Nebraska and Michigan uniforms

#52
#52
orangesparkles said:
And, yet, welcoming the football program into the 21st century would at the very least not hurt with recruiting.

(I'd say that it would obviously help but some people still can't wrap their heads around the fact that high school kids love things that are "cool" as opposed to "steeped in tradition.")
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Name some big names that chose Oregon over Alabama or LSU (ex) because of uniforms --- totally stupid post
 
#54
#54
orangesparkles said:
Tennessee just had its first back-to-back losing seasons since 1910-1911. Something's broken.
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I promise that if you put those players in some crazy bizarre oregon style uniforms and you will have gotten the same results :yes: Uniforms do not help wins and losses.
 
#57
#57
orangesparkles said:
And, yet, welcoming the football program into the 21st century would at the very least not hurt with recruiting.

(I'd say that it would obviously help but some people still can't wrap their heads around the fact that high school kids love things that are "cool" as opposed to "steeped in tradition.")
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Yeah, because traditional uniforms have hurt Bama in recruiting.
 
#60
#60
bleedorange0037 said:
Sometimes, especially when it comes to uniform design, less is more. Penn St. has a very specific look, and they stuck to it for 50 years. If not for the less than honorable exit of JoePa and his era, they would have probably continued to look the same for the next 50. Like post I initially responded to wondered though, they may look at some changes to distance themselves from that past now.
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Penn state wears practice uniforms...
 
#61
#61
VOLnMiami said:
I promise that if you put those players in some crazy bizarre oregon style uniforms and you will have gotten the same results :yes: Uniforms do not help wins and losses.
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An argument can be made that "special" uniforms help to amp players up before big games, but that's not even the point I'm looking to make. New uniforms, an edgy coach, an exciting and youthfully appealing culture around the program... all of those things contribute to getting better recruits. Did you see the class that Tennessee was poised to get before Kiffin jumped ship? It was phenomenal for a brand new head coach at a program who just lost a "traditional" titan... and he was hardly the most traditional guy around.

The more you appeal to high school athletes, the more they'll want to sign with you. The more of them that sign with you, the more wins your program will get. It's pretty simple.

And, no, a wooden dog doesn't qualify as "exciting."
 
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#62
#62
orangesparkles said:
An argument can be made that "special" uniforms help to amp players up before big games, but that's not even the point I'm looking to make. New uniforms, an edgy coach, an exciting and youthfully appealing culture around the program... all of those things contribute to getting better recruits. Did you see the class that Tennessee was poised to get before Kiffin jumped ship? It was phenomenal for a brand new head coach at a program who just lost a "traditional" titan... and he was hardly the most traditional guy around.

The more you appeal to high school athletes, the more they'll want to sign with you. The more of them that sign with you, the more wins your program will get. It's pretty simple.

And, no, a wooden dog doesn't qualify as "exciting."
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If only it were that simple.
 
#63
#63
Lawrence Wright said:
If only it were that simple.
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You've yet to provide a compelling argument as to why appealing to your recruits is a bad thing. More often than not recruits don't grow up "fans" of the school they sign with, so bland uniforms that have been worn for decades prior to their birth aren't viewed as a "tradition" to them. Instead, it just looks tired and makes the program seem like it's resting on its laurels.
 
#64
#64
508mikey said:
FWIW -- anyone think Penn St will get a new design (and a helmet with a logo) to show the so called move forward ?
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I read where the new coach has been talking to Nike about changes but it didn't state if it was a major overhaul or just some tweaks.
 
#66
#66
orangesparkles said:
An argument can be made that "special" uniforms help to amp players up before big games, but that's not even the point I'm looking to make. New uniforms, an edgy coach, an exciting and youthfully appealing culture around the program... all of those things contribute to getting better recruits. Did you see the class that Tennessee was poised to get before Kiffin jumped ship? It was phenomenal for a brand new head coach at a program who just lost a "traditional" titan... and he was hardly the most traditional guy around.

The more you appeal to high school athletes, the more they'll want to sign with you. The more of them that sign with you, the more wins your program will get. It's pretty simple.

And, no, a wooden dog doesn't qualify as "exciting."
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Sure did...Thieves, Armed robbers, spoiled brats and drug addicts...That REALLY the so called culture you want at UT? :ermm:
 
#67
#67
VOLnMiami said:
Sure did...Thieves, Armed robbers, spoiled brats and drug addicts...That REALLY the so called culture you want at UT? :ermm:
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I don't care if they're cutting lines with the hostess girls in the locker room so long as:

A) The actions of the players/staff don't lead to any significant sanctions against the football program

and

B) Tennessee wins games
 
#68
#68
bigeasy said:
See National Championships and Nick Saban....they do not need gimmicks
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Imagine that.

Once we start winning again we won't need gimmicks. As it is, I think we've recruited pretty well with our traditional uniforms, considering the on-field results over the last several years.
 
#70
#70
VOLnMiami said:
Sure did...Thieves, Armed robbers, spoiled brats and drug addicts...That REALLY the so called culture you want at UT? :ermm:
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Did you pay attention to the talent that Fulmer had to win the NC? When UT was good, that was the culture.
 
#71
#71
orangesparkles said:
You've yet to provide a compelling argument as to why appealing to your recruits is a bad thing. More often than not recruits don't grow up "fans" of the school they sign with, so bland uniforms that have been worn for decades prior to their birth aren't viewed as a "tradition" to them. Instead, it just looks tired and makes the program seem like it's resting on its laurels.
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And you DO have compelling argument? There are many ways to appeal to recruits. I'm guessing a school that wins, or sends more players to the NFL trumps how many helmet choices Missouri has.

Other than Oregon, whose success can be attributed primarily to the CEO of Nike, please name one college football program that all of a sudden started competing for national titles recently all because of a costume change.

The last six SEC national titles came from schools who have had the same uniforms for at least the last 20 years.

And before that???

2005 - Texas...haven't changed since Earl Campbell (ask your grandfather about him)

2004 - Southern Cal...see Texas

2003 - LSU...nothing different here

2002 - Ohio State...looks the same as they did 50 years ago

2001 - Miami...they've tweaked their unis a bit, but it hasn't helped much recently

2000 - Oklahoma...same as the Bud Wilkinson days (ask your great grandfather about him)

Is that a compelling enough argument for you?
 
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#73
#73
Actually, not that compelling of an argument. I know who Campbell and Wilkinson are; it's not like I'm oblivious of college football history. You and contemporary trends/preferences, on the other hand...

Schools don't need glossy new uniforms to win football games. They don't need a "cool" head coach either. Hell, they don't need to seem like an "exciting" place for kids to play football. But, for some schools, it helps. And for Tennessee, it would help a lot.

Every school you listed has a leg-up on Tennessee when it comes to recruiting for one reason or another. Florida, Oklahoma, Ohio, California and Texas are all recruiting hotbeds with tons of talent pledging allegiance to the state's flagship institution(s) (exceptions being privates Miami and USC, of course) from birth. Though some of these schools have gone through rough patches in recent years, they still have ample amounts of top-tier recruits right in their backyard.

Tennessee lacks the luxury of a consistently awesome recruiting base in the Volunteer State. Tennessee has been mired in a rough stretch that has lasted, at minimum, four years. While the Volunteers are twiddling their thumbs waiting for tradition to kick in and the school to magically return to its glory days, the rest of the SEC has been racking up championships. The past four years have seen Tennessee tied with Ole Miss as the third-worst performing SEC school; are kids from Alabama and Louisiana supposed to be intrigued by joining a program that's just "biding its time" when schools in their home state are out winning and getting more media attention? Hell no. They want to play for the big boys and, if that doesn't work out, they'll turn their attention to programs that are making strides towards reaching the top.

When Tennessee underperforms this season, what's the excuse going to be? "Well, this year didn't work out, but we just need to stay the course and things will be better again soon" doesn't cut it. Sorry, but if you can't see that today's high school recruits want something other than stories about the golden days, time has passed you by.
 
#74
#74
orangesparkles said:
Actually, not that compelling of an argument. I know who Campbell and Wilkinson are; it's not like I'm oblivious of college football history. You and contemporary trends/preferences, on the other hand...

Schools don't need glossy new uniforms to win football games. They don't need a "cool" head coach either. Hell, they don't need to seem like an "exciting" place for kids to play football. But, for some schools, it helps. And for Tennessee, it would help a lot.

Every school you listed has a leg-up on Tennessee when it comes to recruiting for one reason or another. Florida, Oklahoma, Ohio, California and Texas are all recruiting hotbeds with tons of talent pledging allegiance to the state's flagship institution(s) (exceptions being privates Miami and USC, of course) from birth. Though some of these schools have gone through rough patches in recent years, they still have ample amounts of top-tier recruits right in their backyard.

Tennessee lacks the luxury of a consistently awesome recruiting base in the Volunteer State. Tennessee has been mired in a rough stretch that has lasted, at minimum, four years. While the Volunteers are twiddling their thumbs waiting for tradition to kick in and the school to magically return to its glory days, the rest of the SEC has been racking up championships. The past four years have seen Tennessee tied with Ole Miss as the third-worst performing SEC school; are kids from Alabama and Louisiana supposed to be intrigued by joining a program that's just "biding its time" when schools in their home state are out winning and getting more media attention? Hell no. They want to play for the big boys and, if that doesn't work out, they'll turn their attention to programs that are making strides towards reaching the top.

When Tennessee underperforms this season, what's the excuse going to be? "Well, this year didn't work out, but we just need to stay the course and things will be better again soon" doesn't cut it. Sorry, but if you can't see that today's high school recruits want something other than stories about the golden days, time has passed you by.
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I think you need to make your mind up as to what exactly your alleged compelling argument is, because it changes from one post to the next.

First you say some kids like new uniforms because they likely didn't grow up fans of a particular team, and those kids could find "traditional" uniforms boring. Then in the next post you claim UT is at a disadvantage because they have to compete with kids from other states who grew up fans of a particular team....referencing states with schools who for the most part haven't changed their look in over a half century.

Next you claim a flashy coach is important, then in the next post you say it's not required, but Tennessee could benefit from having one.

All the while you haven't provided one shread of proof that changing uniforms and "bucking tradition" translates into anything tangible in terms of wins and losses.

I provided you with proof of the last 12 national champions, just about all of which haven't changed their unis or bucked tradition. You've provided nothing.

Kids want to play for a winner, uniforms are irrelevant....otherwise no one would go to Bama.
 
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#75
#75
Put your reading glasses on. Of course the main desire of any high school athlete is to play for a winner or someone that has a good probability of winning in the near future. Unfortunately, the teams you listed have a consistent record of on-field success over the last decade and fertile recruiting grounds within their home states. Tennessee lacks both of these attributes, which is why "gimmicks" are a great way of helping Tennessee separate itself from the pack.

Also, saying uniforms are irrelevant is selling their importance far too short. Observe.

Rutgers football players cheer for new Nike Pro Combat uniforms | Professional | NewJerseyNewsroom.com -- Your State. Your News.

Richt, players on pro side of pro-combat uniforms | Georgia Bulldogs blog | Columbus Ledger Enquirer

http://michiganstate.**************...-about-the-Nike-Pro-Combat-uniforms-4277111/1

(You mean players like cool uniforms? Color me surprised.)

Players like cool new looks, and recruits do as well. Also, don't act as if the schools you listed haven't toyed around with new uniforms. Ohio State, Alabama, Miami, LSU... all of them have donned Pro Combat uniforms despite having "tradition" and a "culture of winning." Even your boys down in Gainesville have worn Pro Combat uniforms! These are schools that have had enough recent success to be relevant in a high school recruit's mind, and they're still trying to appeal to the interest of 17-21 year olds.

The more you appeal to recruits, the more likely they are to come play for you. If you don't have a sparkling record in recent years, you need to do something to stay relevant. Again, it is not a requirement that schools use cool uniforms or brash uniforms to get recruits or win games because a lot of schools don't need to. Unfortunately, considering the extent to which Tennessee has become less and less of a fixture in recruiting rankings, we do.
 
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