Recency bias clouds everybody’s judgment, as does the buzz that surrounds gimmicks. Those two things can be a recipe for disaster in college sports when you’re trying to win, and it’s exactly what Tennessee Vols fans are showing right now amidst the news that the school could switch from Nike back to Adidas in 2026.
Vol Twitter was abuzz with outrage when the news first broke, and reactions haven’t slowed down for a week. However, Danny White and the UT administration have shown no signs of backing down either. The administration is right, and fans need to get over themselves.
There are two reasons for disgust at the switch back to Adidas: People didn’t like the designs of the early 2010s, and they associate Adidas with the Tennessee Vols football program losing. The former is irrelevant if the money is right, and the latter is simply not true.
Sure, UT had four straight losing seasons from 2010 to 2013, and yes, in 2015, the year they switched back to Nike, they had their first top 25 finish in seven years. However, lost in that is what happened when the program first switched from Nike to Adidas the first time back in 1997.
That year, Tennessee won its first football SEC Championship in seven years, and the next year, the Vols won their first consensus national championship in 47 years. Adidas also oversaw four Lady Vols national titles, including the greatest season in women’s basketball history in 1997-98, and historic men’s basketball success under Bruce Pearl and, yes, Jerry Green.
Getting back to the idea of designs, fans seem to remember the goofy black jerseys Lane Kiffin rolled out in 2009. Those weren’t designed with any amount of time, though. They were thrown together the week of kickoff. Meanwhile, it was Adidas that started the Smokey Greys in 2013.
Also, don’t forget the stormtrooper all white jerseys UT wore on the road in football for years. They were simple and to the point, but somehow they popped perfectly with the orange numbers. What’s so bad about going back to those given the success the program had?
Most importantly, though, the designs don’t matter if the money is there. The Oregon Ducks have bought their way to success with Nike, but 90 percent of their uniform combos are hideous. If the price is right, White shouldn’t care about what the uniforms will look like.
Remember, we are now in the NIL age of college athletics. It’s more important than ever to think about the bottom line, and that’s the task in front of White everyday. If Adidas is willing to pay, White should go back to them, and they shouldn’t be the only apparel brand on the market either.
