It all started in June, when Oregon unveiled a new set of uniforms incorporating the Nike Pro Combat Gear pad system. OK, nothing shocking there- we all know that Oregon is the offical Nike proving ground for college football. Ever notice how Oregon seems to change their uniforms each game? That's because they do. They now have 80 different possible uniform choices (not a joke- you read that correctly) . The head coach picks the uniform for the week with input from the players, team captains, Phil Knight, and Carson Kressley.
It seems that other schools want to be just as cool as Oregon. Only apparently they don't realize that changing uniforms each week is really not that cool. This season, and mostly in the last few weeks, TCU, Florida St, LSU, Baylor (Baylor? Really? Really?), UConn, Tulsa, Florida, Missouri, Clemson, and Ohio State have triumphantly "unveiled" new uniforms. The google search for new uniforms is really quite amazing:
Google Search Unveils New Uniforms
What started with Nike propagates with Nike. The company convinced 10 (or 11, depending on whose press release you read) college football teams to change uniforms in the middle of the season to promote their new line, the Pro Combat Gear. I won't rehash Nike propaganda by describing it. but it's relevant to point out that it uses carbon fiber in some of its elements. Some schools, most notably TCU and Missouri, took the carbon fiber thing to the next level and created special black mesh decorated helmets to wear with their changed unforms. Anyone who saw the annual Border War between Missouri and Kansas knows exactly what I mean. Hey, Mizzou, put down the carbon fiber and slowly back away.
Why the rush to change uniforms? In some cases, such as Missouri, they're changing to a pretty dramatic degree. Really like the new pads? OK, the University of Washington got the Pro Combat Gear, and their outfits look as classic and beautiful as they always have. Ohio State chose to debut their new Nike uniforms at the rivalty game with Michigan and went with a retro throwback look (that the Buckeye fans hate). Michigan wore throwbacks, too- the same helmet design they used a century ago. But that's whats cool about Michigan- they've always worn those helmets. Reliable and classic. Just like Penn State, Notre Dame, and USC. Can you imagine the Domers trading their gold helmets (painted with real gold) for black carbon fiber monstrosities? Yeah, I didn't think so.
On a different note, I do need to give a wag of the finger to my beloved Uncle Pete. Throwing a 44 yeard pass with 55 seconds left when you'e up by two touchdowns is NOT cool. The root of the Carrol's lapse in sportmanship starts with Jim Harbargh. He got to Carrol's ego with his 2 point conversion attempt when Stanford was leading 48 - 21. The LA Times has placed equal or more blame on UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel, saying that by contesting the game and calling time outs, he was asking for it. But Neuheisel was under no obligation to conceed the game with a minute left. UCLA had every right to call those three time outs- make the trojans complete three safe snaps. It happens at the end of one-score games all the time. But the bruins were down by two scores. Pate figured that if Rick didn't feel like playing nice he wouldn't either. Hey coach, a word: Jim Harbaugh had left the colesium two weeks ago. Don't worry- he's not leaving to coach at Michigan quite yet. We'll get our shot at the Cardinal in one year.
Fight On,
Hans
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