DoubleDee
All American
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2013
- Messages
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I'm confused and quite honestly a little jealous when it comes to SU gear that is available to the masses. I am a self-proclaimed gear snob. I like what I like, and I hate what I hate. But it seems to me that more and more I'm running out of things to love, and drowning in stuff to hate. Is this a sign of the fashion times? Or the fact that I'm entering the later stages of existence? Some of that is accurate I'm sure, but I'm going to put some of the blame on Syracuse. The University and the community.
We are at a point in history where fan gear is at an all-time high. Look at pictures of games even as far back as the 80s and 90s and it is every color of the rainbow and plain clothes. Something happened one day in the last few decades that shifted to having virtually everyone in the building to be donned in school colors. And while we have had our fair share, I feel like something has shifted at Syracuse.
Every time something is released by a company, I franticly click away to see what the SU version looks like. No SU. Emails flood my inbox every day, as I have been a frequent buyer over the years. But almost every email disappoints. Sometimes it's because I don't like the product, like the new wave of hats that have the high crown and the rope in the front like I'm on a 1973 golf course. Sometimes Syracuse is absent. Most times Syracuse is absent. Not from the brands, but from major new releases.
'47 Brand hats - Huge new collaboration with Carhart. I didn't think I'd like it, but oh boy I do. NFL, MLB, NHL, and college. No SU.
Hey Dude - Not for me personally, but cannot argue their popularity right now. No SU.
New Era - Nothing like it used to be, and nowhere near the other schools.
Nike - The biggest example, Pegasus sneakers. These have been out for years. College and NFL. SU has never been part of it.
Nike - Tons of new products and series. The new Team Bold series. No SU. Almost never SU. Yet a Nike school for a really long time.
As a 4 year member of the Cuse Fan Council, I learned a basic understanding of the way this works. The way "we" have to sign-off on things regarding licensing, etc. The way certain products need a sales forcast, meaning can we sell the minimum amount that needs to be manufactured, or will they be stuck with a bunch of leftovers. So I try to understand the fact that someone, somewhere, thinks we will not sell all of the Pegasus sneakers perhaps. I try to accept it.
But... Then I get just as many emails and see as many ads trying to sell me stuff I feel like virtually NO ONE will buy.
Tommy Bahama - Button up Hawaiian style shirts often north of $100.
Cutter & Buck - Clothing that is higher priced than I feel the majority of us would like to spend. Golf shirts that cost as much as two or three from another brand.
Columbia - They ain't ugly, but I wouldn't pay for them.
Brands like , GEAR, Peter Millar, MV Sport.
Then, we sign off on the odd stuff...
Syracuse hockey style jerseys with Carmelo name and number.
"Throwback" basketball jerseys, some with Anthony on them, that don't represent a jersey we have EVER worn.
Random lacrosse, football, basketball jerseys that are not a representation of anything EVER worn.
I don't believe any of these products are "selling out".
And to be fair, there some other brands out there that I do like. Homefield for example.
I cannot understand how we are left out of the stuff some of us WOULD buy, and yet CAN buy all of the stuff we would NEVER buy. Can someone help me understand this better? I have met the girl in charge of this stuff, and she seems super. There has to be an explanation for all this. And, how do we start to see some of these items some of us wish Syracuse was included in. And if these items ever come, we as a fanbase need to make it worth their while.
We are at a point in history where fan gear is at an all-time high. Look at pictures of games even as far back as the 80s and 90s and it is every color of the rainbow and plain clothes. Something happened one day in the last few decades that shifted to having virtually everyone in the building to be donned in school colors. And while we have had our fair share, I feel like something has shifted at Syracuse.
Every time something is released by a company, I franticly click away to see what the SU version looks like. No SU. Emails flood my inbox every day, as I have been a frequent buyer over the years. But almost every email disappoints. Sometimes it's because I don't like the product, like the new wave of hats that have the high crown and the rope in the front like I'm on a 1973 golf course. Sometimes Syracuse is absent. Most times Syracuse is absent. Not from the brands, but from major new releases.
'47 Brand hats - Huge new collaboration with Carhart. I didn't think I'd like it, but oh boy I do. NFL, MLB, NHL, and college. No SU.
Hey Dude - Not for me personally, but cannot argue their popularity right now. No SU.
New Era - Nothing like it used to be, and nowhere near the other schools.
Nike - The biggest example, Pegasus sneakers. These have been out for years. College and NFL. SU has never been part of it.
Nike - Tons of new products and series. The new Team Bold series. No SU. Almost never SU. Yet a Nike school for a really long time.
As a 4 year member of the Cuse Fan Council, I learned a basic understanding of the way this works. The way "we" have to sign-off on things regarding licensing, etc. The way certain products need a sales forcast, meaning can we sell the minimum amount that needs to be manufactured, or will they be stuck with a bunch of leftovers. So I try to understand the fact that someone, somewhere, thinks we will not sell all of the Pegasus sneakers perhaps. I try to accept it.
But... Then I get just as many emails and see as many ads trying to sell me stuff I feel like virtually NO ONE will buy.
Tommy Bahama - Button up Hawaiian style shirts often north of $100.
Cutter & Buck - Clothing that is higher priced than I feel the majority of us would like to spend. Golf shirts that cost as much as two or three from another brand.
Columbia - They ain't ugly, but I wouldn't pay for them.
Brands like , GEAR, Peter Millar, MV Sport.
Then, we sign off on the odd stuff...
Syracuse hockey style jerseys with Carmelo name and number.
"Throwback" basketball jerseys, some with Anthony on them, that don't represent a jersey we have EVER worn.
Random lacrosse, football, basketball jerseys that are not a representation of anything EVER worn.
I don't believe any of these products are "selling out".
And to be fair, there some other brands out there that I do like. Homefield for example.
I cannot understand how we are left out of the stuff some of us WOULD buy, and yet CAN buy all of the stuff we would NEVER buy. Can someone help me understand this better? I have met the girl in charge of this stuff, and she seems super. There has to be an explanation for all this. And, how do we start to see some of these items some of us wish Syracuse was included in. And if these items ever come, we as a fanbase need to make it worth their while.
