Jump to content

College Football Uniforms - 2017 Season


buckeye

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 4.8k
  • Created
  • Last Reply
2 hours ago, oldschoolvikings said:

I think you're missing his point.  Nobody is saying they can just put a full shoulder loop on the latest Nike or Adidas template.  The thought is, if a team went to their manufacturer (would have be be a relatively important client for that manufacturer... LSU, or preferably UCLA, who the friggin' stripe is named after) and said, "look, this is our signature... our fans love it, they hate change, our brand depends on it... find a way to create a lightweight, tight-fitting jersey, with as little extra fabric as possible, but still incorporates his type of stripe.  It's important to us... we are the client... just do it", it's very very difficult to believe that the experts at these companies couldn't do it.  Of course they could. In fact, I'd be willing to bet that's exactly how that jersey that LSU and Ole' Miss have been wearing happened.  Nike didn't just decide to do that... one of those teams came to them and complained about the shortening of the stripes, and that was the solution.

 

It's obvious most teams don't care that much, and most fans don't notice, and after a certain amount of time, those stripe are no longer considered cut-off, they just become the norm. But to pretend like there's just no choice... it's garbage.  Nike and Adidas sell the schools on this marketing scheme that these tighter, lighter jerseys will help them win (1.234% lighter!!  2.5432% harder to grab!!!) and the schools sign up for the template they want.  If it's a traditional school that wants to keep their tradition design, they are probably fine with the compromise of whatever slight alterations have to be made.  But don't buy that they have no choice.

 

 

Here's proof... a few years back, when Michigan was an Adidas school, Jim Harbaugh wanted this uniform;

 

hqdefault.jpg

 

Elasticized cuff stripe that went all the way around, sleeves big enough for a 4" number... as far as I know, that was like no other jersey Adidas manufactured at that time... look at what they produced for pretty much every other team they worked with.  But Harbaugh said, "this is what I want" (probably took his shirt off, and went all bug eyed) and they cared enough to actually do it.  Obviously, Nike went full Nike on them, but I'd bet that was because they decided it was better marketing to adapt to a Nike template.  But don't believe Michigan couldn't have insisted on full wrap-around sleeve cuffs and a number on the sleeve... they always have that option. A template is the manufacturer's business... the dog shouldn't have to be wagged by the tail. 

Well ripon produced those uniforms too because adidas wasn't giving them the product they wanted. They just had to put an adidas logo to satify the contract still.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

26 minutes ago, dont care said:

Well ripon produced those uniforms too because adidas wasn't giving them the product they wanted. They just had to put an adidas logo to satify the contract still.

 

OK, assuming that's true, does Ripon have some kind of magic formula unavailable to the geniuses at Adidas or Nike?  I guessing not. Suppose when UCLA's contract is up, and if Nike tried to sign with them, if UCLA agreed on the condition that Nike supply them with a custom jersey that accommodates their stripe, would Nike just refuse?  Say it's impossible? I don't know, maybe they would just say no, but if so that's a sign that, when it come to CFB, the client/supplier relationship has gotten completely f'd up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, oldschoolvikings said:

I think you're missing his point.  Nobody is saying they can just put a full shoulder loop on the latest Nike or Adidas template.

Plus, Nike is already changing their template to accommodate the cut-off stripes. As someone else pointed out earlier in the thread, there's an extra seam along the shoulders where the stripes terminate that isn't on jerseys that don't have shoulder striping/yokes/etc. They've managed to do this without compromising on their main selling points of lightness or fit.

 

If Nike can do that, why can't they change their template to fit a full shoulder loop if that's what the client is asking for? Especially when smaller companies like Ripon are perfectly capable of doing it? The same applies to Adidas and Under Armour.

 

The blame ultimately falls on the clients. They're content with shoulder stripes that terminate awkwardly and don't look good. If enough clients started pressuring the Big Three to make jerseys with real shoulder loops, I'm sure they'd find a way.

xLmjWVv.png

POTD: 2/4/12 3/4/12

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, oldschoolvikings said:

 

OK, assuming that's true, does Ripon have some kind of magic formula unavailable to the geniuses at Adidas or Nike?  I guessing not. Suppose when UCLA's contract is up, and if Nike tried to sign with them, if UCLA agreed on the condition that Nike supply them with a custom jersey that accommodates their stripe, would Nike just refuse?  Say it's impossible? I don't know, maybe they would just say no, but if so that's a sign that, when it come to CFB, the client/supplier relationship has gotten completely f'd up.

 

Ripon's magic formula is using the generic late 90's jersey template which was the basis for 90% of college and pro jerseys and is still used by the packers, panthers, cfl and select others. When Ucla went back to their traditional stripe they literally went back to an older template that was worn before techfit came on the scene.

 

It all comes down to $ and who has the leverage. If Ucla has the clout to mandate a certain uniform style in their contract language then  it's up to the supplier to provide that product or they have to source an acceptable alternative that meets the contractual obligation. The crux of the issue is that 95% of the parties on the client side only care about the financial aspects of the supplier deals. Most decision makers either aren't detail oriented in such a matter or simply don't care. You'd be surprised how close enough is the norm.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, guest23 said:

 

 

 

It all comes down to $ and who has the leverage. If Ucla has the clout to mandate a certain uniform style in their contract language then  it's up to the supplier to provide that product or they have to source an acceptable alternative that meets the contractual obligation. The crux of the issue is that 95% of the parties on the client side only care about the financial aspects of the supplier deals. Most decision makers either aren't detail oriented in such a matter or simply don't care. You'd be surprised how close enough is the norm.

 

Actually (and sadly) I don't think any of us would be surprised at all.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

25 minutes ago, dont care said:

Has the logo been black in the past? I feel yellow would be more visible

They actually haven't even had the logo at midfield in the past, instead only having it in the "IOWA" endzone.

IMG_4881.JPG.25c79bea43496e3ad753d33ed13e8ab6.JPGIMG_4882.GIF.e433fce0ec48e74dab487258e5512c8e.GIF

You're probably right though, the new midfield logo would be more visible if the colors were flipped.

IPTMMN0.png?1

RhlTL5V.png?1

8CBx12E.png?1

Link to comment
Share on other sites

50 minutes ago, dont care said:

Has the logo been black in the past? I feel yellow would be more visible

 

I could be way off, but perhaps the department execs/top donors really liked the look of the basketball court and wanted to keep the aesthetic.  (yes I'm aware the argument is weak because of wood/grass backgrounds).

 

cha_-_new_floor.jpg

Smart is believing half of what you hear. Genius is knowing which half.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, WSU151 said:

 

I could be way off, but perhaps the department execs/top donors really liked the look of the basketball court and wanted to keep the aesthetic.  (yes I'm aware the argument is weak because of wood/grass backgrounds).

 

cha_-_new_floor.jpg

According to Iowa's brand standards manual, only the black version of the logo can be used with a light background. I'm guessing they consider green a light background. 

 

http://iowa.828.solutions/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2017/04/IowaBrandsStandardsManual.pdf

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.




×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.