Sports Design Blog

Uniform switchup in Mississippi

Last night's Kentucky vs. Mississippi State game in Starkville presented an odd uniform situation. The game was played on Mississippi State's home floor, but the team's were wearing uniforms opposite of what they would normally be wearing.

The Mississippi State crowd was dressed in a varying pattern of white and maroon shirts, while the basketball team was wearing a new set of black jerseys on their home court.

The Kentucky Wildcats took to the floor in their home whites. It was extremely odd seeing the Wildcats playing on the road in their white jerseys. The white uniforms just belong on the floor of Rupp and looked really strange on the road. I was looking forward to get a good look at the new Nike road blue uniform for the Cats, hoping that the graphics on the back would look less like a sweat stain on the players' backs than the art on the white one does.

It turned out to be a great basketball game, with an interesting uniform twist just to keep you on your toes.

Graphics Gone Wild! South Carolina's court graphics

I'm all for a good oversized logo on a basketball court. Most major colleges and NBA teams feature a big, oversized logo at center court. However, after watching a few games of the South Carolina Gamecocks on their home floor at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, I have seen center court graphics gone wild!

The center court logo at SC home games takes the concept to an entirely new level. The court doesn't just feature the huge SC Gamecock logo (which could probably initiate a discussion of its own), but also features additional lettering that creates a massive graphic that dominates the entire court. The Gamecock logo is surrounded by a huge arching SOUTH CAROLINA over the top of the mascot and the words Colonial Life Arena below. The graphic is so overpowering that it interferes with your ability to see the players on the television broadcast when they are over the graphics.

When the players come across midcourt, the additional letter graphics are so visually overpowering that you have trouble seeing the action on the court. The South Carolina word nearly stretches from the top of the key on one end of the court to the other. Like I said before, I'm all for the current trend of huge logos on basketball courts, but this one takes the concept way too far. The logo would look great standing alone, but the overpowering text makes watching a game on this floor very difficult.

Alabama vs. Texas

In addition to being a great football game, Thursday's National Championship Rose Bowl game featured two teams with examples of truly classic uniform design. Neither team has much in the vibrant color department, Alabama's crimson and Texas orange are not the most exciting colors paired up on the field, but both team's uniform sets are classics. There are no extra color blocks, jagged curves, or random piping on the uniforms of the Longhorns and the Tide.

The Longhorns look is as simple as it gets. Solid white helmet with the famous Longhorn logo paired with a solid white uniform with nothing but the word Texas on it. It would be impossible to get a design more simple. The only glitch in the Texas look was the helmet that some of the Longhorn players wore, including backup quarterback Garrett Gilbert. The helmet has a vent hole at the back that really made the Longhorn look as if he had some strange graphic element hanging off his horn.

Alabama is another team that just continues to go with the tried and true traditional look. Again, no fancy design elements here. Crimson jerseys with white pants featuring a classic two stripe pattern down the side. The Tide's helmets feature nothing beyond the crimson color with a white stripe and player number on each side.

Though both of these teams lack the brightness and design flare we have seen in so many bowl games, the traditional looks of both teams created a great game to watch from  a uniform perspective. Sometimes simple and classic is still the best.

John Wall SI Cover

University of Kentucky freshman star John Wall finds himself the cover man of this week's Sports Illustrated. The cover shot deems Wall "the Great Wall of Kentucky". The cover boldly proclaims Wall as the best college basketball player in the country.

Kentucky fans have had a once-in-a-lifetime chance to witness a true future star don the Kentucky uniform for the 2009-10 basketball season. Wall has already achieved a place among the greatest freshman to ever play for Kentucky, joining players like Rex Chapman and Jamal Mashburn as all-time great UK freshman. It is extremely likely we are watching Wall's only NCAA season, though there might still be some small chance he returns. As soon as Wall declares for the NBA draft, he will be the overall number one selection and will be a Kentucky fan favorite in the NBA for many years.

Wall's appearance on the cover of SI is not the first for a Kentucky player. Many great Kentucky teams, players and coaches have graced the cover since the 1960's. One of the earliest SI covers to showcase a Kentucky player was this one from 1962. This Sports Illustrated cover features former UK great Cotton Nash. In 1966, Kentucky was featured on the cover twice, once with legendary coach Adolph Rupp on the cover and again with Pat Riley on the cover from the 1966 NCAA Championship game.

In the 1970's, the Wildcats were featured three times, once in 1970 when Dan Issel joined three other players on the cover, again in 1975 when Mike Flynn was on the cover, and again in 1978. The 1978 cover features Kentucky legend Jack "Goose" Givens and his unforgettable performance in the 1978 National Championship game. Givens dropped 41 points in the game against Duke, giving Kentucky their fifth National Championship and first for coach Joe B. Hall.

In the 1980's, freshman phenom Rex Chapman shared the cover with football player Brian Bosworth in 1987. The other SI cover from the 1980's was the infamous Kentucky Shame cover that chronicled one of the darkest times in the history of the program. Probably one of the best SI covers ever for a Kentucky player came out in 1983. The cover featured an unforgettable image of Sam Bowie rejecting the shot of a Louisville player and had the headline Sam Bam! The issue chronicled UK's historic win over the rival Cardinals in 1983.

In the 1990's, the Wildcats dominated the college basketball landscape and graced the cover of Sports Illustrated multiple times. The most noteworthy appearance to Wildcat fans are the covers that commemorate the National Championship wins of 1996 and 1998. Other players featured on SI covers in the 1990's include Antoine Walker, Nazr Muhammed, Wayne Turner, and coaches Tubby Smith and Rick Pitino.

In 2009, current Kentucky superstar Patrick Patterson graced the cover of the College Basketball preview issue. The preview issue dubbed Kentucky as the pre-season number 5 team in the country, signaling their return to college basketball dominance with the arrival of John Calipari and a great freshman class. It is quite likely that we have not seen the last UK themed SI cover this season. Could there be another Championship issue featuring the Wildcats at the end of this season?

Here is a look at the other UK Sports Illustrated covers from the past: (click on all the images for larger views)

Cincinnati's white helmets

So I sat down to take in the Allstate Sugar Bowl battle between the Florida Gators and the hometown Cincinnati Bearcats on New Year's Day thinking I would get one more chance to get used to Florida's new white helmet. I had no idea that when the two teams took to the field, Florida would be wearing their original helmet and the Bearcats would be the team that would arrive donning white helmets.

You know I've discovered that I have a thing for white helmets, so I was pleasantly surprised by this switch by the traditionally black helmeted Bearcats. Based on the less than positive reaction of Bearcats fans in the area and the performance the team gave while wearing them, I don't know if you will ever see them on the field again. I'm not a Bearcats fan, though I was pulling for them all season long, so their black helmet is not really sacred to me. I really enjoyed the new helmet look.

The all-white uniforms may have put the absence of color a bit over the top, so I wondered what the team might look like if they paired the white helmet with their other uniform combos. I think the helmet would go much better with the team's black and red jerseys. I really like it paired with the black jersey and I think you get a pretty good look when it is paired with the red version. The all-white uniform set might have benefited from the team pairing up the white helmet and jersey with their black pants. It is definitely a shame that the team was not able to pull off a truly magic moment and win the Sugar Bowl with this new look. If they had done that, there would definitely be a better chance of seeing this helmet again.

Monday Morning Review: Florida Gators

The Thanksgiving holiday was jam packed with sporting event after sporting event. There were a ton of design related issues to think about over the last four days, but one stands out as the subject that needs discussion today.

What in the world were the Florida Gators wearing in their game against Florida State? Research tells me that they were wearing Nike's new Pro Combat uniform. It is apparently Nike's new "System of Dress" for football and the Gators were one of the first few teams to don this new look.

The Florida Gators traditionally wear one of the cleanest, best designed uniforms in college football. Their orange and royal blue colors work well together and the uniform design is easily recognized.

The uniforms that the team wore this weekend were a bit shocking to the eyes. I understand Nike wanting to advance technology with this revolutionary uniform material, but did they have to completely change the look of the team in such a drastic and unexplainable way? Were those feathers on the shoulders?

About the only element that made any sense was the helmet. The helmet was a tribute to an old throwback style that the team used many years ago, with a modern "F" font. I can understand the thinking behind it, but I still think it was too far from the current one.

You know I like the fusion of retro and modern, so I'll give the helmet a pass. The uniforms on the other hand? Maybe it was just the shock of a completely new look for a team who is so familiar, but I don't think I am digging what the Gators were wearing on the field.

Hopefully this is just an experiment and not a permanent change.

Sports Design Entrepreneurism

 
I wanted to give you some information about someone who had a sports themed idea and followed through on the steps it took to make that idea a reality. I had a chance to work with Abbie at JAHBA Products early on in her product development process. I began working with her to design some labels for a grill spice brand that she had created and was beginning to sell to a wider audience.

Abbie wanted to take those grill spices and apply for a license with the Ohio State University to put their official logos on the bottles. I helped her as she began that process and got her started with some labels designs. I had not heard an update on her progress until just recently and was proud to see where she had taken the ideas she had.

Not only had she gotten the Ohio State license for the grilling spices (which are outstanding by the way), but she had also acquired a license for and produced several other OSU themed tailgating items for sale. Other items include a grilling kit, ice cube trays, a baking dish and a plush picture frame.

I really am excited that she was able to take her ideas and follow through on them to actually take them into the marketplace. It shows a lot of determination to take a good idea and actually follow through with it and get the products licensed and produced. Congratulations to Abbie and her group for following a sports design dream and making it a reality.

You can find more information on these products at the company's official website www.thebuckeyestuff.com. They also produced a great video about the products that you can view on YouTube. 

College Football Weekend Review

The Halloween holiday falling on Saturday created an interesting day for college football. Many teams were wearing special colors and some schools were holding stadium blackouts in honor of the holiday.

One game that caught my eye on Saturday was the game between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Florida Gators. When I first tuned in, I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the Bulldogs wearing black helmets. Georgia has always had a classic uniform and helmet set, but this black helmet looked especially good to me. When you combined the new look for the Bulldogs with the all blue and orange for the Gators, it created a very visually appealing game from a color and uniform perspective. This was definitely one of the best games of the weekend from a color on color angle.

Another school who took a shot at adding black to their uniforms was the Tennessee Volunteers. The Vols hit the field on Saturday to take on the South Carolina Gamecocks wearing black jerseys. The Vols have one of the most recognizable uniform sets in college football. Their distinctive color of orange makes them one of the teams that you can easily identify. When you get your first look at the Vols in black, it really shocks the eye that is used to their simple orange and white. I don't know whether I liked this look or not, but it definitely created a unique look that got my attention.

On the flip side I tuned in to watch some of the game between USC and Oregon. As I've explained before, for some reason I love to watch the Trojans, simply because of the uniform color combination they use. I always enjoy seeing the Trojans play and their games are always visually entertaining to me. This weekend, however, was a different story. The Trojans looked good as always, but it was their opponent who made the game almost unwatchable. I know that Oregon is always out there when it comes to uniform design and colors, but the Ducks really looked like a mess on the field on Saturday. Being from the Eastern side of the country, we don't see too many Oregon games, so this was the first time this year I had a chance to get a look at them. I really can't even explain thier look, I just know that I really didn't get to enjoy watching the Trojans because I couldn't get over the disturbing look of the Oregon team on the field.

Football and the color yellow

As I've been watching the NFL and college football this season, I've been thinking about the colors of the teams uniforms and how that impacts the games I enjoy watching. I have found myself watching more games this season, outside of my hometown Bengals than I usually do. One thing that I have found is that I really enjoy watching games in which the team or teams are wearing yellow.

This phenomenon seems to be a football-only thing for me. I don't find that I enjoy yellow as a color in any other sport, but in football, I enjoy watching a game that at least one team has yellow in their color scheme.

As a Bengals fan, you know it does not come naturally to me to watch the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, I have found myself interested in watching them more and more. I think what got me started was the throwback yellow helmet that the team has worn several times. Something about that helmet just looks great to me. After that, I just think I enjoy the visual appearance of the Steelers color set on the field. When the Rams took the field in their old Los Angeles colors, again I found myself wanting to watch, enjoying the return to yellow. Any time I see the Packers playing, I watch to see what the color combinations of the game look like. The hint of yellow even draws me to Chargers games, though I think that is because of the baby blue jerseys more than anything.

I don't watch that much college football, but when I do I tend to stop and watch games that include the USC Trojans. I absolutely love their color scheme and the color of the uniform pants. There is absolutely no other reason for me to be interested in the Trojans than their uniform look.

For some reason, the color yellow on the football field draws me in and I enjoy watching games just for this reason. This line of thinking has made me really look closely at the colors on the court and the field and how they impact my sports enjoyment. I will explore a few more in the days ahead.

A New Project: UKWildcatsBlog.com

Today I wanted to let the readers of Sports Design Blog know about another online project that I have been working on that is sports related. As you have seen from my previous posts, I have been a fan of the Kentucky basketball program since I was old enough to know what basketball was. I wanted to create another blog that focused on that longtime passion of mine. The new project is appropriately called UK Wildcats Blog.

The blog will look at the history of the Kentucky basketball program by profiling former players, people and memorable events. Where this project will be of interest to the readers of SDB is that it will also look back at the history of Kentucky basketball through classic sports memorabilia, posters, merchandise, schedules and other design related things.

So, even if if you are not a fan of Kentucky basketball, it is very likely that some items will show up there that will be of interest to you. The site is still very new, and the content will continue to develop over the next few weeks, so stop by each day to see what might show up.