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Uni Watch

Laborious Day

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What have we here? It is an Ohio State/Michigan infographic-in-progress that our own Robert Marshall has been working on four the past four years! Although it’s still a long way from completion, he’s given me the green light to show you how it’s coming along. He describes it thusly:

Essentially, I let history determine how it will look — winner of the game, home or away, the year, the score, Rose Bowl wins/losses, conference titles, were both teams in the top five, who won the intercollegiate conference of faculty representatives, etc.

I still need to clear-coat it. As of now I have no mention of any player or coach, because it isn’t about individual glory, and it should be something equally fab for a graduate from either school, but for that very reason I have gone back and forth about putting Academic All-Americans’ names on the outside. I’m also going back and forth about doing something for Willis Ward and Dr. William M. Bell but have not decided yet how to do it. This has to win an infographic contest, since it took me four years to make!

I suspect we’ll be hearing more about this project in the near future.

Meanwhile … Labor Day is usually a big meat-based weekend (in fact, there’s a nice gesture to that effect over at the Butcher’s Case), but I was feeling kinda crustacean-ish yesterday, so a few friends and I drove out to Clemente’s Crab House in Sheepshead Bar, where we had a crab feast. Mmmmm…

Enjoy the holiday, everyone. I’ll be back with a full-length entry tomorrow. ”” Paul

 
  
 
Comments (289)

    Great job, rpm.

    I miss the old rpm moniker, because I always thought of the revolutions per minute as I read your fast-moving posts.

    That is incredible work! As a Michigan alum, this makes me incredibly excited. Obviously for the given year, the statue represents the winner and whether they won at home or away, the red roses represent a Rose Bowl victory, pink a loss, and orange another BCS bowl, and black the BCS title game, and the other logos around the statue are the B1G champs for that season. The head held high indicates a national title – but you’re missing M’s 1947 title, and wasn’t the 1974 game a tie as well? Is the green statues years they didn’t play?

    Either way, AMAZING work!

    black means you won the conference but were denied a rose bowl birth for one reason or another.

    yes the nobs are teams that one the conference, and rose bowl victory and loss is indicated on them as well.

    i didn’t miss the 47 title, look again.

    green years they didn’t play, if the statue is still painted with a uni 98, 16,17, they won the conference but it is indicated as shallow because they did not have to beat each oher.

    maize and blue or gray roses means you beat the other guy but they still went to the rose bowl.

    shit, there is a ton more, but i am late for work. see if you can figure it out, i get back around 5.

    Excellent work!!!!

    I’m not a grad of either school, but as a lover of college football, this is the kind of stuff that makes cfb (and it’s fans) the best sport on the planet.

    Keep us posted!!!!

    i cast them myself. i created a sculpture, then made molds, just like the bobbles. so every time i would cast a bobble i would use the excess plaster to cast those.

    The Michigan alum in me loves this.

    One quibble: 1973 was a tie. Yet there’s a full Ohio figurine. Even with the disputed Rose Bowl berth, a tie game is a tie game, right?

    Yeah, I noticed the same for the 1992 game that was tied. It’s a full Michigan figurine. What gives?

    This thing is awesome. As a Buckeye fan, I would be proud to own something like this!! I know I’m splitting hairs, and I hate to mention it, but what about the fact the stupid NCAA vacated all the Buckeye wins last year?

    Technicalities.

    It’s really hard to retroactively say that it didn’t happen and have the fans care. Those games were played. You really can’t change or erase people’s memories. It’s like baseball and the whole steroids issue… just stick an asterisk next to it in the history books and let it go. It happened. Maybe it shouldn’t have, but it did.

    “what about the fact the stupid NCAA vacated all the Buckeye wins last year?”

    ~~~

    someone’s head just assploaded…

    but good point…does that mean last year needs to be a tie? should the bobble be half michigan/half brutus…and should it be half brutus in normal gear or half brutus in combat gear?…and do just the badgers and sparty get little clay circles now?

    curse you NCAA and your stupid no cheating rules!!!!

    his eyes are crossed out(dead), and he will soon have a head looking down. can you figure the reason for that?

    Tampa Bay Buccaneers great, Lee Roy Selmon, and Hall of Fame defensive end, died Sunday two days after suffering a stroke.

    R.I.P.

    I expect a patch or helmet decal of some sort.

    Probably on the USF Bulls as well since he worked for the school at the time of death and was a former AD there.

    wait…they knew on saturday he’d pass away on sunday?

    WTF? is this the first time a memorial sticker has actually been applied to a living person (even if he’d been severely incapacitated?)

    don’t get me wrong, lee roy selmon was awesome, and his passing is both tragic and unexpected, but did USF seriously wear a decal while he was still living?

    there’s something VERY wrong there

    I was thinking the same thing when a comment noted that on Saturday.

    We know we’ve had players wanting to wear the number of a teammate who blew out a knee.

    What next, a patch for a former coach having gall bladder surgery?

    I’m not being insensitive to Selmon or his family, just that this trend of being so aghast at unpleasant, non-perfect, things that simply happen in life is disturbing. It’s…childlike, almost.

    What makes that so wrong is that Lee Roy suffered the stroke on Friday (or late Thursday)…so that means they had basically pre-made a sticker for the occasion. Odd and wrong.

    The Selmon brothers are ever-present in Oklahoma (in fact, they have one of the best BBQ joints in the country there). I was fortunate enough to have met two of the brothers (didn’t meet Lee Roy), and can say they were some of the nicest folks I’ve met.

    I’m sure he’ll be missed by those that knew him.

    Selmon’s restaurant in Tampa put out an announcement on Friday when he had the stroke that he had died. I don’t read the Tampa Tribune but the St. Pete Times went with the story for about half an hour before correcting it with information provided by Selmon’s brother. That might have been when USF started rolling the presses.

    Obviously they weren’t.

    But a stroke can be the end, or it can be survivable.
    In their rush to show how concerned they were, they didn’t stop to think they could end up looking…odd. Like they jumped the gun or something.

    Not like the Twins deciding to wear the creams for Killebrew. He’d entered hospice care. Quite a different thing. Wearing the creams was a show of support. The “3” on the unis was the memorial.

    that’s not crimson. it isn’t as bright as that current shade, but it is far from crimson. the decision was made for contrast.

    Moose, just in from the woods, so ten seconds ago was my first look at the opus. Overwhelmingly fabulous.

    Whoa…I know I haven’t been paying attention this year, but what happened to the annual Toronto at Hamilton Labour Day classic?

    Argonauts had scheduling problems due to sharing SkyDome (I don’t like calling it Rogers Centre) with the Blue Jays. They had to play BC on Friday night at home rather than in Hamilton on Labour Day. Otherwise apparently the Argos would have had too many away games in the first part of the CFL season.

    Man, I hope I never cross paths with this Marshall feller in real life. Dude sounds like he’s on the PCP or something.

    God forbid he ever goes near my children…

    i heard he once punched a bear in the face

    imagine if he were left alone with your kids!

    “cornmother”.

    Even though you’re kids would be hard pressed to tell you what it means, I suppose.

    re: “cornmother”

    Remember that one episode of the Twilight Zone? All those poor people who were “wished to the cornfield” survived.

    Stupid school doesn’t give us Labor Day off. That’s what I get for not going to law school at a public university. They can choose to ignore national holidays. :P

    what’s that weird symbol above ’45 & ’67? looks like a greek letter “psi”

    that’s not a team in the B1G is it?

    I noticed (while watching highlights from the Alabama game) Saturday that there is a big ribbon (painted to look like hounds-tooth) on the Bama football field. What is the reason (in memory of the tornado victims? Some anniversary of Bear Bryant?)?

    Sorry if this was covered…just hadn’t seen mention.

    That would be the University of Chicago, which was part of the Big 10 from 1896 to 1946.

    (thank you Wikipedia)

    Carroll University in Wisconsin also has the wishbone “C”. Carroll claims that the Bears “borrowed” this logo back in the 40’s.

    all you had to do is look at the image to see the dates that the u of c was in the big as a founding member. who needs wiki:) and it is maroons not maroon, don’t insult them.

    The Big Ten should bring back the Chicago Maroon.

    They say Virginia Tech colors are Chicago Maroon and orange.

    I turned on ESPN the other day and they were talking about Heisman trophy winners. Showed a clip of Jay Berwanger standing and said about his maroon jersey. Then showed at actual jersey on display. I have not looked for a picture of it.

    “Sorry, Jim, we gotta have the royal blue vest back. You won’t be able to wear it for the first five weeks. But feel free to watch lots of video at home. Y’know, stay sharp.”

    I’m surprised nobody’s mentioned Duke going BFBS vs. Richmond. They warmed up in the blue jerseys but switched to black before kickoff. link

    No. They dropped the black in football when the new coach came on board several years ago and put in basically the Colts’ uniforms. But I guess now they’re the Colts only in black. Serves them right, losing to Richmond.

    Black is not a school color, but Duke has been wearing it in all sports since the mid- to late 1990s.

    LSU did the same thing (except for football) in almost all varsity sports for about ten years. They recently ditched the black. It was disgusting along the lines of the Mets’ black – mismatched and disgusting.

    It was brought up Saturday in the comments. That game was in the running for the &1, but I found worse matchups than that.

    I thought they did a blackout a year or two ago, but as Geeman said, they’ve pretty much looked like the Colts.

    Being one of the few to have seen this detailed piece of artwork in person I have to say pictures don’t do it justice. It is truly an awesome display. It does need to be a poster available for purchase at the game. With proceeds going to the rpm foundation for troubled collegiate artist athletes (the rpmf for tcaa). Each of those figures have been cast with the mold having been created by hand and nothing but cats, stirrups, and pineapples to witness.

    WOW! I was going to try to compare them to something, but nothing is coming to mind. Those are hideous!

    Yeah, them are some snazzy helmets on Maryland.

    Must be for Auto Safety Awareness or something.

    From the right side, they look like crash test dummies.

    From the left, like their heads hit the windshield.

    I was prepared for the black helmet. I wasn’t prepared for this. It looks like the state flag exploded all over them.

    The worse thing is one guy is running to the right and the other to the left, they look like they are wearing two different unis. Sort of like Robert Preston in Victor/Victoria.

    Did you hear that? It’s the sound of College Football exploding due to Maryland’s uniforms.

    Thank you, Under Armour for doing your part…the football gods will probably send torrential rain on this game.

    That laughter you hear in the background? Nike’s executives that discovered something worse than the Toy Soldiers unis.

    OK what Maryland is wearing tonight makes their new regular sets look awesome. I didn’t think that was possible. Can Miami forfeit due to being distracted by ugly?

    On the contrary… it seems that no fucks were given while designing those uniforms. Especially “holy” ones.

    I didn’t know whether to laugh or to throw my phone at the TV. I don’t cuss on Facebook, but it took everything I had to not cuss this time. Quote from my Wall:

    “For those watching the Miami/Maryland game on ESPN: What the actual crap is Maryland wearing??? o_O”

    Yeah… I turned the TV to the game, said the same thing Phil just said. Then my wife turns to look, and yells out WTF, as well. I just… don’t know.

    Wait! Maryland was wearing the Terrapin shell helmets in warm ups. Are these like “surprise” jerseys that they brought out at the start of the game?

    It has to be. I was watching warm-ups as well, and the tortoise shells were for sure worn then.

    Just saw yellow and red cleats on the sideline that look to match the unis and a guy had a yellow and black checkered arm sleeve

    I don’t know what they were thinking, the shoulders don’t look that bad, but the 2 toned helmet is terrible. Looks like a knight on one side and a race horse on the other

    I’m older than dirt and I like ’em too. Would actually be better if they further imitated the state flag by reversing the patterns, so that the black/gold side of the helmet were above the red/white sleeve and vice versa. I usually like symmetry, but these are quite inventive.

    right? They have patterned every conceivable part of their uni today. Surprised the shoelaces aren’t checkered, too

    After tonight, no one should ever talk ill of Nike again. They did not have a part in tonights collapsing of all things decent in college football uniforms.

    It’s just a difference of aesthetics. Nike uniforms are designed to make players look like superheroes. Under Armour’s are designed to make players look like circus performers. ;>)

    OK! This is getting re-goddamn-diculous. That uniform should be burned and we should pray we all get amnesia. I am throwing away all of my underarmour gear because of this travisty.

    “We must protect this house!”

    “How?”

    “By dressing everyone like this, so they’ll be laughing too hard to defeat us.”

    They should have split the facemask down the middle…. White on the red/white side and black on the yellow/black side

    I think these Maryland uniforms are better than the ones they modeled a couple of weeks ago. The design elements are larger and bolder, but there are fewer of them.

    Here’s my bias: I’ve always thought that Maryland should incorporate the flag more into their uniforms. This wasn’t what exactly I had in mind, but Maryland made some bold choices and took some good risks. A more conservative helmet (maybe last year’s helmet, with some flair in the helmet stripe, or even the tortoise shell helmet) probably would have been a better call.

    why should they incorporate the flag more? What is the obsession with having that involved?

    I’ve always thought it was a weird detail in the Ravens helmet since it doesnt match their color scheme at all.

    I think it’s one of the nicer state flags, it’s the state’s flagship university, and the school and athletic colors come from the flag (so the Ravens problem doesn’t exist).

    Foregoing the massive black and gold pattern on the helmet and on the forearm sleeves would probably have made me feel less like hailing a cab, but still overall better than what they rolled out in the preseason.

    Other teams/states don’t have this obsession with including their flag. Why is it so common in Maryland?

    @jdreyfuss: Joe, you haven’t seen the city seal on a uniform since the NFL Pirates wore it in 1933. (Except for when the Steelers threw back to that in 1994.)

    Histrionics much? I think it’s one of the nicer Under Armor designs I’ve seen which might be damning with praise but it’s something. All the other helmets I’ve seen with a full decal on them look more like patterns than logos (I’m thinking of the camouflage or reptile skin). I think this might be something we’ll see a lot more of.

    I’ve been a Terp fan for all of my 34 years on this Earth and these uniforms are making me question my abilty to even watch their games this year… wowza.

    So what’s Maryland going to wear in the second half. Certainly there must be another costume change in store…why not?

    Well, if Under Armour and Maryland wanted attention (ya think) they’re certainly going to get it.

    My first reaction was “OMG those are so cool!” Seeing The Jeff’s opinion made me reconsider.

    Upon that reconsideration, I agree with Skwid — nice idea that could’ve had better execution.

    Lost in the furore is Al Golden’s look on the Miami sideline: white dress shirt, orange and green striped tie, and khakis. Nice look.

    I feel cheated. We didn’t get to watch the conception, but we are forced to witness the abortion that is the Maryland uniform. Then again we aren’t “forced”, I’m putting on rugby instead. Sweet, Merciful Lord wipe that from my memory…..

    Came for the vomiting over Maryland, leaving satisfied.

    Actually, I can live with the jerseys, but the helmets … oy!

    Terp uniforms are gorgeous. Not everything needs to be subtle. The ones from the fashion show were brutal but these are true originals.

    Love the jerseys and the helmets.

    With “The Wire” off the air, Jimmy McNulty was unable to curtail the spread of drugs out of Baltimore, resulting in this obvious drug induced madness occurring in College Park tonight

    Arizona cardinals uniform number change… straight off of their website…New linebacker Stewart Bradley, who had worn the No. 97 all through training camp and the preseason, switched to 52 Monday. It was long overdue, since Bradley was uncomfortable wearing the defensive line-ish numeral from the start.

    “I wanted to change ASAP, but they told me I just had to be patient,” Bradley said with a smile.

    Bradley wore 55 when in Philadelphia, but that is taken by Joey Porter. Cyril Obiozor, who was released Friday, had been wearing 52.

    Y’know what, though, to their credit they’re having fun with the unis, not feeling they have to look like Super Death Squad Assassin Commandos from a video game.

    Okay…I’m back. Just went to check the TV to make sure this wasn’t a practical joke. Nope…thet’re still wearing them.

    O.K., after calming down…

    In a vacuum, these aren’t really as bad as what we’re making them out to be. I appreciate art in almost every facet, so looking at these as “art”, it’s actually pretty cool. Don’t know if you can say the same thing about ’em as a “uniform”, though. Although the red numbers are better than the half-red/half-black number on the “regular” white jersey. I also like how no matter what, Maryland is wearing all of their school colors.

    What could’ve made these better? Flip the patterns on either the helmets or the shoulder yokes in order to better play off the alternating pattern of the State flag. A single, linear 1 1/2″ stripe on the pant with the State flag pattern would’ve been better than the stringy curves on the back of the legs.

    My post-knee-jerk-reaction verdict? Could’ve been a WHOLE lot better, but it’s not deplorable. At least they actually know what their colors are and take pride in their history. The helmet is actually growing on me.

    No, they’re bad. In fact, I think they just claimed the worst unis of the weekend from Georgia. When the freakin’ Miami Hurricanes are the best dressed on a football field, that’s saying something.

    thank you rob

    not only did they claim the title from the dawgz, they will probably hold it for the entire season

    i strangely found myself rooting for miama for the first time in my life this evening

    They may look good from a pure design standpoint, but they fail as functional uniforms. The purpose of a uniform is so the entire team is identifiable at a glance. That purpose is defeated when you can’t tell if the guy facing left is on the same team as the guy facing right.

    I can almost – ALMOST – see the helmet working, if the rest of the uniform was more conventional. But combining it with the shoulders, and the sleeves, and the shoes, and the pants stripes… I feel like I’m getting fucked in the eyes.

    It’s hard to tell under their facemeasks but I think they’re all wearing red rubber noses, too…

    The flag is awesome, III. I think most everyone on the site agrees with that. I think most everyone would have no problem with incorporating it as a design element in the team’s uniforms. Probably not to the extent that UA did with this set…

    I knew there’d be chatter about the Maryland unis here, but “These Maryland” (as in “these Maryland uniforms”) is trending nationally on Twitter.

    I think they look ridiculous. Court jesters everywhere are mocking them.

    My favorite of the Twitter comments: “I’m digging these #Maryland uniforms. I feel like at any minute, the 11 players on the field might combine to form Voltron.”

    The MD unis are awesome. Yes they look like some kind of War Hammer 40K harlequin army come to life but I don’t care, I love them. I especially like that the compression sleeve things are pattern matched to which side they’re worn on.

    I don’t mean this sarcastically or cynically; I mean it as straightforwardly as possible: Why would anyone care even a little bit what a basketball player — one who has no ties to Maryland — thinks about all this?

    My favorite of the Twitter comments: “I’m digging these #Maryland uniforms. I feel like at any minute, the 11 players on the field might combine to form Voltron.”

    That person just won the Internets… :-)

    This may be well known, but wondered last night: are LSU’s helmet stripes and facemasks black and not purple? Same question re: Green Bay… maybe this is just a tv effect with yellow shells?

    Yep…this goes back to the eighties when Bill Arnsparger was LSU’s coach. He made the purple in the uniform darker…almost a deep bluish purple. Later, the lighter shade of purple returned on the pants and jerseys but remained darker on the helmets. Now the helmet stripes and lettering are a dark blackish purple. However, from what I can tell that is pretty standard on most helmets, pro or college, where the helmet stripes and trim are darker. I understand it’s done for greater contrast on TV to make the team’s logos more easily recognizable. But as LSU’s uniform was originally designed, the purple helmet stripes were the same shade as the jersey and pants stripes.

    BTW, way back in the days before LSU first started using a logo on its helmets there were numbers on the sides of the helmets. But the numbers weren’t purple…they were black, for more contrast which made them easier to see.

    If you are from Maryland and like the state flag you would think the unis are sweet.

    I have to say they are pretty wild.

    Do it.

    Maryland’s flag is one of my favorites, which is why I’m leaning towards saying I like this uni.

    Jeff, if memory serves me correctly, a year or two after Hurricane Katrina LSU and Tulane played in the Superdome wearing special commemorative uniforms (by Nike) which incorporated in the jerseys the official Louisiana logo, that appears on its flag, of a pelican feeding its young. BTW, LSU wore white helmets.

    The weren’t full jerseys based on the flag – just a patch with a pelican “rising” that comes from the state flag.

    link

    The problem with that is that most U.S. states have flags that are rather boring in style — the state seal on a blue or light colored background. A few are graphically interesting: Arizona, California, Maryland, New Mexico, Texas and Ohio, Alaska, maybe Indiana. Of course, Washington, DC has a nice flag.

    A few Canadian provinces and territories would fit that bill — Quebec, Newfoundlnd, PEI, maybe Saskatchewan and BC, and Nunavut.

    Not from Maryland.

    Love the state flag.

    I think the unis are freakin’ sweet as hell because they literally made me el oh el when I turned the game on.

    The left side of the uni has a kind of Knights Templar feel to it…maybe the uniform contains a code that shows where the Holy Grail is hidden. Or the Ark of the Covenant…

    There must be some rational explanation for these uniforms…

    These UNIS are sweet at least UA has the guts to make Aaron united w/o green and yellow ducks.

    I skimmed all the comments quickly. Did anybody mention why Maryland is in the light jersey at home?

    I think it’s hilarious that of the 30+ combinations that Under Armor created for Maryland this year, none of them were good enough for opening day. Seriously, if your redesign is so awesome, why do you feel the need to come up with something new for national tv.

    Because they can.

    It never stops Oregon from coming up with something new…and they’ve only gone through, what, 20-some combos out of 2,456?

    That is a good point, if you’re unveiling a new uniform set and open up with a national game, wouldn’t that be the ideal time to debut said set?

    This may be the first time that a debut of a new uniform hasn’t even been worn yet, and it’s been pre-empted by a one-off.

    Uh, this one is a one-off, right?

    is there a game on? crap, i had no idea – i was watching something far more interesting involving football helmets:

    link

    As a UMD alum I hated the “fashion show” redesign but I do like this uni. “Returns to bomb shelter to avoid uniwatch barrage”

    @prevailandride had the best response to the fighting flags:

    PrevailandRide: Ever wondered what happens when an English Noble tailpipe-rapes a taxi cab? The baby comes out dressed in Maryland’s football uniform.

    Epic B)

    How’d you make it? I’ve been trying to find a website that does this for a while now, like the Motivational/Demotivational poster maker sites.

    The more I watch the game, the more I like the uniforms, especially the jerseys. It will be interesting to see if the uniform makes another appearance this year.

    the thing is…if they didn’t go the bele and lokai route, and JUST opted for either the red & white OR the black and gold pattern on the lid and shoulders…

    the uni wouldn’t be the worst thing ever worn on the gridiron

    and not a single fuck was given that day

    I’m getting to the point I just appreciate them fearless wearing bright colors.

    But the Hannah Montana shoes really are a bit much.

    That’s what the Bengals need to complete their look: Orange and black tiger-striped cleats. Then they’d be perfect.

    Prediction, Tomorrow’s Uni Watch headline: ‘Holy Fucking Shit!’ These Maryland unis have officially set the bar for garishness. I’m sure Phil Knight and the Oregon AD are on the phone right now debating how it can ever be topped.

    I just figured out what I don’t like about the MD unis/helmet.

    This is the Maryland flag
    link

    This is what MD trotted out on the field
    link

    Switch the shoulder yoke pattern and I think I feel a little better about them….

    I was thinking the same thing. I don’t know that it would look better if the helmet and shoulder patterns didn’t match, but it would definitely be more interesting. And it would more accurately reflect the flag design.

    It would be interesting, tie better to the flag and probably look better if they did just red/white for the helmet and just black/gold for the sleeves (or maybe vice versa).

    Friendly reminder: The “good vs. stupid” scale has gotten so ingrained here at the site that many of you may have forgotten (or are too new to the site to know) what it really means.

    The idea is that the opposite of good is bad. But so many designs nowadays don’t even try to be good, and therefore don’t deserve the dignity of merely being bad. They are judged on a different scale, the good vs. stupid scale.

    Tonight’s little stunt is a textbook case. There was no attempt here to be good. There was merely an attempt to be “outrageous” (quotes added because anything cooked up by a corporate marketing machine is, by definition, not outrageous). It isn’t bad, because there was never any intent for it to be good; it’s just stupid.

    Al Golden needs a new tailor. Good clothing ruined by poort fit. He’s swimming in his shirt and it looks like he’s wearing parachute pants.

    I feel ashamed that I actually really liked those jerseys =( if they would’ve stuck to one design on the helmet, either the red and white cross or black and yellow diamonds, that would’ve made the uniform that much better. But I digress

    Full disclosure… I’m a Marylander. We have the best flag in the world. I really like the uni idea, boldness and furore they’re causing. Only things I would change – swapping the shoulder flag quarters to reflect the flag.

    link

    Also, simpler numerals and pants would have worked better. That said, I don’t care. Under Armour and UMd wanted to steal some attention, good or bad, and they got it. Won the game too.

    When the uniform gets more attention than the game then the verdict is cast: Under Armour is guilty of flagrant form over function… And should be ashamed of wrecking havoc on an team they outfit. Shameful.

    ” It isn’t bad, because there was never any intent for it to be good; it’s just stupid.”

    This isn’t necessarily true. The University of
    Maryland athletic department has stated that they want to stress state symbols and pride to cast a wider net for fan involvement within the state as a whole. These uniforms were a reflection of that – good or bad – you can debate that. But in a more specific sense they’re trying to use state symbols to stir attention to the program, in an effort to draw more fans to bridge the budget deficit within the athletic department. Under Armour, the AD, Edsall, etc are all pretty much in on that. The look wasn’t simply “outrageous” for the sake of being stupid. The unis might be poorly constructed (debatable), but there was a strategy beyond provocation.

    I kept thinking what if UGA had a ‘state flag’ uni.

    It would be like Paul’s article about the Confederate Yankees.

    The look wasn’t simply “outrageous” for the sake of being stupid. The unis might be poorly constructed (debatable), but there was a strategy beyond provocation.

    So let me understand this Kevin? There was a strategy beyond provocation in this case… Let’s purposefully mock “the effort” of adding the State of Maryland flag into our “identity” and embarrass both our athletic
    program and the citizens of Maryland with this blasphemy of so called design? Doesn’t pass the BS test Kevin…

    “When the uniform gets more attention than the game then the verdict is cast”

    If Maryland didn’t wear controversial uniforms tonight then no one would be talking about the game, period. Win or loss. Terps won 8 games last season and went to the Military Bowl because they’re seen as small potatoes. That’s what Under Armour and the university would like to change – in the state and out.

    “they’re trying to use state symbols to stir attention to the program, in an effort to draw more fans to bridge the budget deficit within the athletic department.”

    Huh? …bridge the budget deficit within the athletic department. Huh?

    I think this Miami v Maryland game should become to known as the “Black Eyed Susan Massacre” Game…

    If Maryland didn’t wear controversial uniforms tonight then no one would be talking about the game, period.

    Uniforms should never be the story… Danny O’Brien, Terps Sophomore QB should have Bern the story but the University of Maryland and Under Armour intercepted his headline… that is just plain inexcusable…

    “So let me understand this Kevin? There was a strategy beyond provocation in this case…”

    The strategy is both. Boldness by unconventional design – and presentation of state symbols. There is both a cynical and honest motivation. Frankly, I don’t really like the wannabe Oregon side of this – especially when the design is poor (unis launched this Summer are muddled and not that great). But to say that there is nothing but cynicism in an aesthetic that is so blatantly simple at the same time seems illogical to me.

    “Huh? …bridge the budget deficit within the athletic department. Huh?”

    Maryland athletic department may have to cut sports to address budget shortfall
    link

    Simple marketing philosophy, “any press is good press”. Tonight’s game was a sellout. Of course, the uniforms were a “surprise” but the fashion show a couple weeks ago got a lot of attention.

    Sorry, I’ll just make one final small point then leave you fine folks alone. The most popular stories on the washingtonpost.com sports page normally consists of 5 Redskins stories (even in March). Tonight it’s:

    Most Popular

    1. Maryland unveils new football uniforms
    2. Maryland football uniforms: What do you think? (8/23)
    3. Maryland uniforms: What do you think? (9/5)
    4. After 12 long months, Stephen Strasburg is back at Nats Park
    5. Shanahan, Redskins weigh in on QB decision

    Most Popular (site wide)

    1. Chaotic Gaddafi manhunt leads to Libyan desert triangle
    2. Maryland unveils new football uniforms
    3. Rhode Island considers radical moves as pensions put state on brink
    4. Bicyclists open fire near Capitol Hill
    5. Maryland football uniforms: What do you think?

    yo, tim

    can you do up two more — one with an all white/red helmet & shoulders and one with a black/gold helmet & shoulders?

    same patterns as the game, just get rid of the yin/yang look

    Forget giving the death penalty to Miami, Maryland clearly deserves it after parading out in these costumes.

    My friend Jack, who goes to Maryland, probably rinsed his eyeballs with bleach after the game. Interestingly enough, I turned down a chance to go to that game, citing financial reasons, maybe my subconscious warned me otherwise…

    Just got back from the game and couldn’t wait to read Uni Watch! What a uni wonderful night it was.
    Tonight’s comments made me ill. I love this site. The problem is that it has become a cult. I love reading Paul’s opinions and I respect them. The bad part is that too many people try their best to agree with Paul. That isn’t what this site is about. Some love Penn State and some hate it. Just be honest about what you like. The mob mentality is alive and well here at uniwatch. It wasn’t like that in the good ole days. Even if you detest the corporate coup d’état that has, without doubt, taken place in athletics, you need to be honest about how a design moves you. Forget the motivation. I was so excited to see what everyone thought about the MD helmet tonight.
    I thought it was brilliant. (I’m from Maryland and I love our flag, full disclosure) I read the opinions and I truly feel like I got 2 honest opinions. Paul and The Jeff.

    Everyone else just seemed to want to fit in. That sucks! I just wanted to know how people felt. I didn’t get that tonight. I only believed 2 people. Way to go Paul for being you (as usual). You are an honest critic and professional. Even though I don’t always agree with you. Same to you The Jeff! You piss me off more than any other member…however; you are what you say you are. An opinionated jackass…. OK you didn’t say that, I did. Sorry:-) I never question your opinion. You refuse to be swayed by the masses. Keep it up. Anyway, I’m saddened by the mob mentality I saw tonight. I would like to get back to the days where Uniwatch was the place to gauge how people felt about a design. It has become a place where people vie for Paul’s approval. I don’t know Paul in the least, but I suspect that that is the last thing he wants. Just be honest. Forget WHY a uniform was designed and ask yourself, do I like it? The answer is Yes or No. How hard is that?

    Yeaahhhhh I dunno man, I am born and raised in Maryland and ac love the flag so much that I have it tattooed on me… always have thought it’s the best flag in the states. However… as I said before I think these uniforms are a joke, they look like rejects from Rollerball… I could care less from approval from either Paul or The Jeff, and without scrolling back I’m not even sure what either said about the new unis. Eithyer way I spent most of the game texting back and forth with many friends of mine back home in maryland and the majority of them also were embarrassed by the uniforms and NONE of those people read this column or know who Paul is… I think to simplify any objection here to trying to impress Paul or Jeff is way shortsighted. I’m not a fan of many of the new Nike unis but for example I think the Boise State uniforms this weekends were really cool, so it’s not a matter of traditionalism either… on an aethethic level the Maryland unis tonight were a joke…. sorry.

    Lighten up…most comments (at least mine) are made in fun.

    You have to admit these uniforms are the strangest ever seen in major college football in our lifetime.

    Exceptionally educational many thanks, It is my opinion your trusty readers would most likely want considerably more writing along these lines keep up the good effort.

    This is absolutely amazing. Let me see if i got everything on here, b/c i have some questions:

    1) Year of the game, the score, the winner, and whether it was home/away

    2) Red roses wrapped around mean a Rose Bowl win, pink means a loss

    3) Dark green helmet/jersey means they didn’t play each other, and didn’t win the conference. Light green means they didn’t play each other, but won the conference.

    4) Dark green pedestal means the winner of the game didn’t win the conference. Light blue means the winner also won the conference. Gold means the winner also won a national title.

    5) The knobs above the figures show the conference champ/champs. A red rose on them indicates that team won the Rose Bowl. Pink means they lost. No rose means they did not go to the Rose Bowl.

    6) Black roses wrapped around means the winner won the conference, but did not go to the Rose Bowl.

    7) Maize and blue roses (on my comp they look orange and green), or gray roses wrapped around, means the loser of the game still went to the Rose Bowl.

    8) Split unis mean a tie game, and neither team won the conference. In the event of a tie, but one team still won the conference, that team is chosen as the figure for that season, and their Rose Bowl result is shown.

    Am i right so far?

    I do not know what the white roses in the background for 1901 and 1920 mean. Or the green roses in 1927. Or the white and yellow roses in 1922.

    Also, i’m sure the facial expressions/head positions mean something too. Perhaps undefeated conference records? Or perfect seasons?

    An explanation for these and the obscure colored roses would be much appreciated! Keep up the great work!

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