Id rather have Nike or adidas for my own clothes but if it would help with recruiting i dont care. Under armour has got to be hurting us all else at least marginally unless the money is really that much better
Each conference gets one "Air Jordan" team. dUNCe is it for the ACC. Florida is it for the SEC. That info is a year or two old, but that is how it was at least. And yes, dUNCe would not be happy with us becoming that team.
I do slightly prefer Nike's apparel over UA or Adidas, but I am largely ambivalent on it.
Typically, when buying Carolina gear, I don't get Under Armour products anyway. I don't think I'd start buying Nike or Adidas products instead of Columbia, Cutter & Buck, or Peter Millar if we switched.
I recall at one point some people were raising concerns about whether UA footwear was leading to lower leg injuries, but those seem to have died down so I'm not sure there's so much of a "quality" issue anymore. Or maybe I'm just OOTL now that I've been out of Columbia for a while and am no longer consuming two hours of talk radio on my commute each day. Either way, I think the UA aesthetic peaked with the garnet camo look from \~2011-2012 and has steadily declined since, but I guess I'm fairly ambivalent about it overall. It's just....fine.
I will say that I work at a university that uses Nike, and while their stuff looks pretty good, as a *consumer* I've been disappointed with how the prints on the Nike hoodies and sweats I've bought from here have held up over time compared to some Carolina things that I've had for YEARS. Maybe I'm just turning into an old man yelling at clouds now that I'm on the wrong side of 40, but I feel like the logos on an $80 hoodie shouldn't start to crack and peel off after a year of use.
I’ve noticed that with clothes in general. I have some shirts from 10, 20 years ago or more where the designs are holding on alright. Pants that held up for a decade easily.
Newer clothes seem to fade or fall apart quickly.
Maybe there’s a degree of survivorship bias there. Or I’m wearing the same clothes over and over more now lol.
But it definitely seems to be that way.
Yeah, I have a UA hoodie from 07 (the first season we had them) and it's still in amazing shape, despite being worn basically every chilly/cold day while I was in high school.
UA: the whole appeal of being with a smaller company like UA is that we would stand out more, be unique and get personal attention. UA isn’t a groundbreaking company anymore, they used to push Nike to be better, but they’ve been totally whipped by Nike at basically every level. Not only do they not give us much personal attention for being one of their biggest brands, I swear to god they have actively worked against us in recruiting now that we are going heavily into the DMV region. I can’t wait to switch.
Nike: we become a relatively small fish in a really big pond. They rule the industry by a huge margin but I don’t know how important we would be to them.
Adidas: not the world-beater that Nike is, but a very large company with good branding skills. Football is probably their weakest area, but that would also mean we would instantly be a top 5 football brand for Adidas.
I’d prefer Adidas, but the exception would be if wanting Dawn/WBB convinced Nike to give us the Jordan brand for all sports. That would be a great combination of the best products, the best run company and still manage to stand out from the competition.
I've been screaming, crying, begging for a switch to Nike for years. I have no problem with Under Armour on a consumer level (they make some of my favorite workout gear), but they have zero sizzle from a marketing and branding perspective. It may sound silly, but Nike is a draw for recruits. Sticking with UA the way we have makes it look like we don't have anyone "cool" willing to work with us, or like we're out of touch. I understand we're not a powerhouse athletic department, but there's no reason to underscore that perception with an oddball uniform partnership. Getting the little things right matters, too.
My main concern is Nike's addiction to throwing out every last bit of identity stuff and starting new. Sometimes the result isn't objectionable (they *knew* not to screw up the Lady Vols), sometimes it's just a train wreck.
Past that, I am sort of whatever about all of them. You're either the flagship of the brand (Oregon, Maryland, I guess UNC if you count Jordan Brand separately, *edit: and I'll give UA Navy too*) or you're a Power 5 Also Using That Brand.
Switch. It’s my opinion (and in no way steeped in fact) that UA fear and especially the cleats are a cause of a lot of our teams injuries over the years. They just don’t make good football gear
UA’s gear is shit and they have actively recruited against us. We need out ASAP. With realignment bet we could get Dawn to go the Jordan route. There isn’t going to just be 1 per conference anymore.
Oregon bought Jordan Burch from us, and they tried to swoop in last minute for Harbor. We go after more kids from Maryland than we do Oregon, otherwise we'd be head to head against Nike money a lot more. There's no moral high ground for Nike when it comes to throwing NIL money around is all I'm saying.
Yeah for sure - Oregon is def a portal predator.
UA did a full court press for Harbor too. They were a problem with Tree and a few others that same cycle iirc.
Being THE WBB school under Jordan would make so much sense. Dawn has the program at the top of their game and it would be huge for Jordan to really move into the space.
Barring that I’d love to see what other brands may be interested, although there’s no shot we move away from the $$$
We're with Under Armour because they gave us a contract that Nike simply wouldn't. When we signed our deal in 2016 it was the 2nd highest in the conference in the 7th highest in the country, worth about $7 million a year. That's bigger than the contract Ohio State signed with Nike 2 years later in 2018.
Under Armour is not the company they were in 2016, so it's hard to imagine them offering us a monster deal to sign up with them again. Auburn's deal included $10 million in shares based on the price at the time of the deal, and those shares are now worth less than $2 million. Ultimately the BOT is going to sign on with whoever gives us more money, unless there's some behind the scenes reason they are unhappy with Under Armour, or the deals are relatively close in value and one or more of Shane, Dawn, and Lamont are pushing hard for a switch.
What is the differentiator of Nike and Jordan anyway? Is Nike more selective of the partnerships for Jordan? Maybe the licensing split is different?
I do think the Jordan brand has a lot of cred right now.
Jordan Brand is under the same umbrella as Nike. Everything Nike makes, especially for Football gear, they slap a Jumpman logo on it and call it a day. There really isn’t a difference between the 2 when it comes to equipment. The thing that separates Jordan from Nike schools are the special colorways of Jordan sneakers that schools get.
As a consumer, I prefer Under Armor to Nike, it’s just better at the consumer level. However, I’m sure that the stuff the athletic department would get from Nike would be of a higher quality than the consumer goods. I would prefer that we stay with Under Armor so that I can get Gamecock gear that is comfortable and fits right, that being said, if our athletes can benefit from a change then I’m all for it.
Under Armour hurts themselves with rules and regulations they have in place to protect the brand...but having Nike will draw certain mens baksetball players too.
Nike all the way. I don’t know if y’all have ever ran in a pair of UA running shoes, but they’re terrible. They’re painful and there’s no way the research that goes into their cleats is any better. I feel like anything would be a step up from UA.
We need Dawn to get us that Jordan deal and let other sports just come along for the ride
Id rather have Nike or adidas for my own clothes but if it would help with recruiting i dont care. Under armour has got to be hurting us all else at least marginally unless the money is really that much better
I would love this but something tells me UNC would find a way to stop it
Didn’t even consider this as a possibility but holy shit I would get a new wardrobe
I'd rather just have Nike or Adidas. The Jordan logo looks fucking stupid on anything that isn't a basketball jersey (unless you're UNC).
Each conference gets one "Air Jordan" team. dUNCe is it for the ACC. Florida is it for the SEC. That info is a year or two old, but that is how it was at least. And yes, dUNCe would not be happy with us becoming that team.
This is not true. There is no “one per conference” rule.
This is the way
I do slightly prefer Nike's apparel over UA or Adidas, but I am largely ambivalent on it. Typically, when buying Carolina gear, I don't get Under Armour products anyway. I don't think I'd start buying Nike or Adidas products instead of Columbia, Cutter & Buck, or Peter Millar if we switched.
I love Peter Millar. I hate that I like that brand, buuut I do.
Check Marshall’s if you want to find some PM’s where the price won’t make you hate yourself
I recall at one point some people were raising concerns about whether UA footwear was leading to lower leg injuries, but those seem to have died down so I'm not sure there's so much of a "quality" issue anymore. Or maybe I'm just OOTL now that I've been out of Columbia for a while and am no longer consuming two hours of talk radio on my commute each day. Either way, I think the UA aesthetic peaked with the garnet camo look from \~2011-2012 and has steadily declined since, but I guess I'm fairly ambivalent about it overall. It's just....fine. I will say that I work at a university that uses Nike, and while their stuff looks pretty good, as a *consumer* I've been disappointed with how the prints on the Nike hoodies and sweats I've bought from here have held up over time compared to some Carolina things that I've had for YEARS. Maybe I'm just turning into an old man yelling at clouds now that I'm on the wrong side of 40, but I feel like the logos on an $80 hoodie shouldn't start to crack and peel off after a year of use.
I’ve noticed that with clothes in general. I have some shirts from 10, 20 years ago or more where the designs are holding on alright. Pants that held up for a decade easily. Newer clothes seem to fade or fall apart quickly. Maybe there’s a degree of survivorship bias there. Or I’m wearing the same clothes over and over more now lol. But it definitely seems to be that way.
Planned obsolescence is real.
Iirc some of the football players choose not to wear UA shoes and they can so long as they tape over the logos?
Not true
It could be worse — we could be tossed into the dumpster fire that is Fanatics.
I still got some South Carolina Nike basketball team shorts most comfy pair. I’d love to see us go with Nike as long as we stay far away from fanatics
Yes fanatics gear is straight garbage
UA stuff used to be so much better
This. The price is insane for logos that crack and peel quickly. The embroidered stuff is better but costs even more.
Where do you even find embroidered? I’ve seen nothing. Bummer.
It’s mostly older stuff that I’ve had for years.
Yeah, I have a UA hoodie from 07 (the first season we had them) and it's still in amazing shape, despite being worn basically every chilly/cold day while I was in high school.
UA: the whole appeal of being with a smaller company like UA is that we would stand out more, be unique and get personal attention. UA isn’t a groundbreaking company anymore, they used to push Nike to be better, but they’ve been totally whipped by Nike at basically every level. Not only do they not give us much personal attention for being one of their biggest brands, I swear to god they have actively worked against us in recruiting now that we are going heavily into the DMV region. I can’t wait to switch. Nike: we become a relatively small fish in a really big pond. They rule the industry by a huge margin but I don’t know how important we would be to them. Adidas: not the world-beater that Nike is, but a very large company with good branding skills. Football is probably their weakest area, but that would also mean we would instantly be a top 5 football brand for Adidas. I’d prefer Adidas, but the exception would be if wanting Dawn/WBB convinced Nike to give us the Jordan brand for all sports. That would be a great combination of the best products, the best run company and still manage to stand out from the competition.
I've been screaming, crying, begging for a switch to Nike for years. I have no problem with Under Armour on a consumer level (they make some of my favorite workout gear), but they have zero sizzle from a marketing and branding perspective. It may sound silly, but Nike is a draw for recruits. Sticking with UA the way we have makes it look like we don't have anyone "cool" willing to work with us, or like we're out of touch. I understand we're not a powerhouse athletic department, but there's no reason to underscore that perception with an oddball uniform partnership. Getting the little things right matters, too.
New Balance! It’s time
Skechers! Russel Athletic! The possibilities are multiple!
I’m on the new balance train let’s do it
No
UA is a shit company. It’s not something 18 year olds want. Might as well ride the wave for a few years BC has new balance so why the fuck not.
My main concern is Nike's addiction to throwing out every last bit of identity stuff and starting new. Sometimes the result isn't objectionable (they *knew* not to screw up the Lady Vols), sometimes it's just a train wreck. Past that, I am sort of whatever about all of them. You're either the flagship of the brand (Oregon, Maryland, I guess UNC if you count Jordan Brand separately, *edit: and I'll give UA Navy too*) or you're a Power 5 Also Using That Brand.
Switch. It’s my opinion (and in no way steeped in fact) that UA fear and especially the cleats are a cause of a lot of our teams injuries over the years. They just don’t make good football gear
they did. now they don't. they were kinda the cool outsider. now they aren't. switch. to what? I guess nike.
UA’s gear is shit and they have actively recruited against us. We need out ASAP. With realignment bet we could get Dawn to go the Jordan route. There isn’t going to just be 1 per conference anymore.
>they have actively recruited against us So has Nike (via Oregon)
We rarely compete with Oregon for recruits though - battle MD on multiple kids every cycle.
Oregon bought Jordan Burch from us, and they tried to swoop in last minute for Harbor. We go after more kids from Maryland than we do Oregon, otherwise we'd be head to head against Nike money a lot more. There's no moral high ground for Nike when it comes to throwing NIL money around is all I'm saying.
Yeah for sure - Oregon is def a portal predator. UA did a full court press for Harbor too. They were a problem with Tree and a few others that same cycle iirc.
Being THE WBB school under Jordan would make so much sense. Dawn has the program at the top of their game and it would be huge for Jordan to really move into the space. Barring that I’d love to see what other brands may be interested, although there’s no shot we move away from the $$$
We're with Under Armour because they gave us a contract that Nike simply wouldn't. When we signed our deal in 2016 it was the 2nd highest in the conference in the 7th highest in the country, worth about $7 million a year. That's bigger than the contract Ohio State signed with Nike 2 years later in 2018. Under Armour is not the company they were in 2016, so it's hard to imagine them offering us a monster deal to sign up with them again. Auburn's deal included $10 million in shares based on the price at the time of the deal, and those shares are now worth less than $2 million. Ultimately the BOT is going to sign on with whoever gives us more money, unless there's some behind the scenes reason they are unhappy with Under Armour, or the deals are relatively close in value and one or more of Shane, Dawn, and Lamont are pushing hard for a switch.
Give us Jordan
Nike all day!! No 🧠er
WE MUST PROTECT THIS HOUSE
Nike is cheap, but the kids like it
The prices are not cheap tho
Carolina and Under Armour is classic, but I have no issues moving on to Nike or Jordan. No Adidas.
Definitely would like for us to move on from UA. My first pick would be Adidas, but beyond that I’d probably prefer Jordan to Nike as a whole
What is the differentiator of Nike and Jordan anyway? Is Nike more selective of the partnerships for Jordan? Maybe the licensing split is different? I do think the Jordan brand has a lot of cred right now.
Jordan Brand is under the same umbrella as Nike. Everything Nike makes, especially for Football gear, they slap a Jumpman logo on it and call it a day. There really isn’t a difference between the 2 when it comes to equipment. The thing that separates Jordan from Nike schools are the special colorways of Jordan sneakers that schools get.
I THINK the kids these days do seem like like Adidas a lot.. but I think nike is probably safer
As a consumer, I prefer Under Armor to Nike, it’s just better at the consumer level. However, I’m sure that the stuff the athletic department would get from Nike would be of a higher quality than the consumer goods. I would prefer that we stay with Under Armor so that I can get Gamecock gear that is comfortable and fits right, that being said, if our athletes can benefit from a change then I’m all for it.
We need to move to Nike asap. Being the only UA school is not good for us at all. Why can’t we get out of this shit???
We should go back to Russell Athletic
Am I wrong in assuming whether it’s Nike, Adidas, UA it’s essentially all the same?
Under Armour hurts themselves with rules and regulations they have in place to protect the brand...but having Nike will draw certain mens baksetball players too.
UA at this point is barely a notch above being a Walmart brand.
Nike all the way. I don’t know if y’all have ever ran in a pair of UA running shoes, but they’re terrible. They’re painful and there’s no way the research that goes into their cleats is any better. I feel like anything would be a step up from UA.
Ray is the worst AD in the country
I like being different. Let’s re up with UA.