Notre Dame's near two decade relationship with Adidas will end this spring.
According to a report from ESPN the rumored news of Notre Dame walking away from its contract with Adidas turns out to be true.
The University is making the switch to Under Armour.
BREAKING: Notre Dame to switch from adidas to Under Armour for all sports
— darren rovell (@darrenrovell) January 9, 2014
Confirmed: A source tells Irish Illustrated that Notre Dame will sign a deal with Under Armour for athletic apparel, replacing adidas.
— Irish Illustrated (@NDatRivals) January 9, 2014
So there it is. I mentioned about a month ago in a Five Wide Fullbacks post that I didn't like a switch to Under Armour. Not necessarily because I don't like UA but more because we're choosing them over Nike.
As a proud supporter of all things Nike this one hurts. So it goes, I suppose.
Under Armour not a surprise based on rumblings around the deal. Irish coaches preferred prospects played in Under Armour All-American Game.
— Irish Illustrated (@NDatRivals) January 10, 2014
Uhh, what?? That couldn't have had anything to do with the switch. That's pretty dumb if true.
Talked to a few ND players last month about possibility of leaving adidas. Overwhelming consensus was Nike would be their choice for gear.
— Dan Murphy (@BGI_DanMurphy) January 9, 2014
Yeah, no kidding.
Now that this Under Armour deal is going to be official let's talk about some things.
1) The deal better be worth a ton of money
If we got upset when Adidas gave Michigan over $8 million then Under Armour better be throwing $10 million at Notre Dame right now. If the deal was for just a modest increase over the Adidas deal, or heaven forbid doesn't even reach Michigan's deal, then this was a mistake.
2) Show me why this was a good deal for the school
Now we're Under Armour's flagship school? Now we're their priority and well special attention? Prove it to me. When I walk into Dick's Sporting Goods I want to see Notre Dame ads all over the place. Nation-wide billboard ads. I know you can't match Nike's creative team with television ads but let's see what you've got. Being the top dog for Under Armour means nothing to me unless Notre Dame's brand is expanded.
3) Get to know Ryan Grooms
He's the Notre Dame football equipment manager and he's done a great job in recent years.
4) Leave our regular home and away uniforms alone
I trust that UA won't be changing much here.
5) Don't mess up our pants color
For the love of God we finally got the old-school gold color on the pants right.
6) Step up your shoe game
UA is making most of their money off of children, women, and hunting gear in addition to an assortment of hot and cold gear. In fact, the last Under Armour commercial I saw marketed those three groups the entire time. That's great. Really.
But you've got to do something about your sneakers. You've made zero dent in the market here and for good reason.
I feel so bad for the basketball players.
