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Many college football teams around the country have debuted different uniforms for their home games. Oregon helped start this big trend with its many uniforms the last few years that have been provided by Nike. KU has worn a different uniform, including different helmets, for each home football game with many different looks and uses of colors. Some of these looks have been very unique, including Virginia Tech’s brick-looking helmet that the team used earlier in the season. Companies like Adidas, Nike and Under Armour help provide the resources for schools like KU and Oregon through the contracts that they make with the universities.
Contract Agreements
Universities’ athletics departments across the country have various apparel contracts with different companies. KU extended its deal with Adidas through 2019 and its worth over $26.67 million. From this deal, KU gained over $3 million from its apparel contract this past year. Jim Marchiony, KU’s assistant athletic director, said that through the deal, Adidas outfits every team with whatever to all 18 KU intercollegiate athletic teams, which he said was what set Adidas apart. “Adidas’ revenue and apparel deal was much better than other companies,” Marchiony said. “Adidas was really committed to outfitting every team.”
Adidas also has similar deals with more than 70 other schools across the country.
Oregon also has a similar deal to the Jayhawks with Nike worth $22.7 million through 2018. Nike gave the Ducks $2.2 million to use on Nike’s products for the college football program for 2013-2014. UCLA and Michigan both have deals with Adidas and have a similar budget to Oregon, Michigan having $2.2 million and UCLA having $2 million. ESPN sports business writer and Founder of BusinessofCollegeSports.com Kristi Dosh said that most major college football programs get over $1 million to use on their apparel company’s gear.
Oregon’s apparel contract with Nike for uniforms and apparel has made them famous around the country for the various uniforms its football team has worn. Some have credited the flashy new uniforms Oregon wear a reason why the football program has become a powerhouse.
Benefits to the schools
To go along with the millions of dollars and free apparel that schools can gain from apparel contracts, universities can also gain recruiting benefits.
Dosh said that the main reason schools will wear so many different uniforms during the football season is to attract recruits. If a player knows that they can not only play football at a top college but also look good doing it, it can be used as a good recruiting pitch and seen as an incentive. With a program with a weaker football team, like Kansas, the pitch can be that they might not always win, but at least they look good on the field.
Dosh said that teens now love flashy new apparel that teams wear on Saturdays. She said that is a big reason why Notre Dame and Penn State, schools with traditional uniforms, have started changing up their uniforms, such as Penn State putting names on the backs of its jerseys. Another good example is the use of the team’s logo on the gloves of players.
Recruits will also see an extra incentive with signing with a school like KU when they know that they get to wear free Adidas gear along with it.
Benefits to the companies
While the schools are making millions of dollars of their athletic teams, the companies that outfit them are also cashing in.
The schools help these companies in return by selling their products and running ads for the companies. Most companies will have their logo visible on the team apparel that fans can buy at the store. The majority of clothing products in shops that sell KU apparel mostly have an Adidas logo somewhere on the item. The same can be said if you go internet shopping for Oregon gear and find a Nike logo somewhere on the item.
These companies also use advertisements at games to help spread the word about their products. Most schools will return the favor on the contracts and uniforms by advertising their apparel company at their home games. Anyone who attends a KU football or men’s basketball game will see an advertisement on the big screen about wearing your “KU swag” from Adidas.
