First it was the helmets, and then the abundance of uniform combinations. Now, it’s the shoes. What’s next? Putting images of the player on his helmet?
In this day and age of expressionism, with universities able to foot the bill with lucrative apparel deals, why not?
Adidas recently announced it will outfit every Miami player with personalized cleats for the Hurricanes’ game with Nebraska on Sept. 19. Soles by Sir creator Marcos Rivero, who customizes cleats for NFL players, will individualize both sides of the cleat with a message created by each of the Hurricanes.
The left side of the cleat will feature a tribute to the “U”, the player’s name and short phrases that symbolize the player. Many of Miami’s players requested their hometown area code and tributes to family members to be displayed.
The right side of the cleat will show the player’s uniform number and a tribute to a legendary Miami player like Reggie Wayne, Frank Gore, Sean Taylor or Ray Lewis.
Athletic administrators know that in the same way new, expansive and detailed training facilities woo a recruit, the materialism of helmets and uniforms draw today’s young crowd. Oregon’s 500 different fashionable helmet and uniform combinations started this craze.
Apparel contracts with Nike, Adidas and Under Armour bring the athletic departments a significant amount of money. When institutions generate customized apparel for athletes, such as what Miami is doing with the Adidas cleats, the athletes feel more engaged and not only like pawns in the process.
If the adage is true that looking good makes you feel good, universities can boost a team’s morale and get the most out of their athletes by being fashionable. It certainly helped put a charge into Oregon’s football program.
Miami and Adidas struck a 12-year deal in January, the longest contract the shoe company has agreed to with a college institution. The Hurricanes, who ended their quarter-century arrangement with Nike, reportedly received more than $90 million from Adidas.
Miami has recently appropriated funds toward a facility housing an academic center, offices and meeting space. The school has also allocated money toward expanding athletic training rooms, a new scoreboard for its basketball arena, a football practice field and a new track.
The student-athlete benefits indirectly from these facility upgrades. Personalized cleats directly show an appreciation. The cleats are like a gift – a legal gift – from the university to the players, who will accept them with pride.
The NCAA allows for such gifts outfitted by the university as long as the players do not sell them, which happened in recent years with the Oregon men’s basketball program. Former players Ben Carter and Dominic Artis were each suspended nine games by the NCAA for selling their exclusive player-edition sneakers that were gifts to them from the university.
Other institutions will take note of Miami’s cleats on Sept. 19 and try to do the next best thing that is more visual. Rivero noted himself that the last thing viewers notice is the cleats when they watch a game.
What will be the next best thing? A player telling his story or paying tribute to legends at their school on his helmet, jersey or pants?
If that’s what the kid wants, institutions should make it happen.
Personalizing something like cleats is not about entitlement, it’s about an athlete reaping the benefits from their due diligence that earned them that status in the first place.
Feature image via The University of Miami
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