IN LAST MONTH\u2019S SCREED I went off on the mind-numbing drabness of the U.S.\u2019s international uniforms. I\u2019m glad to see from the Letters To The Editor section (p. 49) that at least some of you agree with me.<\/p>\n
While we\u2019re reopening old wounds, allow me to recycle much of a column I wrote for the July \u201905 edition which was titled, \u201cWould it be too much to ask to have a uniform uniform-policy?\u201d<\/p>\n
The object of my ire was collegiate teams and their ongoing penchant for different-color uniforms. A that point I wrote this (is it a violation of basic journalistic law to quote yourself?):<\/p>\n
\u201cIt pains me to pick on Kerron Clement, because he was probably the most exciting and enjoyable of all to watch in Sacramento\u2026 We thought he was so impressive that we made him our poster boy for the month. But he\u2019s also the poster boy for everything that\u2019s wrong in the (not-so) uniform department.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn that big center spread (p. 32-33), you\u2019ll find him in a black uniform. Tr\u00e8s chic. Turn to p. 18 and there he is in a white uniform. While you\u2019re on that spread, look at p. 19 to catch him in blue. But hey, that\u2019s not all. Go back a page to 17 and check out Clement\u2019s teammate, Josh Walker. Is he in black? No. Is he in white? No. So he must be in blue. No\u2014he\u2019s in\u2026 orange! .<\/p>\n
\u201cI blame pro ball teams, who started this \u201cthird jersey\u201d silliness so they could market even more stuff to their fans. Or simply decided that black made them look \u201ctougher.\u201d Well excuse me, but when I go to a meet I expect to see Florida easily identifiable as the guys in some combination of orange & blue, their official colors.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe NCAA does mandate that relay teams wear the same uniforms during a race, but other than that, all bets are off\u2026 How goofy was it to watch that incredible men\u2019s 200 final, knowing that teammates Wallace Spearmon and Tyson Gay were going to be threatening the 20-second barrier just two lanes apart, and to discover that they weren\u2019t even wearing the same outfits? Spearmon was white over red, Gay was all red. What does that do for fan enjoyment?<\/p>\n
\u201cBottom line\u2014the way it\u2019s going, you can\u2019t even tell the players with a program.\u201d<\/p>\n
It gives me no great pleasure to note that a quadrennium down the road the situation hasn\u2019t gotten any better. In announcing the Pac-10 Championships in Eugene this year, I was too often confounded by the site of two runners from the same school in the same race wearing different uniforms. And if it\u2019s tough for a professional mike-dude with topflight spotting help to keep the bodies straight, how is it for the average fan?<\/p>\n
The hosts showed up at Hayward with oh-so-chic black on. I\u2019m told that many old-time figures in the proud Men Of Oregon program did not react well to the shocking break with yellow & green tradition.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t get me wrong: it was actually a great look, and there was no chance of confusion as to who it was but there\u2019s more to our sport than just looking good.<\/p>\n
One school, two traditional colors max, everybody dressed the same. Please? The fans will thank you for it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"