As kids, we were always captivated by life’s simplicity; the next holographic Pokémon card came out and we had to have it. A videogame that had so much action it would hurt your eyes not five- minutes into playing it, a must have too. It would still be on your wish list for Santa and you best bet you’d be glued to the television come Christmas morning.
The little things would catch our attention and heck, we didn’t care about the cost and how business worked, we just wanted something shiny and cool to play with.
College uniforms are the new-age eye candy. Same deal. Oregon has their holographic, day-glow yellow accented jerseys…TCU makes a color we thought to be girly back then, kind of awesome… and ”Back in Black” isn’t just a song played by a crazy guitarist named Angus anymore either. The new era of college jerseys is getting crazy and there’s always that one toy company in the day, that one jersey manufacturer to take it up a notch. Under Armour is that next generation of Pokémon cards we needed to get our hands on.
Under Armour had designed the Maryland Terps’ jerseys this season and boy did it catch the eyes of the sporting world. Rocking a two- faced, patriotic flag design, the jerseys have created a fan base of both dislike and captivation. Rumor has it Lady Gaga partnered up with Under Armour for this one. (Kidding.)
It did not just create a fan base of its own though. Say hello to exponential recruiting rates for a non- ranked school, short of stable. Like the next generation of a videogame—Pokémon always seems to be the comparison—you always want to upgrade and have the newest, coolest thing. We’d rub it in other kids’ faces – same with players and their uniforms. The kid inside hasn’t totally left.
We don’t recognize it. These uniforms are strictly business…like everything nowadays. Same with the toys back then, same with everything before. With an increased appeal to the recruiting process, the team can pick up better players. With better players, the program now has the potential to break into the AP polls. As for fans, they like to see their team win and they like to rub rankings in other fans’ faces. Do you have a greater chance to do it with better players? I think so. Snap of the fingers: ticket sales through the roof.
Nothing has changed. The fans are all raving over the new designs, players are interested in playing in them. It’s no different than advertising a new toy and you wanting to play with it more than one that was “so last year”. But then again there’s the traditional bunch.
Unlike college play, professional franchises lack the crazy designs in hopes to show more “class”. But look at it this way: the draft and want to be in the NFL overpowers the fact of picking and choosing alone. They don’t need it. Professional sports go on different credentials.
So what’s the line between classy and un-classy? The line of business, and when business is dependent on fan appeal, there’s no limit as to how crazy it gets.
Got any sports stories? Contact me at bcapria@asu.edu
