With baseball season winding down (and my precious Cubbies’ season ending months ago), all eyes are on the fall ritual of college football. And as with every season, the rivalry games are not to be missed. Last year, Nike decided to jump on the opportunity to promote their new Pro Combat football gear by creating some unique uniforms for a select few teams to sport during their most heated rivalry games. The concept is simple and genius: Nike gets to promote its new gear to teams that may otherwise not buy into it while flexing its design muscles to make each of these teams feel like the University of Oregon. Even if it’s only for a game or two.

Now, I have to admit, I missed seeing these uniforms on the field last year. But this year, thanks to the wonder that is Twitter, I saw some posts about the latest designs and decided to read up on it.

What really stood out to me is Nike’s method of promoting their new equipment. Instead of simply talking about the benefits of this or that, they’re putting it out there for teams to use on some of the biggest stages of the season. But to make it really valuable to the teams involved, Nike develops designs for the uniforms that are truly unique to each school. For instance, Ohio State (the team you’ll find Justin cheering for on any given Saturday) has a new design that harkens back to the 1942 team that brought the Buckeyes their first national title. It’s not just a uniform anymore. It has heart, it has emotion, it has meaning.

Nike accomplished what I believe is one of the core functions of our profession – creating a connection. With the infused significance and substance to the uniforms, they suddenly mean something. You’re interested in them. You want to tell everyone everything you know about them when you’re watching that game. You may want to purchase one.

In all, 10 teams are getting the “Oregon Treatment” this year for some of their special games. It’ll be great to see some new looks out on the field. Looks that utilize great graphic design to create the perfect execution of technical innovation and relevant inspiration. These few examples are what college uniforms should be about – and they show how graphic design can potentially make a strong impact in an area that may be a bit unexpected.

As a side note: I have to say, the assymetrical look for the Boise State Broncos is probably my favorite. It has a great look, story, and the grey will help them not blend into their blue turf quite so much. What about you? A favorite?