In Raleigh, J.P. Giglio gives the throwback adidas uniforms Michigan and Notre Dame wore Saturday night a thumbs down, wirting, "It's one thing for Oregon, and now Maryland, to mix-and-match at their affiliated sneaker company's whim, but it's entirely another for two of the winningest and most identifiable programs in college football. You're Michigan and Notre Dame. Act like it" (Raleigh NEWS & OBSERVER, 9/12). However, ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit said of the school's jerseys, "We’ve seen it the first couple weeks of college football, these throwback uniforms, and I think so far all things considered it’s been pretty nice. Both schools did a really nice job” ("Notre Dame-Michigan," ESPN, 9/10). Meanwhile, in S.F., Bruce Jenkins wrote the "new trend in college football is to be overly garish, even hideous, just for the sake of blowing minds" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 9/10). CBS' Boomer Esiason, who played at Maryland, passed around one of the UM Under Armour jerseys during yesterday's "The NFL Today," to which CBS' Dan Marino said, "Looks pretty ugly to me" ("The NFL Today," CBS, 9/11).
WONDER WOMAN: Go Daddy CEO Bob Parsons credited driver Danica Patrick for having a “lot to do with” the company selling a piece of the business last month for $2.25B. Patrick has been a spokesperson for the company since ’06, and Parsons said, “We cross-branded each other. She became GoDaddy, we became Danica Patrick.” Patrick has won just one Izod IndyCar race in her seven-year career, and Versus’ Darren Rovell asked, “Does she have to win in order for this deal to pay off for you?” Parsons: “No, she doesn’t have to win. She has to win for her because she puts a lot of pressure on herself. But keep in mind, she is a woman competing in what’s typically a man's sport. ... From a marketing standpoint, she's a star” (“Sports Biz: Game On,” CNBC, 9/9).
TIME TO BEAR DOWN: The Bears and Verizon agreed to a multiyear partnership that designates Verizon as the team's official wireless provider. The agreement includes entitlement of the Verizon Mezzanine concourse at Soldier Field and sponsorship of the media backdrop. The team and Verizon are also developing a Bears smartphone app to launch in the fall. The Bears also recently reached agreements with AthletiCo, BP and PrimeSport (Bears).
