Michigan will debut all-maize uniforms Tuesday vs. Ohio State
Michigan will debut the new threads for Tuesday’s Big Ten showdown against Ohio State.
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Will Akron Zips Twitter Handle Uniforms Start New Trend in College Athletics?
The Akron Zips did not receive a single vote for the most recent AP Top 25 poll in men’s basketball, but they’re making some big waves around the NCAA.
After starting this season 4-4, they’ve won 11 straight. They’ve soared to the top of the MAC East and have the second-longest winning streak in the nation (Kansas has won 18 in a row). But it’s not just the recent spate of wins that has giving the Zips so much buzz.
On Monday morning, Akron teased their Twitter followers with this:
Later that day, Matt Norlander of CBSSports.com reported that Akron planned to wear the team’s Twitter handle (@ZipsMBB) on the back of their jerseys for the game against conference rival Ohio on February 2.
B/R’s own Gabe Zaldivar wrote about it on Monday as well.
The game will be televised on ESPN U, and the Twitter-handle ploy is part of the school’s Social Media Night. They will also have “the sidelines near each bench and the basket supports…adorned with the hashtags #ZipsGameday and #ThinkBigger” (per the Akron Athletics website).
By Monday evening, however, the Twitter jerseys had been nixed. The school’s Senior Associate AD for External Relations, Dan Satter, said in a statement that they “had asked the NCAA if this was permissible and were told it is not.”
At least the front of their jerseys will look cool. Akron’s Director of Marketing, Brad Swanson, tweeted a picture of the uniforms, which will now merely read “Zips” on the back:
Although Matt Norlander disagrees with me, saying the “stand-alone Z’ on the front is the opposite of hip—or zippy,” I think these jerseys are bold, eye-catching and appropriate for a school trying to increase its national profile.
At any rate, the Zips will still feature their Twitter handle on the back of their warm-ups, and Social Media Night will proceed as planned. The shooting shirts will look like this:
Technically, putting a Twitter handle on the back of your uniform is not allowed, though it’s probably just a matter of time.
According to Jeff Eisenberg of Yahoo! Sports:
Under NCAA rules, teams are only allowed to have the name of a player, institution or mascot on the back of its jersey. The NCAA apparently has been reluctant to waive this rule under any circumstances because it fears there will be too many frivolous requests for exceptions.
Well, rules are rules, and this decision from the NCAA shouldn’t be all that surprising.
They are certainly known for being a conservative organization (when it suits them). A week prior to striking down Akron’s promotional attempt, the NCAA denied Iowa the right to memorialize a former player.
Former Hawkeye, Chris Street, died in an automobile accident in 1993. The school requested permission to wear “Street” on the backs of their jerseys to honor the 20th anniversary of his death (per Eisenberg).
The NCAA said no. Instead, Iowa wore a commemorative patch for Street.
But these stringent jersey rules are not hard and fast. In December, the NCAA permitted a tribute to the victims of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Providence wore “Sandy Hook” on the back of their jerseys and Xavier wore it on the front of theirs (via Eisenberg and USA Today respectively).
Also, earlier in December, NC State was allowed to don jerseys bearing the phrase “Don’t Ever Give Up” for the 18th annual Jimmy V Classic. This message on their backs honored former coach Jim Valvano, who led the school to the 1983 national championship.
Valvano popularized the phrase in 1993 before succumbing to cancer. It has become synonymous with courage and perseverance ever since.
While this was a tribute to a legendary figure in college basketball, it was not a spontaneous act of solidarity, as was the case with Providence and Xavier.
This was a pre-planned jersey designed as part of a promotional event, and even if proceeds are donated to cancer charities, it shows that the NCAA is willing to make exceptions to its own rules about uniforms in cases that are not spontaneous.
Moreover, the NCAA’s refusal to allow Iowa to honor the memory of their player who tragically lost his life shows the utter inconsistency of their judgment. It speaks to a short-sightedness in applying the very rules which they themselves have set.
So it’s clear that the rules about what can be printed on the back of a uniform are not set in stone. After all, it can even be the name of a mascot. So the NCAA cannot continue to allow some worthy tributes while striking down others.
And while a promotional ploy centered around social media is a far cry from honoring those who have passed away, it seems likely that these rules will increasingly be given more slack.
Five years from now, all players might be allowed to wear their own Twitter handles on the back their jerseys. It could even work for the NBA. I’d love to see Al Harrington wearing a jersey that said “@cheddahcheese7” on the back (please, verified handles only).
And regardless of the ruling by the NCAA in this case, the social media promotion by Akron has already worked.
It gained national media attention from numerous outlets, stoked debate, got the hashtag “#ZipsGameday” trending (“Because @ZipsMBB fans are awesome!”) and garnered the Zips’ account 100 new followers in just 24 hours.
So although we will not see Twitter handles on team jerseys just yet, Akron’s Social Media Night has succeeded in its aim four days before it even took place.
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adidas unveils 2013 NBA All-Star uniforms
NBA All-Star apparel features a nod to technology, Houston’s air and space history.
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NBA Christmas Day Uniforms: Ranking the NBA’s Best and Worst X-Mas Jerseys
The NBA has turned Christmas Day into its equivalent of Thanksgiving for the NFL. Not only does it put some huge games on the docket, but it also trots out some of the newest merchandise each season.
Shoe companies roll out a brand new-looking shoe for a large number of the big-name players, and jerseys get a full-on makeover.
This year, the NBA’s Christmas Day jerseys have been on display for about three weeks or so in their Christmas carol commercial, so we had an early peek at them.
Seeing them on the court gives us a bit of a different perspective, and now that we’ve seen a few of them in action, it’s pretty easy to conclude that they’re pretty terrible.
Each of the jerseys are a solid color throughout, with only the border of the letters and numbers in a different color to make the numbers one notch above invisible.
They’re not all atrocious, however. A few of them don’t look too bad, so let’s get an idea of just which ones are passable.
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Notre Dame sports all-black uniforms for Kentucky game
Notre Dame rolled out some all-black uniforms for their game against Kentucky.
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N.C. State’s new Jim Valvano uniforms will give you goosebumps
The team will pay tribute to the late coach at next week’s Jimmy V Classic
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Breaking Down New Lakers, Knicks, Heat, Celtics and Nets Christmas 2012 Uniforms
Five of the NBA‘s most popular teams will don special new threads on Christmas Day.
The Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat and New York Knicks will all show off their brand new Christmas presents from Adidas on December 25. The Celtics and Nets will tip off the day’s action in Brooklyn, followed by the Knicks vs. Lakers in LA. Then the Heat will host the Thunder in their holiday jersey debut.
But like an anxious toddler on Christmas Eve, we don’t want to wait to see what we got. Here’s a first look at Adidas’ new NBA Christmas 2012 uniforms, courtesy of ESPN’s Darren Rovell on WhoSay.
Boston Celtics
It’s impossible to mess up a Boston Celtics jersey. After all, the C’s are one of the most recognizable franchises in sports thanks to their slick green and white unis.
Here’s a look at what Rajon Rondo will be wearing vs. Brooklyn on Christmas.
Not a shocking change from the Celtics’ usual look, but an appropriate one for Christmas.
Look for Boston’s Kevin Garnett to present us with his best Grinch impression in these all-green outfits, boxing out and swatting shots like they’re cans of Who hash.
Brooklyn Nets
Here’s a look at what Brooklyn Nets point guard Deron Williams will look like inside the Barclays Center on Christmas Day.
Although I haven’t been a fan of the Nets’ jerseys this season because of their lack of color and pattern, I have to say I’m fully on board with their holiday attire. In this case, the black and white create an eye-catching contrast.
If you ask me, the Nets should consider wearing these jerseys for the rest of the season.
Los Angeles Lakers
It’s safe to say that Lakers fans are more worried about whether recently hired head coach Mike D’Antoni can bring all of the roster’s talent together more so than how fly the team will be looking for its Christmas Day showdown with the New York Knicks.
But here’s a look anyway.
It’s hard to find anything wrong with this look for LA. The white-all-over effect is a perfect symbol of the holidays. All that’s left to do to complete the Lakers’ look is for the crowd at Staples Center to white out the arena.
Miami Heat
LeBron James and the Miami Heat will host the Oklahoma City Thunder in an NBA Finals rematch on Christmas Day.
Here’s the first look at what LeBron’s jersey will look like.
These jerseys aren’t bad, but we’ve seen the Heat rock similar jerseys in the past, only black instead of red.
There isn’t a whole lot to get excited about with Miami’s threads. But I’m sure a win over the Thunder would have the folks in South Beach thanking Santa Claus for an afternoon Christmas gift.
New York Knicks
The Knicks will open their presents in Hollywood before taking on the star-studded LA Lakers. But Carmelo Anthony and his New York teammates will look more like pumpkins than anything else when they take the floor at the Staples Center.
This would have been a stellar look for Halloween, but I’m not sure if it works for the winter holidays, especially Christmas.
The only good news is that the Knicks’ orange will blend nicely with the Lakers’ white.
Follow Bleacher Report Featured Columnist Patrick Clarke on Twitter.
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College Basketball Uniforms 2013: Grading Michigan St and UConn’s Camo Jerseys
Michigan State and Connecticut played the first-ever American college basketball game on European soil Friday night. Ramstein Air Base was the site for the event in Germany, and the game featured two of the more interestingly styled jerseys we’ll see all season in the sport.
Clearly going for a military-based theme, both teams wore camouflage versions of the uniforms that they wear back home. It’s safe to say that it’s been a mixed review for whether or not the design for both teams is a smashing success.
Through the first half, it was somewhat hard to tell the teams apart on the broadcast. Although the concept is really cool and both teams were surely excited to mix it up, this one was a comedy of errors, probably more so from the officials’ standpoint.
Here’s a grade for both teams when it comes to the different parts of the uniforms.
Overview
If you haven’t had a chance to see the uniforms yet, here’s a closer look via MSU Sports and UConn sports writer Ed Daigneault.
Here’s the complete uniform including camouflage shoes and socks for the #ArmedForcesClassic twitpic.com/bad1sy
— Spartan Basketball (@MSU_Basketball) November 4, 2012
The camouflage uniforms #UConn will wear in the Armed Forces Classic. Michigan State’s are similar. twitter.com/EdDaigneault/s…
— Ed Daigneault (@EdDaigneault) November 5, 2012
Jerseys
Both squads are a similar gray in color. The look is going for a digital camo-type effect, but the jerseys are so close in color that it’s hard to tell the two apart on the court.
The Spartans have a green stripe that follows its way around most of the uniform. It makes the point that they are the Spartans, but I’m not a fan. For UConn, the simple red, white and blue approach with their team colors is a great addition to the name across the chest.
UConn’s simply looks better, and the red around the “U” in UConn is the touch that sets it off.
Michigan State: D
UConn: B
Shorts
As with the jerseys, the green just isn’t doing it for the Spartans. The Huskies have a more simple dark stripe down the side of their shorts, to go along with the lighter camo.
It’s hard to see the Spartan logo on the bottom of the shorts, while it is a bit easier to decipher what’s going on with the UConn shorts. Again, the Huskies get the edge.
Michigan State: C-
UConn: B
Socks/Shoes
Both teams hit it out of the park here. The camo wasn’t overwhelming on either, while the socks were a nice touch to make this a very committed effort by Nike.
The Spartans have a lighter camo on their shoes, which is what I wish they would have done to the jerseys (although that would have been even more of a viewer nightmare).
UConn added the red to the bottom of the shoes, much like Michigan State did with the green, and it’s pulled off very nicely. Good grades for both squads here.
Michigan State: A-
UConn: A-
Overall:
Though a great idea and something I hope the NCAA continues to push going forward, these jerseys just weren’t the easiest for viewing. Yahoo’s Jeff Eisenberg summed it up pretty well on Twitter:
If the idea of the camouflage uniforms was for TV viewers not to be able to tell Michigan State and UConn players apart, its working.
— Jeff Eisenberg (@JeffEisenberg) November 9, 2012
The Armed Forces classic is a great tradition, and a highlight for these two teams. Nike will need to make a few modifications before next year, though, to perfect these camo designs.
Michigan State: C-
UConn: B
Ethan Grant is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report’s Breaking News Team.
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Breaking Down New York Knicks’ New Alternate Uniforms
There’s orange, and then there’s the New York Knicks’ alternate uniforms, which were recently unveiled.
Grab your sunglasses, folks—Jonathan Gosper tweeted out the brightest new jerseys in the NBA:
Wonder how @alanhahn feels about those all ORANGE #Knicks winter jerseys: pic.twitter.com/hG1smM8G
— Jonathan Gosper (@jonathangosper) November 8, 2012
Even the marketing director for Sunkist thinks these have gone a bit overboard. Meanwhile, there are a few Syracuse fans who are suddenly feeling a bit sentimental.
Orange you glad I didn’t say these are freaking hideous?
I can’t get behind these alternate uniforms, mostly because I can’t stare directly at them for long enough to actually assess them. At least we know that if they decide to wear them outside of the arena, they’ll never get hit by a car.
For what it’s worth, Craig Sager loves them.
If the Knicks wore these uniforms for Halloween, they could totally pull off the classic “Jean Grey possessing the Phoenix” look.
Speaking of Phoenix, the Suns are probably pretty jealous. I think I’ll refer to the Knicks as the New York Solar Flares every time they wear these.
These jerseys are more orange than Cosmo Kramer’s butter shave.
Seriously, they look like they’ve spent more time in a tanning bed than Snooki.
Anyway, I’m not sure if this is clear yet, but these bad boys are pretty hideous. Orange is a great color, but too much orange is never a good thing. It is to be used responsibly and in moderation, like alcohol or Metta World Peace.
Alternate uniforms can be a lot of fun, but there is a dark side to the practice: namely, going too far to make a splash or do something new, hip and swaggerific, which I’m pretty sure the kids are saying these days.
Anyway, these uniforms are pretty hideous, at least for my tastes. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have the strangest urge to go to the Orange Julius.
Hit me up on Twitter—my tweets aren’t afraid to get emotional after a big win.
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Breaking Down New Oklahoma City Thunder Alternate Uniforms
These days, less is more when it comes to NBA uniforms.
Take the new Oklahoma City Thunder alternate jerseys. Sleek. Sharp. Minimalist. You could argue a bit Brooklyn Nets-ish.
And they’ll be busting out these boys soon, according to the team’s official Twitter account:
#Classic #Vertical #NavyBlue. Thunder to debut alternate uniforms @ home Fri vs DET. Jerseys @ ThunderShop Fri 8am. twitter.com/okcthunder/sta…
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) November 8, 2012
If you put that next to a Brooklyn Nets uniform, it’s hard to ignore that the Thunder were probably borrowing a bit from the Nets stripped-down, clean new look under Jay-Z and company.
Of course, the Thunder generally have pretty clean uniforms without too many frills, but this new edition is even more subdued and classy than the standard jerseys they wear.
I really, really like this look. It’s got an old-school feel, but the white trim and modern font keep it locked in 2012 aesthetics. The vertical striping around the team name is a really nice, unique touch. And the blue-and-white mix and stylish use of open space rather than clutter on the shirt is a smart design.
I like this new breed of NBA uniforms. Do you remember how cartoonish NBA uniforms used to be?
Ugh.
No, I’m quite pleased with this new trend in the NBA. The Nets may have been accused of borrowing heavily from the Oakland Raiders and San Antonio Spurs in their new uniforms, but somewhat ironically, I also found it to be a very Manhattan look.
Walk around Manhattan on a Saturday night, and you’ll mostly see designer jeans and black coats consisting of a variety of styles. Sexy but not too flashy, distinctive yet simple.
So I guess OKC has gone a bit Manhattan on us. It works, it really does. Of course, as long as those hideous Toronto Raptors uniforms never, ever return, I’ll be pretty happy.
Hit me up on Twitter—my tweets aren’t afraid to get emotional after a big win.
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