whitesxfan2012
Orange & Blue tweety bird
- Louisville, KY
If there really was an original rebrand rejected by UofI, it sure would be interesting to me (and I'm sure many others) seeing these "politically incorrect" renditions.
The 2014 Illini Nike Uniforms and Rebrand
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STL FANATIC
S
Guest
Let me clarify. It still annoys me to add an additional shade. Schools have such simple color schemes that I just dislike the idea of messing with that simplicity. Orange and Blue. Blue and Gold. Cream and Crimson. Black and Gold, etc.
So adding to those schemes on official gear like uniforms will never be ideal to me.
However, when you design with a color palette, you're frequently going to use various tints of a color even if it's unintentional (a shadow on blue makes for a darker blue, etc.).
So in some sense, you have every tint of a color within a color scheme at your disposal. I still disagree with this on uniforms, but it's a thought.
And grey is simply a tint of black.
It would be like if we had added a logo that required highlights of some kind and we used a lighter tint of the same hue of blue. Still annoying and unnecessary to me, but much more within our existing color scheme.
It is very clear to me not everyone agrees with my stance. No problem. I'm just explaining what mine is.
I like their new gear a lot but I'm failing to see a massive improvement or even a big difference. These are unis they wore in the past few years:
So they got a new forward facing hog (which doesn't actually appear in any of the pictures, btw). So where's the "better effort" manifest itself?
STL FANATIC
S
Guest
Their word marks are stronger over what they had (even though I'm always a fan of a good athletic block). They look really nice and are very fitting of their name and logos. The numbers compliment things nicely.
The uniforms are very consistent from sport to sport using a design element that ties back to their name, logo, and word marks.
And the new logo, which is very nice, is featured on the front of their football uniforms. I'd like to see it used more frequently, but understand sticking with their long-time primary.
As I said before, I absolutely agree that Arkansas started from a stronger point. But what they were able to do is build a truly good and cohesive brand with matching elements and logos and word marks that should last for years if they allow them.
Whereas I feel like we replaced our mess of gear with a bunch of new uniforms and some logos and word marks that will soon feel dated. From a complete brand perspective, I think ours misses (even if you like the logos) where as Arkansas' feels very cohesive.
The uniforms are very consistent from sport to sport using a design element that ties back to their name, logo, and word marks.
And the new logo, which is very nice, is featured on the front of their football uniforms. I'd like to see it used more frequently, but understand sticking with their long-time primary.
As I said before, I absolutely agree that Arkansas started from a stronger point. But what they were able to do is build a truly good and cohesive brand with matching elements and logos and word marks that should last for years if they allow them.
Whereas I feel like we replaced our mess of gear with a bunch of new uniforms and some logos and word marks that will soon feel dated. From a complete brand perspective, I think ours misses (even if you like the logos) where as Arkansas' feels very cohesive.
Kams Bathroom
K
Guest
There was no rejected rebrand. This is the latest in a long line of myths cooked up by a group of people with a very specific agenda regarding the DIA and the U of I generally.
STL FANATIC
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Guest
I tend to concur. There were likely rejected elements by the school as the process worked out, but it would have never gotten to the point where Nike would have presented a full rebrand that the DIA hadn't already seen with the DIA throwing it out.
Where did that idea come from?
Where did that idea come from?
mattcoldagelli
- Script Illinois Enthusiast
I have a really hard time believing this. Elements of the Chief would mean we cannot host postseason events. It's pretty straightforward. It's not a matter of taste or political correctness.
That's what I thought when I saw it too. I wish I could remember where I saw someone claim that now.
STL FANATIC
S
Guest
To be fair, there's a way this could be done without being so overt as to cause penalties.
We've had direct sections of the Chief logo on top of awnings and decor around the Assembly Hall/State Farm Center for years and zig zags from the logo on the uniforms for a while as well.
This slides under the radar because the NCAA can't directly attribute it to "Native American Imagery".
Still, I don't believe there was actually an initial rebrand that was rejected. Would not shock me if Nike was too overt trying to tie in Chief elements early in the design process and had to have the DIA tell them no then. But little to no chance that ever reached advanced stages.
I have to think this is the case. Certainly in some kind of preliminary meeting the issue of why the Chief is no longer around would have had to come up and it would be hard to imagine that it wasn't clear that it was off the table. Anything is possible I guess.
mattcoldagelli
- Script Illinois Enthusiast
Then bully for DIA. Their charge is to advance the cause of Illini athletics and give our teams the best chance for success. From where I sit, moving us past the Chief is now part of that job description.
STL FANATIC
S
Guest
I can tell you from some decade old Nike proposals I've seen that Nike did like the Chief logo and even when it was unofficially retired from DIA uses (but not merchandise), Nike would submit uniform proposals with the Chief on it. And not always in particularly nice or respectful ways. (I recall one version that had the Chief logo cropped within a vertical shorts stripe.) The point being they saw it as a fun creative element.
Given that they've re-used a few random old elements in this rebrand (two tone lettering, some form of zig zags, Frutiger as the alternate font), I think it's very believable they'd have tried to incorporate elements from the logo even if to us that seems so obviously out of bounds. But yeah, I have to think that was all shot down very early.
Given that they've re-used a few random old elements in this rebrand (two tone lettering, some form of zig zags, Frutiger as the alternate font), I think it's very believable they'd have tried to incorporate elements from the logo even if to us that seems so obviously out of bounds. But yeah, I have to think that was all shot down very early.
STL FANATIC
S
Guest
I wasn't suggesting anything else. (Not sure if you thought I was. All I was suggesting is that Chief elements don't automatically equal penalties. Not that the DIA should have wanted them.)
mattcoldagelli
- Script Illinois Enthusiast
No, didn't think you were. I'm just trying to showcase the ridiculousness of the nascent "We'd have these siiiick uniforms covered in eagle feathers if the DIA didn't get all weak in the knees" narrative.
illini1
- Springfield, IL
STL FANATIC: Did you work for U of I when they decided at the last minute to not let Nike sell the 1989 basketball shorts with the Chief on them back in 2005? I always thought that decision was strange because they allowed the basketball team to wear those uniforms that same year with the Chief on the shorts.
STL FANATIC
S
Guest
Nope. I did not. And I agree it's strange, although I understand it from this standpoint:
At the time, their were strict usage rules on the Chief in order to promote it as a respected symbol. One of those, IIRC, was for the Chief to never appear "below the belt."
As you note this was waved for the throwback uniforms, but I think reasonably so for the sake of accuracy on a one-time thing.
STL FANATIC
S
Guest
Gotcha. I agree with you. I am a fan of subtle nods to the history of the Chief, but don't believe they should be forced or overdone. We can remember and respect the history of the Illini while still living in the reality of now.
A feathered helmet doesn't fit that idea.
Looks good, wish they had F1GHT1NG 1LL1N1 across the back like some of the others do.
You'd be surprised how many teams have 'stolen' logos. As an example have a look at the vintage flannel jerseys they sell on Ebbets. You'll see a lot of logos that are currently in use by MLB teams.
https://www.ebbets.com/
EDIT: My personal faves are the Cienfuegos Elefantes and the Great Lakes Naval Station jerseys.
AngryOrange
- Chicago, IL
I think it was covered below, I think Nike cooked up many ideas around the rebrand, and certain elements were tossed aside with the initial part of the process. The guidance received from DIA allowed them to drive down to the final product.
The feedback I have been given is more along the lines of - Nike wanted to incorporate the double columns from Memorial, and that led to the Shield. Then, in the presentation they took a detour on explaining it to the public that was unexpected. Why? Not sure. I don't think in any way, shape, or form it changed the final product. They were just unsure why they made the change in explanation because they thought the first one was sound.
While I was not blown away with the rebrand, I really like certain elements.
mattcoldagelli
- Script Illinois Enthusiast
There's been a weird amount of focus on this. A nice backstory is great and everything, but to be honest, I wouldn't have really cared if they landed on an image I liked by accidentally spilling paint that ended up looking like the shield.
He was a HS quarterback
- Cedar Falls, IA
Does anyone know when Home Depot will get the updated colors for their college team paint collection? I am painting my garage this summer and want to get the right orange and blue.
Kams Bathroom
K
Guest
illinifan31
Former Krush Cow
- South Bend, IN
I've heard things about 3 rejected proposals which were pretty detailed. One included Chief motifs and would have included a grant from Nike/others to the Native American studies program to provide a required Freshmen event to educate them on Native American history. That got denied by the University.
Idk, sounds like they tried a ton of things and kept getting rejected so they came up with the shield in the last 3 months.
Idk, sounds like they tried a ton of things and kept getting rejected so they came up with the shield in the last 3 months.
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