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New Year’s Day … Now and Then

Namath OB painting

By Phil Hecken, with fond recollections by Rick Pearson

Welcome to 2011 everyone. Let’s hope it’s a great year for all.

New Year’s Day is traditionally one of the greatest days in sport, as we’re always treated to a whole mess of bowl games, and, in more recent years, an outdoor hockey game featuring fauxback uniforms. The Bowl games, unless the first of January falls on a Sunday, are always a staple of the day, and we can always count on the Rose Bowl to be one of those games. So it is today. The Winter Classic, the new kid on the New Year’s Day block, has been moved from it’s usual early starting time due rain forecast — I’m guessing this is the first time in history we’ll have a rain delay in the NHL.

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Today’s splash photo of Joe Willie Namath was painted by none other than Rick Pearson. It’s from the 1965 Orange Bowl, which for many years was actually played on New Year’s Day. With the big business surrounding college football, many of us who grew up watching all the “big” bowls, before they had corporate names, looked forward to New Year’s Day since it was the end of the college football season. The games were played in warm weather locales and had simple names like “Rose,” “Cotton,” “Sugar” and “Orange” — not “Beef ‘O’ Brady” and “Meineke.”

Today we’ll have six bowls and a night-time outdoor hockey game. The early ones all have corporate names: “Ticket City Bowl,” “Capital One Bowl,” and “Outback Bowl.” The latter three, at least (and despite their corporate sponsorship), are the “Gator Bowl,” the “Fiesta Bowl,” and the granddaddy of them all, the “Rose Bowl.”

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I asked Rick about his painting. “First Orange Bowl at night (first major bowl game at night, in fact), 46 years ago,” says Rick.

That was a year before I was born. It reminded me of another version (which you’ll see below) that Paul first showed us in one the early “Ricko Files” series.

“Alabama’s Joe Namath — knee-braced, soccer shoe-wearing, spatted up and for all the world almost introduing his trademark white cleats — lights up the Texas Longhorns, one of whom would later become one of his favorite targets with the Jets, George Sauer,” says Ricko.

That is a “Ricko original watercolor and tempera from 1966,” he explains. “Jeez, I’ve been doing this uniwatching thing a long time. The ‘1964’ is reference to his ‘look’ that season, not the actual date of the game.”

Amazing work Rick. Of course, Alabama looks pretty much the same today as they did before many of us were even a gleam in our mother’s eyes. Rick painted that just after he turned 20. Aside from Namath being a huge deal, even then, I asked Rick if he had any memories from that game, something which stuck with him all these years. As usual, he didn’t disappoint. Turns out that Orange Bowl game marked a sea change in the televising of college sports, turning one of the biggest bowl games into a prime-time spectacular. Perhaps not as seminal a moment as the 1958 NFL Championship Game between the Colts and the Giants, but with a young, hotshot kid, wearing “white” cleats, and an upstart AFL looking to sign a bonafide college star, the Orange Bowl of January 1, 1965, would have a profound influence on the sporting world.

As a bonus, Ricko included another painting based on a photo from the same game. That’s the one we’d seen before. Here’s Rick’s thoughts on that memorable game that took place 46 years ago today:

I was a freshman at U of Minnesota, and working as warming house attendant at an outdoor skating rink during Christmas break. Brought a little portable B&W TV with me that night so I could watch the game. Was really the night the country discovered Joe Namath and his (apparently) white shoes.

Was almost a template for his entire career. Pre-game was all about his injured knee and whether he’d play. I remember the announcers saying he was wearing soccer shoes because the cleats were shorter, which might help keep him from catching a cleat and tweaking the knee.

And what did he do? Went out and played spectacularly. The audience reaction, I think, had a lot to do with Sonny Werblin being sure he and the AFL needed the guy…and to sign him to that “amazing” $400,000 contract.

Plus, the TV audience was monstrous, and made the network realize night-time bowl games would be huge, and that, in general, Americans would watch football at night. So it also may have have influenced Roone Arledge (pretty sure the game was on ABC) and had something to do with the creation of Monday Night Football a few years later.

In that sense, that particular Orange Bowl is a little bit like the GGEP…with regard to its influence on Bowl schedules and TV programmming.

Thanks Ricko. Great to have your rememberances of that day, and for the perspective on how it’s changed the way we watch college football today. And, of course, an outstanding set of paintings. Aside from being our sage and one of the first ‘uni historians,’ your remarkable artistic talent goes far beyond your “kid cards” (many of which can be seen in that set).

Will anything today stand the test of time like the 1965 Orange Bowl? Do you all have any memories of any games that stood out for you like this game did for Rick? Let’s hear it.

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As for today, the NHL’s Winter Classic, a matchup between Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin, will be subject to a rain-delay, with the scheduled start being moved from 1:00 pm (Eastern) to 8:00 pm. Surely not what the NHL had in mind when they selected the game and locale (Pittsburgh). If you want to check out the situation early, I believe this link has a webcam that should show the scene before it unfolds.

As in past years, the two combatants, the Pengiuns of Pittsburgh and the Capitals of Washington, will be wearing special uniforms. Pittsburgh will be sporting a hybrid/fauxback look that features navy and powder blue, while Washington will go red-white-and-blue for their vistor’s gear. Of course, the NHL should be white at home, but that’s neither here nor there. And that’s of course, if they do actually play the game at all.

I loved the Inaugural Winter Classic three years ago in Buffalo, and was equally pumped for the Wrigley Classic and last year’s game in the Fens. Obviously, the NHL quickly exhausted their supply of 90 year old stadia in which to hold games, but for sure I figured they’d play the 2011 WC in either New York or Minnesota (even though Toronto or Montreal would be equally good). I also predicted last year that the “novelty” of the game was beginning to wear off, and I was proven right when the ratings went down.

Whether this year’s game was desperation or a last-ditch effort to sell its stars, I was extremely disappointed that Pittsburgh was chosen to host the game. But obviously, Bettman felt the star power of AO and Sid the Kid outweighed the historical significance of New York, Minnesota or Canada. Of course, you can’t predict the weather, but even an amateur meterologist could tell you the chances of it being above freezing in Pittsburgh on January 1 are far higher than any of the other locations. Now, they lose out on their “early” slot and will have to compete with the late (and great) bowl games. It’s a matchup I think they will lose.

I hope the game goes well and they don’t abandon old-time, outdoor hockey. But maybe next year they’ll consider location and historical significance over a couple of overrated stars who just may be skating through puddles of water.

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As for today’s football, I’ll watch a lot, but I’m most excited for the granddaddy of them all, the Rose Bowl. Undefeated TCU, who it was announced would be wearing black over lizard skin, may not be wearing that at all. Whether they will go with a purple top or something else (it was reported when TCU was taking their Rose Bowl team photo, they were wearing black jerseys and purple pants), remains a mystery. Nike and their toy combat soldiers wouldn’t want it any other way.

Whether or not they can topple #4 Wisconsin will be interesting — because if they do, it will just add more fuel to the “should the NCAA have a playoff system” debate that’s been strangely quiet this past year. And, could an undefeated TCU (if they do win today) legitimately lay claim to #1 over either Oregon or Auburn (one of whom will finish undefeated)? It may not even be debatable — but without a playoff we’ll never know. For those who oppose such an ‘unthinkable notion,’ you better root for the Badgers today.

Rose Bowl Update: Anonymous sources have confirmed this will be TCU’s Rose Bowl helmet, and they will be wearing “the new black tops [from the Nike event] with some purple added and some new purple pants we haven’t seen before.”

*Sigh* I’ll be rooting for you, Texas Christian, but I can’t imagine you’ll be much to look at.

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colorize this

Colorize This!

Occasionally, I will be featuring wonderful, high-quality black and white photographs that are just begging to be colorized.

Last time we had a “colorize this” segment, I gave the readers a choice of several wonderful photos, and as usual, you guys didn’t disappoint. Lets get right to them. Got a few new names this time around, so it’s great to see some others getting into this wonderful (albeit time-consuming) hobby.

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Shane Thomas was the first to check in with this colorization of Art Herring in his satin blue uniform.

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Next up was George Chilvers, who, as always, had some wonderful submissions from snowy England. His first was the same photo of Art Herring, with a different take on the colors. George also submitted his Bob Feller colorization (which was a popular one, as you will see).

Later on, as his football (I think we call that “soccer” here in the States) was canceled, he did another version of Art Herring (love how he got the eyes so blue!). We’ll be hearing more from George in a bit.

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Next to send in his colorization was John Majka, who also took a shot at Bob Feller. I love how different people interpret the colors differently. Great stuff John.

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Next to send in his efforts was Adam Hill, who is a graphic designer and who said this was his first ever attempt at colorization. I think he did an outstanding job with Bullet Bob. (And I love how he chose brown eyes for this one — anyone know what color eyes Feller had?)

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I also got an “off-the-board” colorization from Joe DeAngelis, who took on the one and only Vince Lombardi:

Hello, Phil,

Attached is my very first attempt to colorize a B&W photo. In response to the positive feedback from the HBO special “LOMBARDI”, I submit this photo of Vince Lombardi in his collegiate uniform when enrolled at Fordham.

Thank you for your time …

Joe DeAngelis

Great stuff Joe.

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Moving along, reader Doug Mooney went for the satin Dodgers:

Hey Phil,

I tried another one of the B&W photos, using this to try to gauge the color.

Here is Art Herring. I might try Bob Feller if I get some time.

Thanks,

Doug

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As the week progressed, I also received some colorizations from Michael Ferry, a UW favorite, who colorized all four of my “suggestions.”:

Hi Phil,

Hope you’re having a great holiday. Down here, can’t complain — my Christmas tradition these days is homemade chicken and sausage gumbo…and this year’s version came out, well, pretty good.

Anyway, hope you like these pictures. Again, happy holidays!

Regards,

Michael Ferry

And here is what he sent: Art Herring — Picture One, Picture Two, and Picture Three, as well as The Heater from Van Meter. Great stuff, as always, Michael.

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George must have been really snowed in, because he then sent me an oldie — this Hank Gowdy shot from several weeks back.

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On a snowy Sunday in New York, I received a colorization from another first-timer, Tim West, who took on Rapid Robert:

Hi Phil.

This is my first shot at colorization. You see, I was trapped in a blizzard with no power, but I did have a fully charged laptop and that Bob Feller picture. As I had no internet access, the colors are mostly a guess, but I think it turned out alright.

-Tim.

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And that’s almost it for the colorizations today. I got to chatting a bit with George Chilvers, and I asked him how sure he was that the Dodgers were wearing the “lighter” blue as opposed to the “darker” blue (since it definitely appears they had both a lighter and a darker version of that uniform — this wonderful photo from the Life archives seems to be the darker one). Since he’s pretty much of an expert, he was pretty certain. But as a favor, he also produced a darker version of Art Herring as a comparison.

If you’re wondering about Mr. Chilvers and his skills, you may have already seen his work (which I believe was featured on Uni Watch before, although I’m not 100% certain). George has his own site, and he’s got an entire section of colorized soccer (football) pictures. Tremendous stuff there, and well worth a few minutes of your time to check it out.

Thanks to ALL the colorizers — fantastic job by all.

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For next time…I’ll post a couple of suggestions below, but if you folks have any you’d like to submit on your own, those are always welcome. Also, if you spot a hi-res (usually 1000 x 1000 pixels or higher) black and white you think would be a great photo for colorization, send that my way as well.

A while back, I had grabbed a couple of great photos from the Life archive, and they might be just ripe for colorization:

Colts kickoff and this terrific Giants vs. Steelers (not sure of the year, but it’s either 1950s or 1960s) would be great. And finally, here’s one that’s a real challenge:

Marines vs. Army (1924). That’s from Shorpy, and the photo cap reads, “Nov. 1, 1924. Washington, D.C. “Devil Dogs vs. Infantrymen. McQuade makes gain for Marines against Fort Benning at American League park.” Jack McQuade, former University of Maryland football star, in a game that saw Quantico’s Leathernecks mop the field with Army in a 39-0 rout.”

As always, if you colorize those, or just want to send one it (either a colorization you’ve done or a black & white you’d like to see colorized), drop me a line.

Thanks once again to all the gents who participated in this latest segment. Tremendous job one and all!

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all sport uni tweaks

Uni Tweaks

Lots and lots of tweaks keep pouring in, so obviously this is a popular feature. A bunch new to get to today. If you have a tweak, change or concept for any sport, send them my way.

Remember, if possible, try to keep your descriptions to ~50 words (give or take) per tweak. You guys have been great a keeping to that, and it’s much appreciated!

Got a big set of tweaks today…so lets get right into it.

Now, on to today’s tweaks:

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Starting off the show is Tim O’Brien, who has a Hornets to Chitown concept:

With news that the New Orleans Hornets might be on the move again and that Chicago – or at least the near west suburbs – might be at the top of the list for desired locals, I came up with a few designs for the (hypothetically) new team.

My name and design comes from the Chicago city flag.

Home
Road
Alt

Tim E. O’Brien

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Next up is Ken Sorrentino, who has some mocks for the Colts:

I was watching th Colts vs. Titans last night when I realized that those Colts unis were really outdated. I mean, the Patriots throwbacks are the same exept in different colors. They need a redo in the Manning-era. Here is my take.

— Ken Sorrentino

Next up is Joe DeAngelis, who has a New York Football Giants tweak:

My New York Giants design is somewhat of a throwback to the 1970’s, featuring blue pants. The jersey is the current road however I recolored the stripe pattern to better accommodate the scheme. The helmet is also a throwback to the 1975-81 gear with the white/red/white center stripes. Finally, I capitalized and redesigned the “ny” logo on the helmet using a more simpler font, but accented it with a matching red outline.

Thanks for looking,
Joe DeAngelis

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Closing down today’s tweaks is Jay Shelton, who has a redesign for the Cardinals helmets:

I’m sending a design for a new Arizona Cardinals helmet that I came up with 10+ years ago. My design is based upon using the whole helmet as the cardinal head, with the yellow facemask representing the beak.

Thanks,
Jay Shelton

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That’s it for today. Check back tomorrow for more.

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11 Greatest Bowls

And now, a Top 11 for 2011

No year end or year beginning would be complete without the obligatory “Top 10” list. Unless you’re Jim Vilk, who always has to do things just a bit differently. So, instead of a normal Top 10… this one goes to … eleven:

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Honorable Mention to a couple of Liberty Bowls in the 70s…if I could only remember which ones.

Another Honorable Mention to the 2003 Sun Bowl, Minnesota/Oregon and the 1974 Sun Bowl — I taped the ’03 game, and I’m pretty sure I saw the ’74 game … but my mind is a little foggy on that one.

My 11th favorite bowl game, the 1991 Peach Bowl. Great game.

10. 1981 Bluebonnet Bowl, UCLA/Michigan — Don’t recall any details, just know that I saw it and enjoyed it.

9. 1979 Cotton Bowl, Notre Dame/Houston — Lindsay Nelson, Houston’s Veer offense, an icy day and the Irish in green numbers.

8. 2010 “Citrus” Bowl, Penn State/LSU — By far the prettiest-looking bowl game ever.

7. 1983 Sugar Bowl, Penn State/Georgia — JoePa finally gets an official championship!

6. 2005 Rose Bowl, Texas/Michigan — The best Rose Bowl I ever saw … until the following year.

5. 1980 Orange Bowl, Oklahoma/Florida State — The wishbone, JC Watts (who could throw, too) and Don Criqui calling the game. Ooooohhh, yeah.

4. 1987 Fiesta Bowl, Miami/Penn State — The first thing we ever taped on our first VCR, and it turned out to be a classic.

3. 1982 Sugar Bowl, Pitt/Georgia — Keith Jackson, Dan Marino, script Pitt and an exciting game — it doesn’t get much better than that.

2. 2006 Rose Bowl, Texas/USC — What a way for Keith Jackson to go out — one of the best games I ever saw, period.

1. 2007 Fiesta Bowl, Boise State/Oklahoma — I jumped out of my seat for that hook and lateral play. Just a joy of a game to watch.

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Great job with that Jim — shocked you didn’t have more Penn State games on that list, but at least you got the greatest finish ever correct. The Hook and Lateral was great, but the Statue of Liberty was the icing on the cake.

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kek small

Calling All Yinzers!

And now, a few words from everyone’s favorite Yinzer, Doug Keklak:

SECOND ANNUAL YINZER WATCH GATHERING: Saturday, January 8th, 2011 at the Fox and Hound on McKnight Road in Pittsburgh. Noon till whenever. The planning committee (aka, me, Ryan Connelly and Jason Bernard) at first thought we’d keep tradition and do it on the night of the BCS Championship Game but then we reconsidered for two reasons: Pitt’s bowl game will be on this date and we’d like to accommodate any readers that might want to come in from out of town. Native Pittsburgher? Displaced Pittsburgher? No ties at all to Pittsburgh? It doesn’t matter, ALL are welcome. Please RSVP to me at dkeklak(at)comcast.net if you are able to attend so that I can get a handle on how many folks we might get.

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And so, let’s put the first post or 2011 into the books. Thanks to Ricko, Mothersunbowlker, and all the colorizers and tweakers. Great stuff today. Everyone enjoy your bowls and the Winter Classic.

Happy 2011 To One and All!

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Fully striped went to 3/4 striped when it was determined the stripe was slippery. Then it went to half striped when menufacturer’s remembered that 3/4 striped balls were still slippery for lefthanders. — David Murphy (on why the stripe no longer goes all the way around a football)

 
  
 
Comments (174)

    I’ll be curious to watch the Winter Classic under the lights.

    Let’s hope it’s cold enough for Fleury or Varlamov to wear a toque.

    The forcast for tonight is 39 at the start of the game and 36 by the end… (even if the caps goalie (Valry) isn’t in a toque ~ I know I will be because it will be cold in the stands.)

    Is it just me, or could the Tennessee Vols use a bit of uniform uniformnity? The lighter shade of Orange on their jerseys look incredily lighter than the Orange used to stripe the helmets, pants and every other item that they wear.

    simply make the Orange jersey a “medium” Orange shade, a bit richer and darker, and match the entire uniform. While we are at it, use a true Block numeral font, and not that goofy, over-thick font with the curved serifs and also, let’s go back to full sized NOB and TV numerals. Just because it is a “newer materia” doesn’t mean that by definition the jersey should look like crap.

    Go ahead – make those changes – and the Vols uni will be 300% better and still retain it’s rich traditions …..

    How about this New Year’s resolution – All teams attempting to wear Gold as a “dark jersey” or as a “dark” numeral over a white football jersey should wear at least a medium Old Gold, and not the weak, crappy “Vegas Gold” that is too close to White to be a “dark” color. If you must wear a Vegas Gold numeral over White, then adequately trim it in a darker color so that it can be read properly.

    Are you listening UCF? – You have a great uni idea/theme, ruinously executed by the insistance that Vegas Gold be used as a “dark” color. Go ahead, switch to Old Gold – and you’ll have the best uni in the South!!!

    Well, if they’re going to keep insisting on making one team wear white, then I agree with you. Vegas gold is too light to use it as a “dark” jersey. I think the better solution is to just go color vs color, of course.

    Vegas gold should be outlawed. I don’t know why everyone who wears gold goes with that shade. Pitt’s gold pants are so light they look white. And don’t get me started on Notre Dame.

    Old Gold, doesn’t look good either, it looks okay as a stripe but as a top or bottom, not so much. Tech’s away look was fantastic back in 08, but their home one not so much (except in the shade). The gold comes off as yellow in the day time, and the helmets have a green shade at night.

    There’s a reason Georgia Tech went back to Vegas Gold after only one year in the Old Gold (which is the official school color).

    Here’s Tech’s spring game from 2009, this is OLD GOLD, the dye doesn’t work on today’s material, it only worked in the past because they were made of cloth – Russel Athletic has been saying this for years, and they proved in in 08.

    link

    Yeah, UCF can make those changes and they still won’t have the best unis link, much less the entire geographical region.

    “But maybe next year they’ll consider location and historical significance over a couple of overrated stars who just may be skating through puddles of water.”

    Overrated stars?
    Wow…you couldn’t be more wrong. Maybe Uni Watch should stick to worrying about uniforms.

    sure…let’s play it at the recelty renovated Metrodome (hole in roof) and have the Stars play the Wild …
    or maybe we can have the King vs. Sharks at the Rose bowl. ~ covering two great traditions

    The buzz around Pittsburgh and DC has been amazing for this game. I just hope it lives up to the hype and not like the blowout in Wrigley.

    when i said “minnesota or new york” i was thinking outdoors, not the metrodome…and where did i ever say anything about LA or the coliseum?

    for the record, and i think you may know this, i HATE the rangers, so i’m certainly not pimping for them — but i would think the history of the rangers and hockey in new york (or minnesota or canada) plus the myriad places either locale could host a game easily trumps anything in pittsburgh

    granted yankee stadium I is no longer standing, and the NHL has pretty much hit the two old baseball stadia remaining (fenway & wrigley)…but maybe having at least ONE of the ‘original six’ remaining who haven’t yet played (new york, toronto, montreal) hosting the classic might actually generate some buzz among those whom the NHL is hoping to either draw into the game or draw back into the game

    to do so, you don’t stage a game between two individuals, you make the event about history (and a colder location might help too)

    maybe crosby (and yeah, i heard about the recent point streak) and AO are not overrated, but they aint gretzky and lemieux…

    I agree that Minnesota, New York, and Canada should eventually host a winter classic, but there’s plenty of time for that. Crosby and AO are two superstars on playoff caliber teams, and the combination of playing at Heinz Field, is too good for the league to pass up right now. The overall TV ratings for the NHL are increasing, so they need to capitalize on this momentum.

    In terms of history, Pittsburgh does very well when stacked up against other cities, we’re not talking St. Louis or Los Angeles here. Western Pennsylvania is one of the original homes of professional hockey in the USA, going back to the turn of last century, predating the NHL’s original six.

    While the Penguins have had plenty of highlights and stars since 1967, there were several other pro franchises in Pittsburgh which laid the groundwork for the NHL to return for good in that city. I for one, wouldn’t have minded if the Pens had dressed in the uniforms of the old Hornets, for example.

    New York and Minnesota aren’t going anywhere; despite their youth, Crosby and Ovechkin always could. If this is going to be an annual event, there’s no reason to burn through all the great venues immediately, especially when you have two young stars that can provide enough excitement for a game on its own.

    I’d love to see Kings/Sharks in Pac Bell one year.

    Keep in mind, I believe the NHL has publicly stated that they simply don’t need to host in Canada. A main reason they put on the Winter Classic is to draw in American fans as more of a spectacle than just a game. The Canadian fans will watch whether or not they play outside.

    @LI Phil ~ I’m in a silly mood today anyway..from a nice New Year’s Eve party and being “Stuck” in Pittsburgh 7 extra hours.

    Anyway..I could see the Rangers playing (I grew up on LI so I’m not a fan of the bluesh#t either.) playing St. Louis at Citifield ?

    As usual, Phil has shown he has no idea what he’s talking about.

    – Superstars sell tickets and get ratings, not history.
    – With Yankee Stadium and New Meadowlands tied up with football, there is no suitable venue for a Winter Classic.
    – If you think Crosby and Ovechkin aren’t at Gretzky & Lemieux level, you’re not watching. Don’t forget, Crosby is only 22, and Ovechkin is 23. Gretzky did not hoist his first cup until he was 23.

    Seriously, why all the negativity about the Winter Classic? It’s a great event and the one day a year hockey takes center stage over a bunch of bowl games, none of which are for the national championship, that have become lost in the clutter of way, way too many bowl games.

    Except it doesn’t take center stage. It’s lost among the sea of bowl games, and quite frankly, doesn’t really compete. Basically, no one cares. (Seriously, aren’t most hockey games on the Versus channel now? How many people even know they have that channel? The sport just doesn’t have a huge following.) Hockey fans probably want a different matchup (thus the overrated stars comment in the main blog), and people like me might maybe watch a couple minutes during a commercial break in one of the football games. If you’re a hockey fan, and you can go to the game, I’m sure it’s a great experience. If you aren’t a fan, you still don’t care. Inside, outside, whatever – it’s just a hockey game.

    I agree that even casual fans don’t want to see the same team(s) and player(s) year after year.

    Sure, The Squid and Ove are outstanding players, but is it worth the expense of alienating fans in NY, Toronto, Montreal (Original 6 teams at that.) and even Minnesota, Vancouver or Denver?

    I think the NHL blew it when they picked the Penguins (team) and Pittsburgh (city) for The Winter Classic.

    And it serves them right that the game is moved back into prime-time in competition with the college bowl games because of shitty weather.

    Every year I watch the Winter Classic & skip every bowl game. There’s too many bowls as it is and it seems like it’s been going on too long.

    Actually… just a thought as I don’t really give a rat’s ass about hockey… maybe they could treat the game kinda like the NFL does with Thanksgiving? Just pick one good cold weather city and play it there every year, with different opponents each season? If the NFL can have Detroit & Dallas playing on Thanksgiving every year, why couldn’t the NHL have one team play every New Year’s Day outside? At least then you can kinda attempt to build a tradition out of it… what they have now is this wandering random thing that seems like they’re trying too hard to market it to non-fans.

    What you’re missing—even though you likely don’t see it because you admittedly don’t give a rat’s ass about hockey (not that I really do, either)—is that the Winter Classic quickly has…
    –Become pretty good TV, a brilliant counterprogramming move by NBC
    –Generated a LOT more conversation among the Talking Heads than “just a hockey game”
    –Turned into an automatically tough ticket in the cities where played because of its “event” status
    –Proven to be, all things considered, an excellent mid-season showcase for the NHL in the USA (which also is why it will be a LONG time before we see a Canadian market involved; the NHL already HAS that audience, thank you very much).

    So, despite what likely will be crap ratings (comparatively speaking) tonight, it’s gonna be around awhile…just as something different to get New Year’s Day started.

    A TV program—especially a sporting event—doesn’t have to win its time slot to be successful, y’know. It only has to deliver the numbers it promised its sponsors and advertisers and, hopefully, show signs of a growing audience.

    —Ricko

    Don’t you think the NFL (excluding the late night NFL Network contest) would be better served, given the home teams’ talent of late, having other teams host Thanksgiving day games?

    Casual hockey fans aside, the Winter Classic has been a great event for the NHL. They had the snow in Buffalo, two great venues (Wrigley and Fenway) and are now showcasing arguabley the top two players in the league (they may not be Gretzky and Lemieux just yet but, then again, they are both just in their early twenties).

    Sure, it may not draw in the casual fan (enjoy UConn v Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl) but hockey fans, especially those in Pittsburgh and DC, will be tuning in. HBO’s 24/7 has helped draw interest as well.

    Have to disagreed with the notion that the NHL made any mistake with this matchup, the later start time may not hurt the game at all. The OU-UConn game could be over early, so that won’t be serious competition.

    I can’t believe fans of other Original Six teams and others have a major gripe here. Some of those teams, like Toronto, have been struggling. Others, like Denver, are fairly new to professional hockey. This is still a relatively new concept, so others will have their opportunity. A Colorado-Toronto outdoor game right now just isn’t attractive for the general public. And just because a franchise happens to be one of the O6, doesn’t mean they automatically jump in front of the line.

    Ricko – so, seven weeks comprises “a long time”, eh?

    Players didn’t exactly like the glare when the sun was out during practice yesterday, so they won’t have much problem playing under the lights.

    Comparing Crosby and Ovechkin to Gretzky and Lemieux is tough in and of itself, as the game has changed in the last 20 years – you don’t have the glut of offensive output that you once had. In the 1992-93 season, 14 players reach 50 or more goals. Compare that to the entire last decade (2000-01 – 2009-10), when only 12 different players reached that mark.

    The 2011 Heritage Classic in Calgary (between the Flames and the Canadiens), which is on February 20th – about seven weeks from now.

    Oh, lord, from an advertising and sports TV programming point of view (which I’ve dealt with professionally from one side of the issue or the other for 40 years now) that’s not even close to the same animal. Totally different.

    New Year’s Day is a national holiday with virtually an entire nation of sports fans sitting home channel surfing, deciding what to watch (with an early start time to ensnare them while still sobering up, lol), as opposed to a typical Winter Sunday with a compartively late faceoff (today’s time change not being part of the desired plan, of course). I mean, yeah, it’s two weeks after the Super Bowl…but still.

    Is NBC carrying the Heritage Classic? Even if they are, it’s an entirely different proposition, based on potential viewing audience.

    NBC and the NHL would gain literally nothing by including a Canadian team in the Winter Classic. In fact, they’d lose if they did. Why sacrifice a U.S. market for one where you already have a viewing audience by dint of the league’s established popularity…and where the rest of your broadcasts during the season aren’t even available? I’ll practically guarantee you the Canadian teams are slick enough to understand that. Heard any widespread bitching from them about not being included in the WC?

    But they do have a Canadian “version”. Smart, actually.

    —Ricko

    Let me rephrase that…
    “They’ve contined the Canadian game that created the whole notion in the first place.”

    —Ricko

    I love watching the winter classic, and wouldn’t care what teams are in it. I don’t make any effort to watch any of the bowl games outside of the NC game. Every bowl game is just a random matchup of two losers. Usually one team is prepared to win and one team is there enjoying themselves. There is no meaning behind them or any purpose.

    More TCU info…

    “TCU is the home team: The Horned Frogs will be the home team today, which puts them on the east sideline, in front of the San Gabriel Mountains. A closely guarded secret all week has been which uniform TCU will wear.

    Patterson said Friday the Frogs will wear the new Nike combat gear jersey. But instead of the Nike silver-tinged pants and helmet, TCU will wear its classic purple pants and purple helmet.”

    link

    Here’s a link to some great color-on-color hockey photos from yesterday’s Winter Classic Alumni game:

    link

    Has Paul done an entry specifically on numeral fonts? There are some really good ones out there, including classic blocks, and some really bad ones.

    Florida State’s always struck me as a highly readable distinctive font. Anybody know the name?

    More schools are getting custom fonts. Some are good (Iowa State comes to mind) others are cheesy (I’m looking at you Belloti Bold.)

    I have a passing interest, but no expertise. Anybody else?

    I don’t remember a CFB numeral entry. I’m interested in them too, ever since Colorado went to clownish tractor numbers in the early Neuheisel years (glad they were replaced!).

    Off the top of my head:
    Great: Tulsa, New Mexico, Utah
    Good: FSU (don’t like the varying widths or they’d be great)
    Meh: Oregon, Michigan State
    Horrid: ‘Zona, Miasma, Boston College

    Love love love Shelton’s gridiron Cardinals helmet tweak. My reaction to all the criticism of recent Cardianls uni designs has been, “Why bother? Their helmet sucks so badly that the rest of the uni doesn’t matter.” Team needs a red helmet, but obviously you can’t just stick the team’s decapitated red cardinal head on a red helmet. This concept shows a way forward. An early candidate for “Uni Tweak of the Year” in my book.

    Agree on both counts. Shelton’s tweak is novel, but let another Cardinals’ team use it. The Arizona Cardinals’ helmet is perfect. It just needs the old St. Louis threads to match.

    Phil – totally, 100% agree with your disappointment with the Winter Classic – of course the only reason Pitt is hosting is because of the Sid vs Ovi appeal.

    I can’t believe that NYR hasn’t taken part yet. They are an obvious choice to participate. Plus, they would look great out there – for proof, here’s a pic of me and my boy outside last year:

    link

    What a great picture, Jim BC.

    I think the NHL would be wise to make certain the annual outdoor game is played where freezing cold and/or the possibility of snow is guaranteed. People watch that game for the atmosphere, not the stars. The drama, the intrigue, the unique aspect of that game is in the environment, the weather, right?

    Great shot Jim,
    BTW – Love the 91-92 TBTC Rangers Graves jersey, I got a Messier #11 back then too.

    Much better looking than the current Rangers fauxback thirds, I think. Navy blue and vintage mildew-stain doesn’t work as well with that design.

    “Purple” teams are 0-3 so far in bowl games: East Carolina, Clemson and Kansas State.

    If Northwestern, TCU and LSU all lose and purple teams go 0-6, should it be called the UniWatch Curse?

    I enjoy the all the colorizations and different interpretations, but today Adam Hill’s stands out…

    link

    The cap and uniform look great, but the image really pops with the attention to the skin tone, the teeth, and the lips.

    New York is a bit tricky to schedule for a Winter Classic. Yankee Stadium is out, because of the Pinstripe Bowl. Citi Field would be fine, but the Islanders might be the better host. The Meadowlands is even more congested with both the Giants and Jets (and the Devils would be the home team).

    Then again, you could have Islanders-Rangers at Citi Field. Or the Rangers hosting another Original Six team on the Great Lawn of Central Park…

    …..that sounds very intriguing. But even if it can’t be done, there’s nothing wrong with the Rangers as the home team at Citi Field.

    As for last year’s lower ratings, I don’t think its a coincidence that Penn State has been sent to a New Years Day afternoon bowl each of the last two years, to cut into the Philly audience last year and the Pittsburgh audience this year. NCAA is definitely counterprogramming against the Winter Classic. If the Red Wings are in another one, you can bet Michigan will be playing in a bowl at the same time.

    DJ,
    God I love this idea “Great Lawn of Central Park…”, but for baseball. MLB can have their “Grass Roots Classic” or something like that as a Summer Classic.

    Imagine Derek Jeter batting in a city backstop, with the rest of the team sitting on the bench behind a stockade fence. Temporary roll-out fences in the outfield, and a wooden tablet scoreboard.

    Joe

    Why not just have the Rangers and Isles play at Rockefeller Center in front of NBC’s studios?

    There would have to be some re-jigging of the rink’s dimensions obviously, but how cool would it be to have the two NYC teams playing in one of NYC’s marquee winter centers?

    This seems way too obvious to me, but I’m just throwing it out there. We don’t need to stay in arenas and stadiums for these games. The real “pond hockey” games happened in people’s backyards and on rivers in the old days. We need to start thinking outside the box here. The atmosphere is certainly a large reason why these games are successful from an NHL standpoint, and the NHL shoud definitely look at other locales for the games.

    It might be cool, but the NHL isn’t going to forego the opportunity to sell tens of thousands of tickets. And Rockefeller Center is unlikely to give up the necessary time to build a grandstand or even just make sure the rink is NHL-ready.

    Texas Tech looks a little (in the long shots) like the original “Mean Machine,” don’t they.

    That’s not a bad thing.

    —Ricko

    Favorite football scene (play) in a movie, Parapharsing : Paul Crewe ” Shotgun… Dropkick… on two “. After successful attempt, Official( Referee) says ” I haven’t seen that in thirty years” Bogdanski says to Crewe ” How many points is that worth?” Crewe ” Three ”

    Leatherhead

    Ken Sorrentino’s remash of the Colts’ uniform demonstrates to me there’s a huge, and probably growing, gap between what I consider a good look and what the youngsters want. Obviously, Oregon knows what it’s doing, and it’s not recruiting RSVPers like myself!

    Flip,
    Here’s the scary part, the NFL knows all too well what demographic purchases the most merchandise, and will cater to them. Many more 17 year old’s are wearing their jersey’s than say 47 year old’s do.

    Thank you. Techique was still pretty rough.
    God, I miss pushing paint around.
    Really need to get back to it.

    Although people seem to prefer stuff generated on a computer thesedays, so there doesn’t seem to be much point.

    —Ricko

    I know you’re just going by a (faulty) caption, but I highly doubt that that is Pascal Dupuis. Dupuis is a lefty shot, and the guy in the football helmet is a righty shot. I have no guesses as to who the player is, but it’s not Dupuis.

    I dunno. He’s clearly goofing around, what with wearing the Steelers helmet and all. Maybe it is Dupuis and he’s just using someone else’s stick.

    Malkin’s a lefty shot, too. I thought I saw him in that video with a righty’s stick.

    As a Bama fan… great entry today. Great picture – kudos to Ricko. As always, I’m proud that the Tide uniform is the same now as it was then. Not saying everyone should do the same, but it sure works for us. Roll Tide!

    yup x2

    ricko isn’t just some “old guy” with a get off my lawn mentality…he knows of what he speaks, and when he does, i know i for one always learn something…ALWAYS…he still continues to amaze me with the depth and breadth of his knowledge, particulary of an era in which most of us weren’t even born

    we’re very lucky to have him as a big-time contributor

    as far as his artistic abilities and such — well, obviously, they go far beyond benchies, as today’s splash “photo” proves

    i keep bugging him to get benchies going again…hopefully we can all get his creative juices flowing once more

    “As always, I’m proud that the Tide uniform is the same now as it was then. Not saying everyone should do the same, but it sure works for us.”

    Exactly, Chris. There’s room for all sorts of looks, including ‘Bama’s timeless unis.

    Oh, man, have we truly become so dismissive of—and disinterested in—sports history and tradition that the “Inaugural Ticket City Bowl” really is perceived as a bigger deal than the “Inaugural Ticket City COTTON Bowl” would be?

    Jeez.

    —Ricko

    Oh, that’s right. Forgot about that. My bad. Just so used to the Cotton Bowl being a New Year’s Day game.

    So now, just so I have this straight…
    The Cotton Bowl is played at JerryWorld,
    and the Ticket City Bowl is played at Cotton Bowl Stadium.

    Okay, makes sense.
    (eyeroll)

    Then where’s the Fiber One Solid Stool Bowl played?
    (smacks forehead) Duh. At the Porcelain Bowl, obviously.
    For those who don’t know, that’s the game to determine who’s Number Two.

    —Ricko

    They should call it the Cotton Bowl. Because it’s played at…the Cotton Bowl.

    Oh, you can call the OTHER game the AT&T Bowl, or you can call it the Jerry Jones Bowl or whatever, but you doesn’t have to call it the Cotton Bowl.

    Now that we are colorizing old black and whit uniforms can we un-colorize som of the atrociaous 70’s uniforms Astros, padres, etc. =)

    Just realized NBC right now is rebroadcasting the Winter Classic played in the snow in Buffalo.

    Probably a good move on their part.

    —Ricko

    Ticket City Bowl Breakdown:
    Mascot Edge: Red Raiders v Wildcats
    The Red Raider being a Zorro-like masked figure who prefers pistols over a sword. Let’s see pistols vs Wildcat. Advantage Tech.
    Uni Edge: Northwestern gets the slight edge due to their more traditional look.

    Capital One Bowl:
    Mascot Edge: Crimson Tide v Spartans
    Crimson Tide is a reference to the red tide that hits the gulf sometimes. It’s an algae that has been known to kill large underwater mammals like dolphins and manatees. It can also poison shellfish. That being said have you seen 300! This is Sparta! Just stay away from the water and don’t eat shrimp. Advantage Spartans.
    Uni Edge: Alabama all the way. Michigan State is on the verge of looking good or looking bad but even if you vote good it still isn’t as good as Alabama.

    Outback Bowl Breakdown:
    Mascot Edge: Gators v Nittany Lions
    So two very different predators. I imagine that a Mountain Lion would venture near water before a Gator would go into the mountains. Advantage Florida due to their meeting being near water.
    Uni Edge: You can’t even tell that it’s a Total combat uni. Penn State looks good in their classic uni set. This is a tough one. I give the advantage to the Gators. Penn States just a tad too plain for me.

    Gator Bowl Breakdown:
    Mascot Edge: Bulldogs v Wolverines
    I’m pretty sure that a bulldog stands no chance against adamantium claws…oops wrong wolverine. Wolverines are known for being vicious and taking on animals ten times their size when fighting over prey. Advantage Michigan.
    Uni Edge: Good thing Michigan isn’t wearing their white jerseys or they’d lose. Wolverines look way better than the Bulldogs.

    “Crimson Tide is a reference to the red tide that hits the gulf sometimes.”

    Actually it’s because long, long ago a sportswriter wrote that red-clad Alabma “rolled like a crimson tide” over an opponent.

    Nah, I’m guessing you knew that yand ou’re just having fun for your mascot analysis.

    —Ricko

    I think two of the Liberty Bowls in the 70s were color v color.

    Nebraska v UNC 1977
    Bama v UCLA 1976

    Perhaps it was these…

    Could be…

    Just to clarify, for anyone scratching their heads over some of my picks, the list is my 11 favorite bowl games…not necessarily the greatest bowl games ever played. Yeah, some of them would make that kind of list, but not all. And obviously this isn’t a best-dressed list (Boise did look a lot better back then, however).

    Capitol One Bowl: BAMA QB Greg McElroy is wearing a robot helmet after getting 3/4 of the Rhodes Scholar knocked out of him a month ago in the Iron Bowl.

    Really don’t think the Cardinals need a change.
    However, something akin to this…
    link
    …would be phenomenal for the Rice Owls.

    —Ricko

    I like that design, too. Perhaps the owl wings could appear on the shoulder pad area, these wings were on the Rice helmet when they had a great RB named Trevor Cobb.

    I was thinking especially about an owls eyes and horns, because I remember this striking logo for the now long gone Red Owl Foods stores…
    link

    —Ricko

    Mississippi State’s QB is wearing #36 uniform but his helmet has #14 on it. He is wear the jersey of a teammate who died earlier this season.

    Winter Classic Breakdown:
    Mascot Edge: Capitals vs. Penguins
    At the capitals’ best, it could pass effective legislation, but it wouldn’t reach Antarctica, the traditional home of penguins. At the capitals’ worst, nothing happens except for bureaucratic BS, filibustering, and mudslinging; meanwhile, the penguins would march on. Advantage, Penguins.
    Uni Edge: I bet I’d prefer a white version of the Penguins’ Winter Classic uniforms, because I think too many things get lost in the navy. Washington, on the other hand, is going to look great in red, white, and a touch of blue. Star-Spangled Glory gives the Capitals the uni advantage.

    “I’ll be rooting for you, Texas Christian, but I can’t imagine you’ll be much to look at.”

    Cheering for the Horned Frogs? Phil… I thought we were friends. I kid, I kid. Here’s hoping for a great game.

    White tops, red pants for the Badgers of Wisconsin. Purple pants, black tops, black helmets for the Horned Frogs of TCU.

    For those who don’t know, the white tops, red pant combo for Wisconsin is the same as the 1999 Rose Bowl. Not too sure when the last time they wore this combo was. Quite possibly could be that Rose Bowl game.

    Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema, “That’s why I put them in red britches. The anti-awe pill.”

    WTF was all the hoopla/hype about TCU’s new uni for the Rose Bowl when they are hardly wearing any of the new uni at all? (Only the black jersey and maybe purple socks). BTW, the purple pants are atrocious looking and they are no were near the same shade as the helmet. I know purple is TCU’s color but give me the the toy combat unis (especially the frogskin helmet and pants) any day over the Division II / III looking crap unis they have on today. On Wisconsin, for no other reason than the fugly unis of TCU!

    Love the rose in the frog’s mouth. Hate that they are wearing stupid black jerseys. The uni gods may take offense.

    Ditto. Purple jerseys with black pants certainly would have been tolerable, especially since Badgers in red britches (as opposed to white).

    I did like that TCU had “insisted” that Nike keep the purple predominant, though.

    Nothing like a Horned Frog with balls, huh.

    —Ricko

    It kind of says it all that they had to “insist” in the first place. How about just wearing your school colors without consulting your corporate sponsor? If they really wanted to make a bold visual statement today, they would have come out in monochrome purple head to toe. And that would have been awesome.

    The programs really should have the final say in what their teams wear, I would think. The problem is the money involved – “We’re throwing millions at you, so we want you to wear this junk designed by a two-years-old boy.”

    Oh, and… badgers? Badgers? WE DON’T NEED NO STINKING BADGERS!!

    Not sure if this was commented on Friday’s thread, but link was unveiled at midnight.

    Like most contemporary Olympics/World Cup logos, I don’t like it, but the typography at least has an engaging playfulness. Almost looks like “Rio Roi” to me. I suspect that the typography is what people who use Comic Sans think their text looks like.

    Good start to 2011! I’m now at 15-11 in the pool, up from 11-11 overnight.

    Go Frogs!!!!

    “I had on black pants. ‘Coach, we got here in Khaki’, so I went in and changed baby, so here we go!” – Gary Peterson, TCU head coach

    -Just got back from skiing in Colorado. Greens are still my best friend, blues are bearable, and blacks are nothing but instant death. Kansas is longer than I remember.

    -Agree with the “why Pittsburgh” sentimate. Montreal, Minneapolis, Toronto, Denver, Edmonton, Calgary, NY would all be wonderful places. I like Teebz idea above for Rockefeller Center. Even Central Park would be cool. It would be incredible to have it open to the public and not in a stadium at all. The ancient Roman gladiatorial events were open to the public and thought of as a “right” for the public to be able to walk up and attend. One game in a public rink, maybe one time only, would be special.

    -The Cardinals helmet tweek is cool. I like the darker blue for the Colts too. That Giants design has something going for it and I didn’t know that Chicago was a possible destination for the Hornets.

    -Still reeling from that STOOPID call against my KSU Cats. Blew what was a great game and took the outcome away from the hands of the players. I firmly believe it is a stretch to say the salute was “drawing attention to oneself and therefore excessive”. It was a subjective call that warrents suspension of those officials. Devistating for the players getting to play in a great venue for a bowl.

    -Go TCU (and please wear the purple over the black). You are playing for nothing, have been all year. You are not eligible to win anything. What’s the point in playing. But by winning, hopefully you can drive a sledgehammer into the proposterous BCS. It won’t take it down, but maybe do some damage.

    -Love, LOVE Ricko’s painting. While the technique maybe wasn’t overly polished, it provides wonderful character to the piece. I’d love to have a Ricko original to hang in my new office.

    -While driving home we stopped at an antique mall/junk store. Great name – Tiques and Fleas. The junkier the better for those kinds of places. Anyway, kids immediately found three helmets to go with the four I already had from my much younger years. link

    -Would love to attend the Pittsburgh event but too damn far to pull that one off. Especially after this past week. Have fun and don’t forget to take your ibuprofen when you get home.

    -Sun Bowl. Yes the mountainous region always set that one off. Kudos on a great season Mothersunbowlker. May it forever be known as the “Motherjimvilker Sun Bowl”.

    “I didn’t know that Chicago was a possible destination for the Hornets.”

    That was news to me as well.
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    Is spell-check available in the Bootheel yet or is this just another example of that shitty cable company keeping you down? ;)

    Rose Bowl Breakdown:
    Masot Edge: Badgers v Horned Frogs
    Ok so a horned frog is actually a lizard and not a frog. It shoots blood out of it’s eyes at would be attackers and it’s horns are actually solid bone to deter animals from attacking. Badgers are in the same family as the wolverine although not as vicious. They do eat reptiles. Advantage Badgers.
    Uni Edge: Ok so I’m picking TCU and here is why. Wisconsin has that big ugly W on their lid and truncated sleeve striping similar to the 49ers. TCU has a straight up black jersey with a cool lizard skin on the numbers. Straight up purple pants. And an amazing helmet with the Horned Frog having a rose in it’s mouth. That my friends is an awesome design idea. They get the advantage for being creative and for telling Nike they want their school colors.

    No, advantage Wisconsin. They didn’t have to tell anyone they wanted to play in their school colors. And for the record, TCU’s school colors are purple and white. No black mentioned anywhere.

    I do agree that the motion W sucks.

    “Y’know that girl you fixed me up with that you said was 5’2″ and 240? Actually, she’s more like 220, I think. So I’m not quite as pissed as I thought I’d be.”

    —Ricko

    Uni side note, my high school has a very interesting story of how we got to our school colors of green, white and black. We are the Beavers from Woodland High School in Woodland, Washington. A town about a half hour north from Portland, Oregon. Our official school colors were just green and white. Then in the 70’s some time a teacher who coached track and football and had gone to the UofO and decided that he was going to sneak yellow into the color scheme. This was generally accepted and no one really questioned it so for years they had green, yellow and white as school colors. We were the Beavers but had Duck colors. Then in the 90’s a different coach decided to take out the yellow and add black. It eventually went to the school board and the kids prefered the black to the yellow so it was decided to go black. As far as I know the unis are supposed to only have 10% black in them. I just thought it was an interesting uni tidbit. I’m sure there are hundreds of similar local high school uni stories like that all over the country. When I was in high school we briefly had the Oregon State Beaver on our helmet too, but it was modified slightly to fit our color scheme.

    Call me crazy, but as a Wisconsin fan, I like the uni matchup today. TCU’s black jerseys and purple helmet/pants contrast nicely with the Badgers’ white and red. Maybe I’m just used to seeing the purple and black of UW-Whitewater, but I like that TCU doesn’t have any white in their set today.

    As a Wisconsin fan, have you heard the rumor about the Badgers possible uniform change next season? Is this just rubbish, or is there something to it?

    As a Wisconsin fan living near Madison, I have not heard any rumors of a uniform change for next year. Although, the equipment manager of the Badgers flat out lied to me when I asked him a few years ago if the Badgers would be going “red on red” before the season started. So I can’t be 100% sure saying there will be no change.

    Any Wisconsin fans know why they use a dark red logo and helmet stripes, but regular scarlet for the rest of the unis, including the facemasks?

    i think the only uni change for sconnie will be to wear the nfl-cut unis next season

    that’s probably not a good thing

    Regarding #3, the 1982 Sugar Bowl between Pitt and Georgia: another reason to like that game was ABC’s commercial-break graphics, with the helmets eating each other, Pac-Man-style.

    Look here at 4:55 for an example (the teams were tied at the time, and so there was no eating): link
    For an added bonus, see Bob Davie (Pitt LB coach) at 1:15 of that clip.

    Very astute observation about Bob Davie on that classic 1982 Sugar Bowl clip. Wish that game was available on dvd like some other old bowl games.

    Maybe the Panthers will bring back Jackie Sherill as head coach along with those sharp old Pitt unis?

    Bonus fact – the Pac-Man cartoon debuted on ABC’s Saturday morning schedule in the fall of 1982.

    Not until you get to Non-Qualifiers at #1 and #2 and shut the big six conferences out of the money.

    you sir are a fool. do you really think there is going to be a playoff because tcy won? news flash, you are no closer to a playoff, you will never have a playoff. so keep crying for it, you can drown in your tears before they change the system.

    Agreed, especially the stars on the sleeves for the Capitals. The Pens also look good, the fans like the scarf wearing penguin. It’s a mystery why the original 1967-68 uniforms omitted the logo, that unimaginative uniform lasted only one season.

    Pens originally just had PITTSBURGH diagonally on uni because GM Jack Rile thought the name Penguins and the logo were “ridiculous” (fromWikipedia). Personally it has always been one of my fave names and logos.

    I liked the Penguins’ unis well enough except for when I saw the fronts. The big single-colored circle didn’t work for me; a standard Penguin logo or even a diagonal Pittsburgh would have been better. And I liked the Caps’ throwbacks better than their current look.

    Personally, I still don’t like the Pens WC unis. I’d have liked them better if they hadn’t gone with that g**d***ed m*****f***ing “vintage pissed-on-by-twenty-cats” look, and had used real white instead.

    Of course, I’d really have preferred the 1980-92 style gold-sleeved black jerseys…

    The Caps’ throwbacks were nice, but, to nitpick, they’d have looked better with white helmets, and the red pants only accentuated the biggest flaw of the Reebok Edge design (that stupid-ass hemline). Blue pants would’ve looked better. At least they used the original version of the logo – I never understood why they shrunk “WASHINGTON” and moved it closer to the stars in the 80s. It fits in better stacked right above “capitals”, in line with the cross-marks of the “t”.

    Can’t speak for anyone else, but I’m watching the WC.
    Enough football until NFL tomorrow, already.

    —Ricko

    I was just going to ask if they’re still allowed to use the word “Big” (or B1G). You beat me to it…

    Much better than the current one for sure. And it would’ve been great if they had gone color on color and wore red throwbacks. Caps already wearing red helmets instead of white, why not go all the way?

    I was a little surprised the Caps alumni wore the modern red jerseys instead of these throwbacks in Friday’s game.

    As for the Caps going all-red, I think they’d still have to have the blue pants with the red jersey, but I’d like to see the red helmet/jersey combination back full-time, even if it is with the modern jerseys.

    Fiesta Bowl Breakdown:
    Mascot Edge: Huskies v Sooners
    For those that don’t know a Sooner was a person who was illegally waiting to pounce for land in the 1800’s when the government was handing out land in what is now Oklahoma. They were the wild west type. They beat a husky in a battle anyday.
    Uni Edge: Oklahoma has a very clean and classic look. It beats out the modern stylings of UConn.

    I just saw that they’re having the UConn player who was the best friend of the young man who was murdered wear his fallen friends uni number tonight as a tribute to what would have been his final game in a UConn uni. That’s a very classy move.

    did anyone notice how many of the penguin players are wearing the clear visors angled up very high? is it because of a glare? havent noticed it on many capitals but havent really looked

    I say that because back when I wore those goggle things in rec league touch football, when they fogged up it would go away some if I tilted my head back (which I’d have to do after just about every play).

    —Ricko

    9. 1979 Cotton Bowl, Notre Dame/Houston – Lindsay Nelson, Houston’s Veer offense, an icy day and the Irish in green numbers.

    And chicken soup!

    Why are cardinals consistently represented in logos with yellow beaks?

    I’ve never seen an actual cardinal with anything but a red beak.

    I noticed it at a local nature center recently and cardinal logos have been a minor irritant ever since.

    The yellow gives makes the beaks stand out, but everyone Cardinals team is either a red/white, red/black, or in St. Louis’ case, red/blue. Red beaks would be truer to team colors.

    Plus red beaks would eliminate a segment of the bad uni concept universe built around putting a Cardinal team in yellow alts.

    Added bonus: I think a red-beaked logo would actually make that helmet tweak today even better.

    Really an artistic license thing.
    From more than a few feet away might all look red, so is just to keep the differentiation and provide contrast.

    Think of the baseball Cardinals, too. The yellow bills just work better with the yellow bat (an orange bat wouldn’t have been the typical color an illustrator would have chosen).

    Other thoughts in a similar vein:

    Good bet Batman was originally conceived to wear a black cowl and cape (certainly if you look at the earliest appearances), but eventually the blue highlights necessary for illustration purposes evolved to became the color of the whole thing. Speaking of comic books and line art, of course.

    We might also ponder that Woody Woodpecker’s colors are hardly orithologically correct. And Mickey is one of the few mice with fingers. That I’ve seen, anyway.

    Or pants, for that matter.

    —Ricko

    Richard, you’re right about some yahoo thinking the yellow beaks mean yellow would be an appropriate Alt for either the baseball or football Cardinals.

    It still amazes me that people don’t see that once in a while there are going to be we could call “incidental” colors, especially in a logo. But that doesn’t make them a Team Color.

    The red tongue on the Jacksonville Jaguar or the Hamilton Tiger-Cat, to name two.

    Or the dropshadow on the Wisconsin “W”. It’s an effect to give the damn thing some depth and visual energy, for pete’s sake, not to slide in black as a team color.

    Jeez, talk about anal.

    —Ricko

    Indeed, the Jaguars’ jaguar’s tongue is teal.
    Now.
    Check the original.
    (I should have included “original,” I suppose, but I figured most of us here knew that).

    —Ricko

    My bad. Was thinking there was an very, very early version with a red tongue (following the hood ornament version). Someone else has an animal logo with a red tongue, though. Maybe it’s not football.

    I gotta think.

    Crap, that always gives me a headache.

    —Ricko

    What the heck are you talking about? The Jags jaguar-head logo has always had a teal tongue, and the prototype full body logos that they got sued for didn’t have tongues.

    There I go not refreshing before I post a reply, again.

    How about we just drop the Jaguars and substitute the Ravens’ red eye for the example?

    There you go, the Wolves.
    Obviously I didn’t think of them cuz they’re so far away from here.
    (forehead smack)

    —Ricko

    Or the yellow sunburst in the Rays logo.
    It does NOT mean pale yellow would naturally, or appropriately, be a garment color for the team.

    It’s just a graphic element, people, because a pale blue sun would be, um…stupid.

    Speaking of that, the sun isn’t really yellow, is it?

    And let’s not even MENTION Chief Wahoo.

    —Ricko

    Regarding the Winter Classic…I really don’t think it gets lost in the sea of bowl games anymore. First of all, New Year’s Day is hardly what it used to be as far as a jam-packed day. Second, the change to 8PM might be something the league would want to look at because there were only going opposite one football game. CNBC’s Darren Rovell did a twitter, what-are-you-watching poll and the hockey won by over 50%

    I know some people were upset that the Pens got another one but come on, if you can’t recognize the opportunity to have Sid vs. Ovie brought to the table well, I’m not sure what to say. HBO’s 24/7 was the perfect lead-in to this game and I hope they continue with their outstanding work for years to come.

    As for future WCs, yes I think NYC should host next. I would say the Rangers hosting Tampa Bay would be a fun matchup. Some really good young talent on TB and a big metro fan base and an original six squad in the Rangers would be great.

    Next should definitely be either NYC or venture west. (i.e. Minnesota in the new Twins stadium) or go to Canada and have Toronto vs Montreal for a real rivalry, Calgary is also a good option. Yes the Winter Classic is great for the sport and there were even talks of doing two games on new years day, that would be overkill. The only problem I have with the Winter Classic is that the NHL focused it to much on the East, the farthest west they have gone is Chicago for Blackhawks/Red Wings. And all the other years have been Eastern Conference teams.

    Just my observation/opinion

    As much as it’d be awesome to see a Winter Classic in Toronto or Montreal (well, maybe let’s wait until Toronto is decent), it just obviously won’t be happening because it’s so much about TV ratings. No way NBC gives up a U.S. market.

    I do worry, though, about how many repeat teams (like the Penguins) we might have because NBC refuses to acknowledge any team other than Pittsburgh, Washington, Chicago, New York (Rangers), Boston, Philly, or Detroit.

    If the Rangers host next year, who’s the opponent? Probably not San Jose or Tampa Bay–more likely Philly or Boston, for the markets and rivalry/history.

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