In December, Northwestern Athletics and Under Armour came to a multiyear agreement for the athletic apparel company to officially sponsor Wildcat athletics. Previously, the ‘Cats had donned Adidas uniforms, but the switch will put the Under Armour logo on Northwestern athletic gear. Here are five things to know about Under Armour before the sponsorship officially begins at the start of the 2012-2013 season.
1. They make some really awful uniforms: Someone at Under Armour apparently thought it would be a good idea to put the Maryland state flag on a uniform. The uniforms turned out to be more atrocious than every despicable Oregon Ducks uniform that has ever existed (and there are a lot of Oregon Ducks uniforms). The Maryland Terrapins rocked the flag uniforms for their 2011 football season opening contest against Miami. They won the game, but their hideous uniforms will continue to haunt the minds of casual college football viewers for centuries to come. (Perhaps I exaggerate, but at the very least I was traumatized watching from my couch.)
2. They also make some really cool uniforms: Maryland’s flag uniforms do not represent Under Armour’s typical standards. The company’s most notable collegiate client is Auburn, a football program that features great uniforms and occasionally wins national championships. Still, Under Armour is best known for its compression apparel, which helped get the company off the ground in the late '90s.
3. You may have heard of Tom Brady: Former Auburn quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner (and NFL super rookie) Cam Newton held on to his Under Armour allegiance following college, and remains sponsored by the company. Although NFL jerseys are made by Reebok (and will soon switch to Nike), several professional football players are sponsored by Under Armour. These players include Tom Brady, Ray Lewis and Jason Pierre-Paul, among several other big-time athletes.
4. They're expanding out of football: Under Armour is typically thought of as primarily an apparel outfitter for football. However, the brand is expanding out of the gridiron to other sports. Starting next season, English Premier League Club Tottenham Hotspur – currently one of the more successful clubs in the league – will have its kits (that’s a soccer term for “uniforms”) made by Under Armour. Several prominent baseball, basketball and hockey players are also sponsored by the brand, while swimmer Michael Phelps is part of the Under Armour athlete network.
5. Under Armour has really intense advertisements: One of the best parts about the brand is its commercials, which are very intense. Cries of “We must protect this house!” became a staple of Under Armour commercials a few years ago, and its advertisements have continued to glorify and intensify sports and the impressive male physique ever since. Plus, their relatively new basketball advertisement features a (deep) voiceover from Lance Reddick, who played Cedric Daniels in The Wire. Epic.
Overall, don't expect too many big changes when Under Armour takes over the supply of Northwestern athletic clothing. Though there may be more of an emphasis on the compression shirts that made Under Armour famous, Wildcat fans shouldn't worry too much about the brand trying to replicate the horrendous Maryland uniforms in white and purple. For the sake of our style and dignity, we hope not.