise, Milwaukee has also transitioned to using orange and black as their primary colors, though the original Mustangs’ franchise used a purple and teal scheme from 1994-2001. In their inaugural season last year, the Power repped Pittsburgh by donning black and yellow and the Soul came back to Philly rocking their gray and blue combos.

There are also special occasion uniforms that teams bust out for big nights. The Chicago Rush planned a “Black Out” uniform for the team’s home opener last season, which paid tribute to the Chicago Bruisers original AFL franchise from 1987 and commemorated ten years in the League for the Rush. Meanwhile, the Talons, Jacksonville Sharks and others sported camouflage jerseys to honor the men and women of our armed forces on Military Appreciation Nights.

Of course, for every winning uniform, there are bound to be some questionable ones.

The Tampa Bay Storm “zubaz” look comes to mind. Even though Jay Gruden and company gave fans a lot to cheer about in those days, “Macho Man” Randy Savage may have been about the only person who could get behind those pants.

But that’s part of the fun. Over the last 25 seasons, we’ve seen so many creative, colorful and even questionable uniform choices from franchises seeking the “right look.” Who’s got it? Who knows? What we do know is there are certainly plenty of options to choose from.

What’s your favorite?