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What do you wear if you’re going to tell the world that as a matter of fact, yes, you did smoke crack, just as most of the world had already figured out months ago? If you’re Toronto mayor-for-about-five-more-minutes Rob Ford, you wear a necktie covered in NFL team logos.
But not just any NFL team logos — as you can see, the tie includes Bucco Bruce, an Oilers logo, obsolete logos for the Eagles and Broncos, and, most intriguingly, a prototype Jaguars logo! Add it all up and the tie must date from 1994 or ’95.
Reader Jeff Flynn Jr. was very excited when he saw Ford’s neckwear. “I think it was an old ’90s ‘Ralph Marlin’ tie!” he wrote to me. Ralph Marlin? What the hell is that?
“Polyester special rip-off of Polo Ralph Lauren (hence the name Ralph Marlin), popular at stores like JCPenney in the ’90s,” Jeff explained. He then went to eBay and promptly found an NFL-themed Ralph Marlin tie similar to the one Ford was wearing (it even includes the same prototype Jags logo).
Hmmmm, if a Canadian mayor is going to hold a press conference to admit his drug-abusive tendencies, shouldn’t he really wear a CFL tie? Fortunately, I knew just who to consult with that question: SportsLogos.net founder Chris Creamer, who lives just outside of Toronto.
“I’d be surprised if many Torontonians are bothered by [the NFL Tie],” Chris told me. “The NFL is far more popular here than the CFL is. We like to think of ourselves as a major league city stuck with a minor league football team, although someone from Saskatchewan would likely give you a different answer.”
Interesting. Meanwhile, given all the wonderful storylines the NFL has already endured this season — Aaron Hernandez, Richie Incognito, Riley Cooper, League of Denial, the ’Skins controversy, etc. — where does receiving a de facto celebrity endorsement from a crackhead politico fall on the “No such thing as bad publicity” spectrum?
Meanwhile: My annual college hoops season-preview column is up now on ESPN.
Raffle results: The winner of the NHL poster raffle is Matt Berning. (Matt, please contact me so I can arrange to have the poster send to you.) Congrats to him, and thanks to all who entered.
’Skins Watch: The DC City Council passed a resolution yesterday urging the ’Skins to change their name. … Several former ’Skins players avoided commenting on the name controversy (from Tommy Turner). … For reasons that I don’t fully understand, female ’Skins fans who support keeping the team’s name unchanged are dressing up as nuns (from Patrick M. O’Neill).
Baseball News: Love this vintage jersey from a celebrity team that included Frank Sinatra (from Bruce Menard). … Reds pitcher Bronson Arroyo sure has worn a lot of Cincy uni combos over the years (from Brice Wallace).
NFL News: In a move that takes GI Joevember to a new and thoroughly offensive level, the Panthers will be wearing — get this — Purple Heart helmet decals on Nov. 18. Think about that (thanks, Phil). … The Giants will be debuting their white alternate pants this Sunday against the Raiders. … Cowboys CB Morris Claiborne put the wrong Cowboys logo on a car for his parents (from Jon Solomonson). … The Cardinals will be going BFBS this Sunday (thanks, Phil). ”¦ Check out these Rams throwback sneakers (from John Struan).
College Football News: SMU’s recent 1980s blue throwbacks were such a hit that they may become the school’s primary uniform (thanks, Phil). … West Texas A&M is going GI Joevember this weekend. … Something in the works, although it’s hard to know exactly what, for Michigan State. … A BYU student has created a foam that can help measure helmet impacts (thanks, Phil). … If Marquette had a football team these days, maybe it would look like these concepts (from Paul Wajgel). … Latest team to defile the flag: Purdue (from Kurt Esposito). … If you’ve been following the branding initiative at the U. of Buffalo, then you won’t be surprised by what they’re using for merit decals (thanks, Phil).
Hockey News: The Slovakian Olympic sweaters have been released, and they include teeny-tiny lyrics of the Slovakian national anthem (from Bernie Langer). … Terry Proctor has compiled the definitive uniform history of the Rochester Amerks, but even he was stumped when the folks from Classic Auctions contacted him about this sweater that they’d received from the family of Gord Hannigan, the Amerks’ first captain. “From all of my research, I could find no evidence of this sweater ever being worn in a game,” says Terry. “So what is the history behind it? Was it a sample prototype, or maybe a practice jersey? The questions remain unanswered, as many of the first-year Amerks have passed on.” … More Amerks news from Terry: “This Amerks cap is available through the souvenir shop of the Rochester Red Wings, who are hosting the Amerks’ ‘Frozen Frontier’ game at Frontier Field on Dec. 13. The Amerks’ PR man tells me that the style of jersey reflected in the cap is ‘under consideration’ to be worn in the game. He also told me that the opposing team — the Lake Erie Monsters — might dress as their AHL forebearers, the original Cleveland Barons.” … The Rockford IceHogs are doing the “El”/”Los” thing. … Here’s a new one: The Bakersfield Condors (ECHL) are putting the Gettysburg Address on their jerseys (thanks, Phil).
NBA News: Dwight Howard still has the Lakers’ number font on his sneakers (good spot by Ross Yoshida). … This is weird: a Wasington Wizards shirt with an NFL logo on the inner collar (from Tim Donovan).
Grab Bag: New soccer kit for Northern Ireland, and it’s a beauty (from Richard Hunter). ”¦ I think we’ve seen this before, but it’s always good to explore the design details of the 1968 Mexico City Olympics (from Scott Misner). … While I don’t agree with much of the analysis, there’s still some decent entertainment value to be had from this look at regrettable sports logos. … Kanye West is attempting to rebrand the Confederate flag, so to speak, by adopting it for himself (thanks, Kirsten). ”¦ The Supreme Court wrestled with an interesting question the other day: What are clothes? … Speaking clothes: Here’s a really interesting argument for why the Japanese emperor should wear a kimono>
Nowhere in the article does it say the Panthers will wear a decal.
You might wanna re-read the fourth-to-last graf.
The Supreme Court arguments on the meaning of the word “clothes” included mention of a football quarterback’s play-calling wristband. Reading the arguments, I have to think that if the plaintiff’s attorney had focused more on that kind of commonly understood tool that you happen to wear like clothes, the argument would have gone better for the workers.
That Gettysburg Address-containing Bakersfield hockey jersey is just begging to have the NOB-under-number style. As it is, there’s too much going on on top of the number.
That Gettysburg abomination is about as tasteful as a “JFK Visit to Dallas” themed uniform.
Have you seen Jack Campbell’s mask design?:
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The old KC Chiefs logo is so awkward. Like Mike Tanner calls out, the uncolored pants look like legs, and there’s a lot of hair both on the thighs and on the, ah, buttocks. It makes me laugh and also feel guilty to think that some team’s old logo looked like a racist caricature with a hairy butt.
To what are you referring?
link
Buried deep within that Bronson Arroyo link is the news that Weaver D’s Delicious Fine Foods in Athens, GA will be closing. Incredible food aside, the restaurant’s slogan “Automatic for the People” is of course the inspiration for the R.E.M. album.
Heard that sad news from one of my UGa friends. Sorry to see another site of youthful memories cease to be.
Redskins fans as nuns…..
Maybe they are doing a play on the question “Which name do you like best: Redtails, Americans, or Warriors?” Their answer: NUN of the above!!
Also, their signage could use some opunctuation.
WE ARE THE FAITHFUL GO SKINS! could use a period (or an additional exclamation point) and an apostrophe.
Unless “GO SKINS” is a thing.
The Washington Goskins? I could live with that.
Justin Trudeau admits to using a controlled substance, he is charming, a youthful scamp. A Tory does, it is international news, he is a symbol of all that is evil and corrupt. I wish Yanks would be less biased than our own news services in talking about Canada.
Like most “Yanks,” I’m pathetically ignorant about Canada, which means (a) I have no idea who Justin Trudeau is and (b) I have no idea what Rob Ford’s party affiliation is.
In other words, your comment says a lot more about your biases than it does about mine.
(For the record, if Justin Trudeau — whoever he is — wears an NFL logo tie to a press conference, I’ll happily report on it.)
It’s also worth noting that Trudeau’s admission wasn’t followed by months of denials, nor did it come only after a video of him smoking was acquired by the police. But then again, marijuana and crack cocaine are the same thing.
Given his lineage the bigger surprise would have been learning Justin Trudeau had NOT smoked pot. Not that I’d ever heard of him, much less his admission of marijuana use, until minutes ago.
Trudeau’s admission of pot use wouldn’t qualify for US national press attention even if he were a leading American politician. Ford’s scandal involves secret videos, blackmail, sordid denials, police seizures, alternately defiant and tearful press conferences, an admission of crack use but not real crack use because it’s only during “drunken stupors,” and, yes, an NFL tie. All of which would garner national US attention even if it didn’t also involve completely subverting American ideas about Canadian culture. It has nothing to do with party preference or ideology. Especially since a Canadian Tory would generally map to the mainstream of the US Democratic Party.
Now, if you want to argue that the complete lack of US coverage of the Canadian Senate expense scandal shows what navel-gazing hosers we Americans are, I’ll concede that point. But attempting to project supposed Canadian ideological biases onto American attention to Canada demonstrates ignorance of American politics and media.
Spot on, Paul. Let it suffice to say that a false equivalency was being attempted here. Putting the crack issue aside, I think that wearing a novelty tie to an announcement of such gravity is a sartorial crime! (Mr. Trudeau, leader of a federal political party, often looks like he walked out of an H&M advertisement, and would never make the same mistake.) Sadly, I don’t think the Canadian Football League currently markets a necktie, but these link from 1962 are pretty sweet. If I were the newly elected mayor of Montreal, I’d be all over these. Just sayin’.
Great work, Terry! Blown away over here!
As for the unidentified time period of that sweater picture, I’ll comb through some archives tonight to see what I can find.
Otherwise, fantastic job, Terry! HBIC loves some hockey history!
Thanks Teebz. I owe a note of thanks to Rochester resident Dave Parlet who provided the vast majority of the historic sweater photos that appear in the history. It was a joy to work on and as new information about the Amerks’ uniforms is learned it is added or changed. It’s an on-going process. The reason I stopped after the first 26 years is because that was the last season that the uniforms were purchased locally. Beginning with the 1982-83 season the American Hockey League signed a deal with C-C-M to provide cookie-cutter uniforms.
That old wool blend jersey in question could only have been worn in 1956-57, the Amerks’ first season. And Gord Hannigan wore Number 12 that year so I know it wasn’t his sweater. Any info that you might come up with will be welcomed.
I took a quick look around but to no avail. How did the colloquialism “Amerks” come into play?
Tom, when the Americans started play in 1956-57 the sportswriters at the two Rochester newspapers felt that the full name was too long to fit nicely into a headline. So they decided to shorten it to “Amerks” and it stuck. A lot of people ask why it isn’t “Amercs” but I guess they felt that just didn’t look right. The sobriquet with the “k” has become so iconic in the world of hockey that its mere mention means you’re talking about Rochester.
OK, but how do you pronounce it?
uh-MURKS
AAH-murks
ah-MAYRKS
??
AM-erks
Wow, I had never seen this logo before:
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I see, as Terry notes in his Americans uniform history, that it was an unpopular choice, but as a stand alone logo, it is supreme. I would even adjust it slightly by getting rid of the thin red border.
That IS classy.
We Amerk fans hated the circular logo because it was patterned after then-parent Vancouver’s “stick-in-a-rink” emblem. You had to be there and lived through the four-year screwing that Vancouver gave us to appreciate how much hatred for the logo and the Canyucks there was in Rochester.
In 1968-69 almost the entire roster of the defending Calder Cup champion Amerks was transferred to Vancouver of the Western Pro League and won back-to-back championships there. I call those teams the “Canerks.”
Every time I see Vancouver on TV wearing their “stick-in-a-rink” logo it reminds me of those awful days and how it almost cost Rochester its hockey team. I’ll never forgive them.
Couldn’t agree more. Amazing work!
We Rochester fans are the luckiest people in minor league sports. We’ve had the baseball team since the 19th century and they’ve been the Red Wings since 1928 (predating the Detroit hockey club by four years). The Amerks have been here since 1956. Both teams have presented a consistent identity to the community. Those identities are easy to chronicle.
The Amerks Booster Club web site and webmaster Bill Flynn entered all of my work on the uniform history. And the Rochester Baseball Historical Society which you can find at link has a full compliment of information on the ball clubs. There are too many names involved with the baseball site to mention but visit there and check out their awesome research projects. You’ll be amazed. Some major league clubs don’t have as much passion about their teams as we Rochester people do.
Someone asked me once, “Why do you Rochester people do this for your teams, after all they’re just minor league.” To which I replied, “Because they’ve been here so long. You have to have grown up with them, lived through the good and bad years. Lived through the times when the teams’ future in Rochester was on the line. To us they’ve always been a part of our family. We care about them and want people to appreciate just how fortunate we are to have them.”
Rochester is just a nice city. I like everything about the place.
Thanks for this, Terry — good memories!
Terry, here is something that has long bothered me: The red-winged blackbird is indigenous to upstate New York. It’s a beautiful bird, with very distinctive plumage.
So why does the baseball club insist on using what appears to be Foghorn Leghorn’s ginger cousin as their mascot?
It’s a great nickname, and a great bird, but terrible execution.
The explanation that is always given is that “Spikes” is more popular with the younger fans. Nothing like letting a bunch of 10-year-olds determine your team identity.
BTW-I always thought he looked like the Atlanta Hawk on steroids.
I wonder what NFL teams are popular in Toronto. Buffalo? Detroit? Anyone know?
Well, the Bills have played home games there.
As a Canadian I would say whoever was winning Superbowls when you were 10 years old or so. Lots of Cowboys, Steelers, 49ers fans in my age group.
The Bills games in T.O. have been a disaster up here.
No definitive answer. The Bills get the most TV exposure because of proximity (and a Canadian broadcasting policy called “simultaneous substitution,” which allows a Canuck network to swap their signal for the US network on our cable dials, so we see the Canadian ads).
In the pre-AFL days, when Jim Brown was still active, I imagine local fans followed Cleveland. Haven’t had much reason for about 50 years, though.
As RoccoT suggests, the successful teams are usually well represented when it comes to fan gear. As a kid in the ’70s, I recall a lot of Miami Dolphins jackets, for instance. Can’t remember the last time I saw anyone wear Dolphins gear. The Cowboys and Steelers are pretty evergreen.
The Bills in Toronto series has been a bust. But a lot of locals go down to Ralph Wilson Stadium for Buffalo home games. I imagine the football is less important than the tailgating.
Buffalo and Toronto have a weird relationship. I don’t know that any Torontonians have much love for anything from Buffalo, except the outlet malls.
Phil, did you see the Bakersfield story in Ratto’s column this morning? Right below it was this tale of Beast Mode:
link
I love this guy (Rob Ford). He is a laugh-a-minute. This guy got up in the morning, knowing he had the biggest press conference of his life ahead of him, one where he will admit a terrible truth about his life, a story that is getting international attention, also knowing the clips of said press conference will be getting played like gang-busters on all sorts of news channels, and he said to himself, “You know what…I’m going with the NFL tie. Football players are tough, maybe this will make me look tough.”…”You sound like you’re on one of your drunken stupors again. Are you drinking this early in the morning?”….”Just a little to take the edge off…where’s that poppy for my lapel?”
Did he consult his wife? What were his other options?…”Honey…should I go with that sweet NFL tie I just scored on eBay, or the red, power tie?…I’m thinking NFL.” “No…go with the red. It’s more professional and will make you look more stable.”…”Gotta overrule you on this honey. I’m thinking the NFL tie will really pop. Too bad my NHL tie is ruined after it got burnt on my crack-pipe.”
doh! That last line of quotes in the first paragraph was supposed to be at the end of the 2nd paragraph. All I want for Christmas is an edit button.
He is a BIG football guy. Was a high school coach until he mysteriously was relieved of his duties this year.
I could link to a boat load of youtube type football moments on him. But he has already got more press than he deserves.
(cue Rodney Dangerfield voice)
Oh he’s BIG I tell ya. His wife bought him one of those talking scales for Christmas last year. When he step on it said “Hey, One at a time!!”
The Japanese emperor shouldn’t wear a kimono for the Olympics any more than Queen Elizabeth should’ve attended the London opening ceremonies with a full crown and scepter.
While functional kimonos do exist, the kind that the emperor’s expected to wear provides little mobility and won’t allow him to do the stuff heads of state are expected to do at events like the Olympics. There will be opportunities to show off the traditional Japan, but dressing up the emperor in traditional garb isn’t it.
“…Queen Elizabeth should’ve attended the London opening ceremonies with a full crown and scepter.”
~~~
How awesome would that have been?
They would have got tangled up when she jumped out of the helicopter
A few thoughts: The 1968 Olympics occurred during a sweet spot in graphic design. Memorable, beautiful, and best of all, a giant Calder sculpture in the theme area.
My vote for worst insignia is my beloved Canucks of the Flying-V era. The overly complex neon skate with the nickname for a blade on a black plate of spaghetti violates Rule 1 of logo design: When reduced, it becomes inscrutable.
I have a big collection of Ralph Marlin ties, and wish I could have bought them all.
My best friend at work asked me what the uni-shindig was like. My reply: “Imagine 24 Matthew Leskos.”
Hi Paul
It’s sportslogos.net, you missed the T. Have a nice day
Yikes — embarrassing. Now fixed.
I think if rob ford was a liberal and did the same buffoonish things, he would still be mocked.
Most of us know him as Marion Barry.
“Hoser set me up, eh.”
2 “hosers” in 1 day. Arr’s on a roll.
I think I had a Ralph Marlin tie. I wore it with my Tommy Dipfiger shirt.
I look at those graphics from the ’68 Mexico Olympics and, for a few minutes, all is right in the world.
I really dig those Slovakian hockey jerseys. The Slovak national crest is a beaut. The “teeny-tiny lyrics of the Slovakian national anthem” that appear on the jersey can be roughly translated as follows:
O noble fatherland, to thee our voices rise!
The blue of our sky, the white peaks of our mountains, the red of our patriot blood —
Let our flag wave high to the world!
Slovakia, Slovakia, your children sing your name
And the whole world responds “Welcome, welcome,
Obscure little land!”
Finland olympic sweaters
link
Nice. Unless the Czechs come up with something better, I think I’ll have to root for Finland this winter.
link, Arr…
Thanks. I like the ideas behind each of the Czech jerseys, but I’m gonna have to stick with Finland here. It’s going to be a tough Olympics, hockey-sweater-wise.
The middle bottom row picture of Arroyo is from when he was with the Red Sox. Seems odd, since it is on a Cincinnati site, and the other 8 are Reds unis.
Today’s ESPN column is up:
link
That was super thorough, as always. I
t reminded me of when I was a basketball obsessed teenager and I studied the annual Street & Smith’s College Basketball preview magazine. Virtually every Division I college was pictured, even the most obscure.
It seems the look today is one of extremes: either wretched excess or minimal lifelessness.
Seems like Montana State has something going on, though.
I’m giving my thumbs up to the Panthers after reading that article. And honestly, I’d rather see a Purple Heart than that shittastic digi-camo ribbon.
If those players weren’t “wounded or killed in any action against an enemy of the United States”, they have no business wearing a Purple Heart.
Now, perhaps the “Purple Heart insignia” decal is sufficiently different from any actual ribbons. I’m going to reserve judgment until we actually see what the insignia looks like, but my initial reaction is very negative.
For what it’s worth, I find the Atlanta Falcons to be quite traitorous.
That said, I do appreciate what the Panthers have been doing (what all teams that like playing dress-up should be doing), and don’t mind the idea of some sort of special recognition. So long as the nature of that recognition is clear.
That “Sinatra Swooners” jersey is a true beaut. More than just a team Frank was on, it was link he put together. Anthony Quinn played for the Swooners, as did songwriter Sammy Cahn, among others. They also had some link.
But a disappointingly blank cap.
OMG, Chance, that Frank & Ava shot…!!!
I saw this in an email from the NFL that I found rather interesting. I thought it was worth sharing here, and see what some people thought about the latest from the NFL’s PR machine (snarky sarcasm not intended). Got to love the jibberish in their URL, too! It’s about five, what the NFL calls, myths about retired players and the League.
link
Just read link story on Yahoo!. Not sure if its uni-related or not, but I’m not sure what the big fuss is over drawing the number 666 in cross country. Even Christian scholars have mentioned that the number 666 isn’t that big of a deal.
Rob Ford, like many men of his age and girth, loves donning sporting togs.
A quick search reveals numerous photos of him in Argos gear, Don Bosco Prep (the school where he used to coach) gear, Hamilton Ti-Cats gear (I’m guessing he lost a bet), and his favorite, the ol’ Toronna Maple Leafs sweater, complete with his name on the back.
My favorite is the photo of His Honor in a blue Leafs sweater, ginning and shaking hands with The Hamburglar.
Mostly off-topic: I never got the “Tiger-Cats” nickname. Tigers are cats! That’s like, I don’t know, UConn Husky-Dogs or Toronto Raptor-Dinosaurs or Miami Heat-Energy Transfers.
The Hamilton Tigers and Hamilton Wildcats merged. To honor both clubs, the Tiger-Cats nickname was born. The hyphen indicates a merger… If it were just “Tiger Cats” then yes, it would be pretty silly.
Further off topic: To show my general ignorance, and most of the time lack of interest, in U.S. College sports: when I first heard UConn Huskies I thought of Yukon Huskies; seemed more appropriate.
Don’t give Miami any more bad ideas. Heat as a team name is bad enough.
Regarding the Toronto Mayor’s Tie:
I have an NHL version of the same tie from the same time period. All 26 logos from around the ’93-’94 season. As a boy I was required to wear a tie and shirt to all of my hockey games so it was perfect. I can’t think of an occassion today that I’d wear such a tacky tie, but I still have it.
I can’t think of an occassion today that I’d wear such a tacky tie, but I still have it.
I guess the police hasn’t found the video of you smoking crack.
That’s the main reason I don’t do drugs. I don’t own a tie gloriously tacky enough to wear to the press conference after I’m arrested. Once I find the right tie, though, mescaline here I come!
For Ford, though, I think the vintage NFL tie proves that he doesn’t actually have drunken stupors. He has drunken smartors.
A post to make even Tom and Lorenzo proud.
“SMU’s recent 1980s blue throwbacks were such a hit that they may become the school’s primary uniform”.
So that equates to those being worn, what…twice a season when you factor in the white and red jerseys that they’re going to wear too?
From your ESPN column, the Kentucky uniform you show looks to be the women’s uniform, not the men’s. Goodin-Rogers is on the women’s team. Here’s the roster: link
Response from Under Armour about the Wounded Warrior Northwestern uniform debacle and the depiction of “blood” :
“Our greatest heroes are the men and women who serve this country and are willing to give the ultimate sacrifice to fight for our freedoms. Under Armour’s long-standing partnership with the Wounded Warrior Project is a reflection of our deepest gratitude for this bravery, and it has provided us with a platform to offer financial support to these veterans. For the past five years, we have worked hand-in-hand with WWP to design patriotic uniforms that honor our heroes, with 100% of proceeds from game-worn jersey auctions going directly to WWP. The bold blue and red graphic patterns on the Northwestern University WWP uniforms are meant to celebrate our military personnel and were inspired by images of actual American flags that have been flown around the world in harsh conditions over extended periods of time, as a further tribute to the indomitable spirit of our nation and its protectors. The suggestion that these uniforms are depicting streaks of blood is completely false and uninformed. Under Armour will continue to support the military in the most respectful, visible and meaningful ways possible.”
Wait, so the whole “these colors do run” thing is a feature, not a bug?
I can honestly say I’ve never seen a flag age by having the colors drip like fresh paint. Flags rip at the seams, they fade, they yellow, they tear, they singe and burn, but the red and the blue don’t drip like blood.
“The suggestion that these uniforms are depicting streaks of blood is completely false and uninformed.”
Interesting, because I’m pretty sure that uniform designs are meant to be observed by human eyes. And my eyes tell me it looks like blood.
Apparently I’m uninformed because I only saw it and didn’t ask anyone to interpret the design for me…much like, I don’t know, EVERYONE who will see it when it’s worn on the field.
The suggestion that these uniforms are depicting streaks of blood is completely false and uninformed.
I’m fairly certain UA didn’t intend to depict blood streaks.
HOWEVER…. when you keep pushing the militaristic angle, the superhero angle, the intimidation angle, the warfare angle, etc., you shouldn’t be surprised if some people take some leaps of logic, even if some of those leaps turn out to be inaccurate. For UA to act all full of offended dignity is pretty much the definition of disingenuous. They’ve reaped what they sowed, simple as that.
I agree, Paul. If UA’s response had been more apologetic in tone, and maybe used the word “unintentional” instead “false and uninformed” we’d be having a slightly different conversation right now.
The fact that are aggressively attacking “critics” tells me that this was brought to someone’s attention before they gave the green light to the design and that person got voted down (or however they do their design meetings). It’s an old tactic that you see on this blog constantly… respond by attacking the source instead of addressing the information.
For me the question is; How did this uniform make it past quality control or any of the other myriad of individuals who had to approve the damn thing? It stretches the bounds of credulity to believe that someone, ANYONE, would have looked at this and not have proffered an opinion that the splattering could, WOULD, be interpreted as “depicting streaks of blood” and cancelled the roll-out. Bankrupt as an idea, an abomination in execution and ignorant in optics.
Larger question for is why do sports teams think they have to keep “honoring” whatever? It has become so ridiculous that any meaning is really lost now. The GI Joe, Pink and whatever else is more about “see me, I care” than the cause. I wear a ribbon therefore I must care more than someone who doesn’t (I think you have said this before Mr. Lukas and if so I concur and am not swiping your line, it just makes logical sense). There are much better ways to honor the military or a cause such as breast cancer. How about sending the money it takes to create these special unis and to pay for these special unis as a check to the appropriate foundation, etc?
In the case of Northwestern, it was “see us, we are all patriotic and give more of a shit than anyone else”. But they don’t. A lot of us care. We just aren’t all up in your face about it.
You don’t get it, do you? Thanks to Northwestern’s splattered blood uniform, Tina in Staten Island will realize she’s a veteran wounded in a foreign war.
People who want to see streaks of blood and are offended at that have every right to be so. I, for one, never saw that and immediately recognized it as a (fairly poor) attempt at distressing.
That being said, these uniforms are pretty much the jumping of the shark (hopefully) in the toy combat/play soldier crap that has been the hallmark of NCAA unis for the past several years. The flag-motif decals are now so ubiquitous it’s almost like “wait, your school ISN’T wearing a red/white/blue tribute to ‘merica? why do you hate our country so?”
That all being said, UA should pretty much have expected this type of reaction — a quick glance or a look at only the left shoulder could easily be interpreted as dripping in blood. A design that fails on all levels.
But like Paul said above — if you keep glorifying the military and promoting helping wounded “warriors,” you’ve got to think some people are going to expect you to trot out a blood-covered uniform at some point.
I didn’t see it as blood, either – the distressing angle was pretty obvious to me. But UA is bullshitting us here. Start with the concept of recognizing “wounded warriors,” then apply streaks of dripping red fluid to your design, and that’s going to say “blood” to most observers. Anyone who doesn’t understand this at the point of contemplating the design, is in the wrong business.
FWIW, I immediately saw it as blood. It took me a few looks to finally see the blue streaks.
Regardless of intent, no one I their right mind should have signed off on that.
All you got to do is look at the same effect in the blue areas and see it wasn’t meant as blood but distressing. Still, a horrible look for a uniform. Nothing like flag desecration uniforms.
Even then, it’s a failure of design. To really work, either the white needed to be dripping on both elements, or the white, not the blue, should have been the dripping element on the stars side. If the visual metaphor is that the red stripes are painted on top of a white field, and so the red is dripping into the white, then the white stars need to be treated as being painted on top of a blue field, with the white dripping into the blue. Nobody in their right mind would paint the union of an American flag by putting down a layer of white, and then painting blue over it with a bunch of star-shaped holes in the blue. Plus, white drips on blue would have been much more visibly prominent, signalling what the dripping red was really supposed to be.
In any case, the proper thing to do with a distressed or damaged flag is to destroy it respectfully.
Per usual, link:
Under Armour’s response goes to illustrate just how bulletproof patriotism is as a PR move. Donating a token amount of money to a veterans’ group allows a company to spin any legitimate gripes as anti-militarism. When we say these uniforms are hideous, and appear to be–intentionally or not–blood-spattered flag code violations, Under Armour can couch it as disrespectful criticism of Our Brave Troops. It’s a shockingly cynical worldview, but very American.”
“Or just have players donate their pay to Wounded Warrior Project”
Fuckin’ A!
I would argue that Boise State’s previous jersey wordmark should be referred to as double-decker: link
While San Diego State’s should have a different name (over-under workmark?):
link
Posted the SD St. link twice. Here is Boise: link
I think i’ll start a band and name it “crackhead politico.”
The ESPN column links to Memphis’ new practice court.
Here is the link to their new link at the Fed Ex Forum
After a long day at work, I come home, catch up on the latest news on our city’s esteemed mayor, and then for some escapist entertainment flip to this site – only to see our stupid, Chris Farley-like, “lah dee fricking daah” view of life mayor.
Bills games are picked up by one of two all sports Toronto radio stations, my view is most Torontonians who follow the Bills – actually like the “road trip” aspect of going down to Buffalo – and experiencing what is a cultural experience we don’t really have an equivalent of.
Actually, that’s the Battle Flag of the Confederacy that Mr. West is sporting. We hardly ever see the actual Confederate flag(s).
I like how it’s paired with a flight jacket typically worn by skinheads. Getting two birds stoned at once.
hahaha, why would Rob Ford wear that tie? Maybe he is a logo creep? or very unprofessional.
“what NFL teams are popular in Toronto. Buffalo? Detroit?”
Definitely Buffalo. Anything west of Toronto cheer for Detroit. You have the odd Pittsburgh, Dallas, Chicago fan. I’ve met only one SF fan in my life and I’m 33yrs.
I follow the whole league but favor the Giants and in a couple weeks will be flying to Miami for the weekend to watch the Dolphins.
Canada loves the NFL, but the NFL would never make it in this country.
The USC Trojans unveiled their new mascots today and they look great.
link
The uniform on the horse looks amazing!
Hey guys,
I fear that the term “BFBS” is starting to be abused just as much as the color black itself. If the Rams, Dolphins, Browns, etc were to wear black, it would be “BFBS” because that is not one of their team colors. The Cardinals however have black in the color scheme, and I’ve seen the term “BFBS” abused in other instances more recently. Just something that’s gotten under my skin a tad so thought I’d vent :)