New Oregon unis

[BloodAtFirstBite]

Yep. Terrible.

Good Lord They're Awful

[dpnation]

You realize that Oregon does this because of the publicity, right? We talk about the University of Oregon all the time for being different. A kid in high school could narrows his choices to a few schools, then sees that he is going to get the most attention if he goes to Oregon. Nike continues to outfit the Ducks, and the life cycle continues. If you really hate Nike that much, and want them to go away, stop being so critical of them and just flat out ignore them. If you say this is impossible to do, well, guess what? That means Nike and Oregon are getting exactly what they wanted. Also, can anyone else come up with a way to say vomit on this thread?

Completely agree. The majority of readers on this board slam the uni's for being non-traditional and out there - but that's entirely the point. Nobody's sitting around talking about a run of the mill Adidas Tenessee jersey.

People talk about them, they get the best technology, and they get the most cutting edge designs in the country. It's a win for U of Oregon AND Nike.

Also, Nike often sells more Nebraska gear in Lincoln than Adidas does - despite Adidas' on-field license. As many Nike haters there are on this board, there are a whole lot MORE people who support and prefer Nike products and designs.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

You have got to be kidding me! Ok they get my early votes for the most horrible uniforms in the history of sport....I would be literally embarrassed to wear that in public!

Huh. I didn't know a person could be figuratively embarassed.

[Gothamite]

Also, Nike often sells more Nebraska gear in Lincoln than Adidas does - despite Adidas' on-field license. As many Nike haters there are on this board, there are a whole lot MORE people who support and prefer Nike products and designs.

It's worth noting, though, that Nike does not sell a lot of Ducks merchandise.

Here in New York, where I see people wearing t-shirts and sweatshirts and caps and jerseys for every school from UCLA to Maine, I've never seen anybody wearing a Ducks jersey.

I've even seen kids on the playground of PS 11 wearing Bucky Badger. But no Roboduck.

Tells us something.

[pdxuoduck]

From Thursday's Oregonian:

Ducks unveil colors for fall

Oregon's fourth football uniform style since 1996 offers 48 mix-and-match possibilities

Thursday, June 22, 2006

RACHEL BACHMAN

The Oregonian

EUGENE -- No longer do all college football uniforms resemble your gym teacher's Sunday finest. At Oregon, they look hatched from an alien pod sent to Earth to seek first downs and souvenir sales.

But that is the Ducks' point. While the Queen Marys of the football world have steamed along in the same uniforms since World War II -- a Penn State official said a change would distress its fans -- Oregon is a cigarette boat speeding past the bluebloods.

The Ducks' fall collection debuted Wednesday morning at Oregon's Casanova Center: four different jerseys, four pants and three helmets. The resulting innovations and ensemble possibilities, 48 of them in all, make Oregon the most unusually outfitted and fussed-over team in the nation. And that is exactly what the Ducks want to be.

"We're a happenin' place," Oregon athletic director Bill Moos said, "and young people like that."

One by one on Wednesday, four players emerged from behind a green curtain, showing off the new look. With Nike executive Todd Van Horne narrating, bedecked in black rectangle glasses and shabby-chic khaki blazer, the scene felt like New York's Fashion Week with face masks.

Oregon football has "a longstanding tradition of uniform change," Van Horne said. In college football, that's sort of like having a history of being born yesterday.

But there is no question that Oregon's signature is innovation. This the Ducks' fourth uniform style since Nike began designing for Oregon in 1996.

A diverse staff tackled the two-year project: Van Horne, Nike's creative director of U.S. sport apparel, Nike design legend Tinker Hatfield, a committee of the school's past and present football players, and Oregon coach Mike Bellotti.

The uniforms are 28 percent lighter than last year, 34 percent lighter under wet conditions. Hard-duty fabric covers the shoulders and knees, where wear is greatest. The word "Ducks" appears on the upper chest and "Oregon" is emblazoned down the left leg. No matter how contorted the pose, a player's allegiance will come across.

For offensive linemen who haven't shed that 30 pounds of Easter-candy weight, the new jersey numbers are slightly tapered at the bottom, making the shoulders appear wider and the waist narrower. Bellotti dreamed up the font, called, "Bellotti Bold." (He gets no royalties, he says.)

Oregon's all-inclusive contract with Nike covers the cost of the uniforms. But the status of Oregon alumnus and Nike co-founder Phil Knight surely contributes to the fact that, unlike other Nike-outfitted teams, Oregon's design is unique.

One combination of the new uniforms will feature white jerseys, pants and helmets, something that could make the Ducks look like the Fighting Sidewalk Chalks. But that's exactly like fashion from the runways: expensive, and nothing most people would wear out of the house. Its appeal is in its exclusivity.

The paint on the traditional green helmets, for instance, is made with glass beads and costs $2,400 per gallon. Van Horne said he was not sure whether the white and yellow helmets would require the same paint, but at Nike price hardly matters.

"Nothing," Van Horne said, "is off the table."

1894-1970s: Oregon uniforms change nearly a dozen times.

Early 1970s-1994: Ducks wear Kelly green jersey featuring Donald Duck charging through a college-style "O" on the shoulders. They wear canary yellow helmets (with collegiate-style green "UO" logo starting in 1978) and yellow pants.

After the 1994 season, Oregon goes to the Rose Bowl.

1995: The Ducks wear green pants for the first time since the Dan Fouts era.

1996: In the Cotton Bowl following the 1995 season, Oregon dons first Nike uniforms. Green and white racing stripes disappear from helmets.

1999: Uniforms take an ultramodern leap, ditching collegiate fonts. The green is darker, the numbers futuristic, the fit like Saran Wrap. Dark helmets descend like so many Darth Vaders, and a sleek new "O" logo appears on their sides.

2003: Color: the next evolution. Bold uniforms in "thunder" green and "lightning" yellow debut. Most people gasp in horror; Oregon recruits swoon.

The Ducks kick off the season in blinding yellow jerseys and pants, capturing countless "ugliest uniforms" contests. After the opening game, a laundry malfunction turns the yellow uniforms a "Grey Poupon" color, equipment manager Pat Conrad says.

2006: Oregon debuts its sleekest, busiest and most versatile uniform yet. Included are four jersey options, four pants options and three helmets -- green, yellow and white. The unis are modern, but with a workingman's diamond-steel pattern on the shoulder and knees. It's what Buck Rogers would look like if he'd played college football by day and worked in a foundry by night.

Sources: Oregon sports information department, Nike

[CS85]

I wouldn't mind these nearly as much if...

1. They lost the steel-poc marks on the shoulders and knees.

2. Had one helmet sans ghost flames.

3. Had a font that doesn't look like it was drawn on with markers.

4. Ditched the oregon text crawling up the side of the thigh.

The only things that nike makes that are cool are gloves and cleats. That's about it. I'm sorry, but I feel threatened by these new futuristic jerseys. I'm glad that this hasn't bled into the NFL, at least not completely.

[John in KY]

Perhaps these were the rejected "team uniforms" from the remake of Rollerball a few years back...?

Actually my first thought was to the uniforms worn in the original 1975 movie; unfortunately this is the best photo I could find for this (as most movie review pages are blocked here):

Edit: Well, I guess I can't link to this, so here is the link:

Rollerball review page w/photo

[SabreGuy]

I've wanted to comment on these, but I'm not sure I'll say anything that hasn't already been said. I'm sure SOMEONE likes these uniforms. It's clear they just weren't created for someone like me to enjoy them. I'm not the target audience, is what I'm trying to say.

I wanted to try to say something good about them, so I guess I can say... well, there sure are a LOT of them, huh?

[Gothamite]

"We're a happenin' place," Oregon athletic director Bill Moos said, "and young people like that."

"You know, we're bad. 'Bad' meaning 'good'. Like the kids say."

Interesting, in all that masterbatory blather from the Oregon sports information department and Nike, nobody trumpets the company's jersey sales or the school's recruitment efforts. You know, the things that usually matter in such affairs. In short, other than making a lot of noise, what's the point?

We already know why they don't mention recruiting, other than the breathless line "Oregon recruits swoon": Oregon's recuiting is flat-out terrible, the worst in the Pac 10.

But why don't they mention jersey sales? They must be really slow.

So again, other than to make a lot of noise, what's the point of all this?

[ebod39]

Todd Van Horne, Nike executive's father-in law is the president of UO.

[Sodboy13]

"We're a happenin' place," Oregon athletic director Bill Moos said, "and young people like that."

"You know, we're bad. 'Bad' meaning 'good'. Like the kids say."

Interesting, in all that masterbatory blather from the Oregon sports information department and Nike, nobody trumpets the company's jersey sales or the school's recruitment efforts. You know, the things that usually matter in such affairs. In short, other than making a lot of noise, what's the point?

We already know why they don't mention recruiting, other than the breathless line "Oregon recruits swoon": Oregon's recuiting is flat-out terrible, the worst in the Pac 10.

But why don't they mention jersey sales? They must be really slow.

So again, other than to make a lot of noise, what's the point of all this?

Now that you mention it, Gothamite, here in Chicago you can find all kinds of jerseys from schools nationwide in stores, including the lineup of Nike's heavy hitters. Never, not once, have I seen an Oregon jersey for sale in any of these stores. Nor have I ever seen anyone wearing one. If these radical design changes are all about marketing and generating broad-base appeal, it's not working.

[WSU151]

The paint on the traditional green helmets, for instance, is made with glass beads and costs $2,400 per gallon.

GOOD GAWD!!

I guess that means Home Depot won't have that paint in their Team Colors selection...

[mike2sana]

[pdxuoduck]

Todd Van Horne, Nike executive's father-in law is the president of UO.

Huh? Do you mean he is married to one of Dave Frohnmayer (President of U of O)'s daughter?

[pittfan11]

Is that number 70 or 10? I can't tell.

[tj4eck]

thats not neccicery (sp?)

[DrBear]

Bellotti dreamed up the font, called, "Bellotti Bold." (He gets no royalties, he says.)

Hold it ... the COACH designed the numbers? No wonder they're hard to read - it will be harder for opposing teams to scout the Ugly Ducklings because they can't read the numbers on the film.

Good gravy Marie!

All I can do is remember what I liked to wear in high school and college, back in the 70s ... and I never want to see it again.

I have the feeling Oregon will feel the same way down the road.

Thank god the Packers are still treating Green and Gold in a dignified manner.

[CityOfWalrus]

They should have a game of all Lighting Yellow... Helmets, Jerseys, Pants and Shoes...greatest game ever...id love it

[ebod39]

Todd Van Horne, Nike executive's father-in law is the president of UO.

Huh? Do you mean he is married to one of Dave Frohnmayer (President of U of O)'s daughter?

bingo!

[duma]

looks as if Nike is continuing their under armor design on the elbows with football. i would ventrue to guess that all Nike college teams will be wearing something with the same steel pattern but in their colors...

(Nike under armor used in baseball has that geometric design on the elbows that started in the World Baseball classic and is now worn in the MLB).