Anyone who has read any of my stuff over time, knows that I have a long-standing chip on my shoulder about those BLACK Duke uniforms.
The latest installment was on Friday night, in the Pre-Season NIT Final, in Madison Square Garden, against Arizona.
Arizona wore their white uniforms, as they were the “home” team by virtue of their better ranking. Duke, being the “away” team, should have been wearing their classic blue uniforms. After all, they ARE the Blue Devils.
Here’s my reasoning:
Simply put, I believe that if a team has a color in it’s mascot’s name, then they have no reason wearing black. The exception being, of course, if black is one of it’s official colors, in it’s mascot’s name, or is indigenous to the mascot.
So, it would be a fair question for one to wonder why this has happened.
Well, there’s a simple reason. Money. Lots of money.
There are examples, far and wide, of schools who have sold their souls to the uniform manufacturers, allowing them to alter official school colors. It’s not always black, but are abominations none-the-less.
Who can forget those Nike “Hyper Elite Platinum Elite College” uniforms, or the neon Adidas Neon uniforms, replete with faux camo shorts.
Yes, it’s a money making ploy. The idea is that real fans will want to own all three, or even four uniforms.
I know, I know … A certain demographic portion of players and fans think that black makes them look tougher. If you don’t believe me, pay attention to the models those uniforms are on. It’s nothing more than an extension of targeted shoe marketing.
I’ve always believed that the trend of deviating from official school colors and conventional uniforms began when those bad boys of college basketball, the Michigan “Fab Five,” donned black socks and were not challenged. A light bulb went off in respective heads of marketing people at all over.
Personally, I believe it is a diminution of the school’s brand. It is a slap in the face of tradition, and it’s simply wrong.
There is never an occasion when any college player ought to be wearing anything but their official school colors when he/she represents the school. To allow uniform manufacturers to deviate is reprehensible.
Now, I admit that I’m one of those guys who notices when someone wears an unconventional combination of stripes, plaids, and checks all at the same time. I rail at a guy who can’t tie a tie properly, or wears their trousers too long. I’ve long believed that neither coaches, nor sports commentators, ought to dress like bankers.
They say that you ought to “Dress for Success.” Using that logic, the outcome of the Duke-Arizona game was already decided by whomever thought black uniforms were appropriate. I know, I groaned, all game long.
