The 2014 Illini Nike Uniforms and Rebrand

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#1,476      

Groundhogday

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Groundhogday
DrewD007 said:
I don't even care about blue pants or blue helmets. Just give me blue jerseys.
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I'd be quite happy if we wore the orange helmets 95% of the time. We could even have one orange helmet with the white I and one with the blue I. But since the Blackman era, the blue jersey has been a uniform staple. Hard to imagine this being a part of the rebranding and not seeing it on the field for a year.

Maybe this rumor is just a ploy to solicit cash from a wealthy donor?

Not changing the midfield I to the new logo is hard to justify. Again, I'm waiting to see if this rumor is actually true.
 
#1,477      

BZuppke

BZuppke
Plainfield
BZuppke
I would think the blue jersey would be available. Of all of our color combos blue jersey has been the most traditional home jersey by far. Blue pants probably the least worn of all uniform pieces.
 
#1,478      

pizzaman

pizzaman
Northwoods of Wisconsin
pizzaman
STL FANATIC said:
It's a specific knock on the work the DIA & Nike have rolled out (which can translate to qualms with a handful of other Nike rebrands that I think suffered from the same problems).
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All of Nike's work ideas and work must ultimately be approved by the DIA. If the DIA is chicken!!!! and will only accept mediocrity, then you get block I, a shield and a new letter style for slant Illinois. After hearing about the field paint remaining unchanged and no blue jerseys I'm disappointed with the DIA more than Nike. It seems like the DIA may be dropping the ball on a good opportunity both in design and execution. Time will tell.
 
#1,483      

illini1

illini1
Springfield, IL
illini1
The New Illini Nike Uniforms and Rebrand

BZuppke said:
Isn't that last year's version?
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It's in the Rebrand Section, so I'm assuming it's a new shirt. It could be mislabeled though. Even if it is a shirt from last year, the helmet stripe is still wrong.
 
#1,486      

BZuppke

BZuppke
Plainfield
BZuppke
I think other than the shield merchandise all of that is old stuff. There's going to be a lot of old stuff retailers will still try to sell to get rid of it. Maybe the idea is to mix it with the new so people will buy it not knowing it is not the re-brand stuff.
 
#1,487      

mossimo142

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mossimo142
It seems like most people, myself included, were so desperate for any change to our brand that we immediately loved what we saw with the initial leaks.

For me it has been all downhill since then with nothing but disappointment and half-assery. Everything was leaked, but we were promised "there's way more", and after tuning in to the rebrand broadcast that was a lie. Couple that with the variety of blunders we have seen - the White I / Orange helmet violating the color marks, rumors of no Mid-Field logo change, No blue uniforms, the actual "super heros" pitch, calling it a shield when UofI calls it a badge, just all seem to add up to a Cluster F.

Whatever momentum or solidarity this rebrand initially brought seems to be getting chipped away by the subsequent communication and implementation phase.

I think the initial naysayers on the re-brand are being vindicated to a degree. I don't really know where I stand anymore.
 
#1,488      

DrewD007

DrewD007
Woodridge, IL
DrewD007
It's old in the sense that on new helmets the I is supposed to be white outlined in blue. Stripe is screwed up no matter what.
 
#1,490      

BZuppke

BZuppke
Plainfield
BZuppke
I will say this about the re-brand: There's only so much that could have been done and I think we did very well. A block I is a block I. What can you do with it? The Shield is interesting and in time could become a beloved symbol. It's new so it doesn't have that familiar feel yet.

I also think the Nike designer's comments about not having a mascot were interesting. He said they tend to focus on the mascot when there is one and because of our circumstances had to look elsewhere: Traditions, columns, Grange etc. Is there some other hidden thing that would have been the home run so many here feel we missed?

After two years of seeing all the valiant attempts by many posters to put forth their ideas, I think Nike topped them all by far. Eagles, squirrels, various Abe Lincolns and doughboys that don't even appeal to me let alone people under 25 years old, were all inferior ideas that if presented were rightly rejected. No offense to anyone here, but nothing anyone posted here was better.

So after 60 pages of this, I really don't think there was much more Nike could do and under the circumstances they did a very good job. I think some like me just want to rally around the new re-brand and cheer on the Illini.
 
#1,491      

WesterveltVictoryCigar

WesterveltVictoryCigar
WesterveltVictoryCigar
BZuppke said:
So after 60 pages of this, I really don't think there was much more Nike could do and under the circumstances they did a very good job. I think some like me just want to rally around the new re-brand and cheer on the Illini.
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I agree, overall I think it's been well done. Start winning some games and it's amazing how much better it'll look. :)
 
#1,492      

mossimo142

M
mossimo142
BZuppke said:
I think some like me just want to rally around the new re-brand and cheer on the Illini.
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That's pretty much my point. We were so starved for something, we are rallying around anything. I don't think Nike did a bad job per se, but I think the justifications, explanations, and subsequent roll out are the issue at hand now.

That falls more on DIA than Nike. I feel a little underwhelmed by the whole ordeal, not so much the re-brand itself. The roll out is what is underwhelming.
 
#1,494      

riffraff

riffraff
Peoria
riffraff
I think they did fine with what they had to work with. No Chief means Block I and a Victory Badge that looks like a shield. I haven't seen any better ideas, so OK by me. New uniforms look good. Personally I still prefer blue jersey, orange pants, orange helmet at home, but mix it up from time to time, no problem. What I really want to see is some consistent winning to make the new look become iconic.
 
#1,495      

IlliniNation05

IlliniNation05
Champaign, IL
IlliniNation05
For those of you in the Champaign area...I just stopped by Gameday and it looks like they restocked their new merchandise. So if you're here and still looking for new gear I'd recommend going there
 
#1,496      

Warriors1994

W
Warriors1994
There is only so much "hype" about a rebrand. I'm not sure what else we are supposed to talk about a month later. Most people have bought their new gear and moved on. Ya everyone was pumped about it when it happened and now they just want to see games. I don't think it means that it wore off as much as you think. My favorite part of the whole thing was the jerseys I just want to see us wear them now
 
#1,497      

thatguy92

T
thatguy92
Fwiw what I'm hearing is that the basketball court will be very similar to the volleyball court.
 
#1,498      

Kams Bathroom

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Guest
Kams Bathroom
BZuppke said:
I think other than the shield merchandise all of that is old stuff. There's going to be a lot of old stuff retailers will still try to sell to get rid of it. Maybe the idea is to mix it with the new so people will buy it not knowing it is not the re-brand stuff.
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And it's entirely possible that Nike came up with some designs that they have had in the works since before our new stuff was finalized. That shirt looks like it's probably got a version for every team in the country. There's gonna be a lag time on stuff like that.
 
#1,499      

Kams Bathroom

K
Guest
Kams Bathroom
On the other hand, this is the stuff that drives me crazy.

Florida State changed their logo the same week as we did, their logo has been updated on ESPN.com, ours hasn't.

I doubt ESPN made that change of their own accord, they almost certainly needed someone from Florida State to provide them with a properly rendered image, but even if they did, the DIA should have somebody pestering the web staff at ESPN with e-mails and phone calls until it gets right.

Where is the follow-through?
 
#1,500      

illini1

illini1
Springfield, IL
illini1
Kams Bathroom said:
On the other hand, this is the stuff that drives me crazy.



Florida State changed their logo the same week as we did, their logo has been updated on ESPN.com, ours hasn't.



I doubt ESPN made that change of their own accord, they almost certainly needed someone from Florida State to provide them with a properly rendered image, but even if they did, the DIA should have somebody pestering the web staff at ESPN with e-mails and phone calls until it gets right.



Where is the follow-through?
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I don't know if it's ESPN's or the DIA's fault, but I'm not surprised ESPN isn't using our new logo. I believe ESPN has used the Chief logo on occasion the last couple years. I have no experience, but I assumed it was common practice for schools after changing colors, logos, etc. to send this info to all local and national media. I doubt most organizations leave it up to the media because most of the time it wouldn't get updated.
 
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