Utah Utes men's basketball signs with Adidas

[Mingjai]

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=294&sid=1570660

Adidas to Supply Utah Men's Basketball With New Shoes, Uniforms, Apparel

August 1st, 2007 @ 2:23pm

SALT LAKE CITY - In its 100th season, the University of Utah men's basketball team will have a completely new look. Runnin' Ute head coach Jim Boylen has announced that his squad will have new uniforms, shoes and apparel for the 2007-08 season - all provided by adidas.

"We're very excited about our relationship with adidas," said Boylen. "The way they've treated us so far is an awesome statement about their commitment to University of Utah men's basketball. The products and service they've provided to us are first-rate. We are thankful for our relationship with adidas. As we grow this program, we look forward to having adidas come along with us for the ride."

The new uniforms will feature an all crimson and white look. In past years, black had been used as an accent color on uniforms, although the official school colors are crimson and white. In addition to the color scheme, Utah's uniforms will have several other notable differences from the past.

"We need to get back to the principles of defense, running the floor and rebounding," said Boylen. "Those are the parts of the game that the tradition of this program was built on. Our colors are red and white. Black is not one of our colors. I've received a ton of letters from alumni requesting that we take black off the uniform. I agree with them. This is an outward statement of an inward commitment that we've made to get back to the ideals and traditions of this program."

Both the home and away uniforms will include a reference to the Muss - Utah's student section. Included on the shorts in the home uniform will be a reference to the team's motto "U, Us & The Muss." The home uniforms will have U, US and MUSS on both legs of the shorts. The word MUSS will be in the same position on the shorts in the away uniform.

"We need to do a better job connecting with the students and the Muss is the obvious area to start," Boylen said. "We want the students to have a more interactive experience at our games. We want to have the presence of the Muss with us when we travel and at home, so we put the word Muss on the road uniforms as well. My guys are students, too. If they weren't playing, they'd probably be in the Muss. We need the Muss, the students, to build our program and to create the type of culture we want in our arena. We want them to know that we need them and that they're part of us."

In addition, no individual names will be seen on the back of the jerseys. All team jerseys will say Utah on the back, above the number.

"From day one, I've said that the players and the people who are supporting this program need to take more ownership," Boylen said. "We're trying to build this program the right way. I felt there wasn't enough emphasis on playing for the University of Utah and what it means to have Utah across your chest or your back. Again, this is an outward statement toward our inward commitment to become the best program in the country."

I guess they liked the way BYU looked when the Cougars eliminated their accent color (tan) and spelled out the team name in block letters above and below the numbers. The MUSS and the UTAH on the back were their own "improvements"! Yes, I'm biased.

[jhans203]

Lame. I like the connection with the MUSS, but U, US, MUSS....lame. What a joke.

[quantum]

Underwhelming.

[slapshot]

Yuck.

To say "black is not one of our colors" when it's an obvious element in the athletic logo is quite the contradictory statement.

This is Utah, not Indiana.

And adding the nickname under the numbers, and that "Muss" stuff on the sides, I've never seen a monochromatic uniform so busy before.

And what's with using the Houston Texans' nameplate font? The points on the S look so out of place with the rest of the letters.

[HeyDingis]

It surprises me that the NCAA would allow something like "Muss" or especially the "U, US, MUSS" on the shorts, considering they're not athletic marks, nor are they initials of the university. I admire the attempts to connect with the student body, but it seems like there is a better, less obtrusive way to do it. Maybe something like that should be reserved for the warm up jerseys or in the little patch that goes by the V-neck area for a lot of teams. All in all, this is pretty silly.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

This uniform looks like it could have been designed 30 years ago. It also seems to have been designed with the idea in mind to strip out what's unnecessary and add a bit for the fans. To me, that's kind of quaint and as such, I actually like it quite a bit.

I'm sure it will only last a couple of seasons, but in the busy MWC, they'll at least add some sanity. Nicely done.

[Ry]

As a Utah fan, I am very disappointed.

I don't like having UTAH on the back. Give me names or nothing at all.

Reaching out to the students is a good idea, but the whole U, Us, & The Muss thing on the shorts is ridiculous. The football team does it right by having a small sticker on the back of their helmets:

Speaking of Utah Football, I've heard they will be switching to Under Armour after this season.

[goaztecs]

I'm not a fan of the new look but I do like how Utah is moving away from black and how they reference the student section. I would rather see that helmet decal on the shorts instead of the team motto.

[jhans203]

One step closer to looking like BYU. Lame, Plain, and Uninspired. Oh, wait already reached it.

[leedsunited]

All I can say is, "Huh"???

Muss? That's cute. Designate a section of the Huntsman, hell, put it on the court, but keep that nonsense off the UNI! To compound the problem, they go ridiculous with the "U, US, MUSS" blather. I really thought that image was a joke, i'm still semi-incredulous it's not.

[ManCalledAmp]

Definate Meh. It looks like an attempt at a throwback gone wrong. I like the "return to our right colors and simplicity idea" but not the implementation. Honestly, if you're going to go this generic, I'd want a little black in there subtly, but that's just me. It gets points for the 99% lack of piping, but that also makes it look like a tossed-aside concept/template from the (completely unrelated) SEC Anniversary throwbacks in recent memory, but without the history backing them up.

As far as the names on the front, the home's okay, but the road is just too much. Stick with "Utah," or you're trying too hard. These look high-school-ish.

The Muss or "motto" is a little crazy; I could handle the helmet decal logo on both shorts, or maybe just the lone word like the roads (maybe)...but still, it's rather goofy to put there. The dated look of the jersey makes the U logo look so out of place, and if the decal logo were added it would look too busy. I'd say scrap the Muss mess and put the new-style U logo on the side panel (or just a big basic "U" if you're keeping the old-style theme)...and give them a big logo over the student section.

Another thing that irks me about this is the nameplate. Not just about Utah, but they get to be the bullseye on this one because they're here. I understand the whole concept of team-over-individual, "name on the front" over "name on the back," but if you're gonna preach that, then don't PUT the name in both places: just take it off the back completely. Please. Lots of teams look good with no NOB. (Frankly, I think they all need to have the NOB, but that's my own personal preference.) But if you're going to put that whole "we're a TEAM, dammit" philosophy so out there, just leave that NOB area blank. Putting the same thing on all the jerseys when it doesn't even have to be there not only looks silly, but it costs (wastes) money, effort, and time. [/rant]

In other words...fail. Big time fail. Let's all join the rec league.

[Ry]

Boylen Returns Player Names To Men's Basketball Jerseys

"I feel that our players have earned the right to have their names back on their jerseys," said Boylen. "After talking with my staff, we felt that our reasons for taking the names off and the goals we wanted to accomplish had been satisfied. I think our players, coaches and everyone involved in the program have taken more ownership for the success of this team and playing with Utah across your chest means something again."

Utah's 2009-10 uniforms will also feature two other changes. The Utes' drum and feather logo will be placed on the back of the jersey above the player name and the American Flag patch will be moved from the back of the jersey to the front. The uniform style and color schemes will remain the same.

[ManCalledAmp]

Wow. I not only got bumped (as the last old post), but from 2007? What up?

And the biggest part of my rant got taken to heart, as they fixed the non-NOB-NOB. The MUSS mess is still atrocious, and the entire set could use some tweaks, but it's improving. Slowly.

However, I think I rescind the 2007 comment about the unis needing black. I was just stunned at how plain they were. Needs black? No. Needs stripes...? Maybe. ;-)