Guest Post: Obsessing Over the Details of the new JMU Football Uniforms

Uniforms are a topic near and dear to our hearts. No detail is too small for us to discuss for hours over a few adult beverages. It turns out that at least 3 other people obsess over them like we do. Maybe more actually. Nick Phillips, Ryan Barto, and Sean Petrizzi broke down the new JMU football uniforms together and offered to share their thoughts with us on the blog. Let us know what you think in the comments.

Our Take: The 2015 JMU Football Uniforms

Let’s face it, the dog days of summer are upon us. Sure, the NL East race is starting to heat up and Ronda Rousey is hotter than ever (see what we did there?..), but we can all agree that the daily coverage over the PSI of a football has officially run its course. And even though Fall camps are finally cranking up and a different hype video set to the “300” movie soundtrack drops every day, we’re still a good month or so out from the college football season opener.

So when JMU’s new home uniforms were leaked on social media last week, it inevitably gave us football die-hards a talking point to get through another week. The three of us have discussed and here are our takeaways:

1. Consistency

With the new home purples, it is refreshing to see that JMU tried to stay consistent with the black jerseys that were such a huge hit when they debuted at Homecoming last year. You’ll notice that the “Madison” wordmark on the chest, the numbers font, and the block “M” shield on the collar are the same on both. And while we wish the shoulder sleeve stripes on each jersey were the same, we’re willing to let this slide.

Instagram image courtesy of @zachjmu

However, if you look closely (specifically at the collar) you’ll notice that the jerseys are actually two completely different Nike templates. The black jersey is Nike’s “Speed Machine” template. Featured by the Flywire collar, this jersey was debuted by Oregon in the 2011 BCS National Championship and can be seen on Sundays by the majority of teams in the NFL. The new purple JMU design is actually Nike’s “Mach Speed” design, which eliminated the Flywire collar and was featured last year by Ohio State, Alabama, FSU, and Oregon in the CFB Playoff games.

One of our major gripes with past years uniform sets is the fact that often times the Home, Away, and multiple alternate jerseys were all of different templates. We do acknowledge, however, that as a FCS school without the mega apparel contracts of FBS powerhouses, sometimes updating the team’s look means only adding one new jersey each year. Now, what remains to be seen is whether or not last year’s Away Whites and Alternate Golds will also get the Nike “Mach Speed” update.. We sure hope so.

We know our OCD is in full-effect here, but the attention to detail here is important when building the identity for a team’s brand.

2. Madison Overload

On one side, we like fact that the wordmark “Madison” is prominently stitched across the chest. Since the early 2000’s, the team has worn “Madison” across its chest, which has allowed for consistency and has been great for branding over the last decade and a half. However, based on the image that was leaked, it appears that “Madison” is also featured not only on one, but both pant legs. Does this make or break the entire get-up? No, but just because you can put large text down each pant leg doesn’t mean you should. We feel this screams “FCS” and resembles gaudy biker shorts more than football pants. Plus, for a school that very rarely refers to itself as “Madison,” it’s interesting that the team favored the three “Madison” wordmarks over the nowhere-to-be-found “JMU” logo. More on that later…

3. What’s with the block “M”?

The block “M” featured on the collar shield doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. The shield itself is fine and mirrors the industry standard, but we are not Michigan. In none of the current JMU branding and logos is a block “M” ever featured, and this just seems to be another example of “just because you can doesn’t me you should.” This would have been a perfect spot to showcase the “JMU” logo or even the Duke Dog head logo (see TCU example).

4. Madison vs. JMU

Our university has a bit of an identity problem. As the athletic program has seemingly moved more towards the “JMU” wordmark logo, removing the Duke Dog from atop the letters, it is interesting that the school’s most prominent and top revenue grossing sport is so keen on pushing “Madison”. When someone asks where you attended college, 99% of people respond with, “JMU,” with the occasional “James Madison” if you live outside of the Mid-Atlantic.

From a branding aspect, we’ve always likened JMU to the LSUs, USCs, and TCUs of the world. How many times do you hear, “I went to Louisiana State University?” The truth is, we actually love the use of “Madison.” But since it carries little to no weight in the professional or athletic worlds, and none of the university’s branding (outside of the football uniforms) is geared towards using it, why would we push it? Before taking that next big leap to the big boys, it is obvious the university needs to tighten up its branding.

5. We get it.

Look, while we may favor the more traditional uniform looks, we fully understand why JMU has gone this direction with their uniforms. In order to appeal to the #Swag crowd and new recruits, it’s more important than ever to make sure you’re staying current with the latest styles and trends. Shoot, some recruits will choose a school based solely on their apparel sponsor and school colors. Chrome helmets, Pro Combat, 455 different uniform combinations…we get it. And in all honesty, it’s nice to see JMU outfitted in the latest and greatest “Mach Speed” template this year (the first year it’s officially available to schools) because it proves how seriously this coaching staff is about changing the culture of our football program.

We’d like to here y’all’s thoughts. Do you favor the “Pro Combat” trends? Are we over-analyzing all this? Does anyone else even care?