Ole Miss AD Ross Bjork yesterday announced that the school and Nike have "agreed to a 12-year extension of its current contract to be the official apparel provider" for athletics, according to Jeffrey Wright of the Jackson CLARION-LEDGER. Nike previously paid Ole Miss $1.9M annually "to be the exclusive provider." Bjork said this extension will “more than double” the $1.9M figure. Additionally, Ole Miss will "no longer have to spend cash for apparel provided by Nike." Bjork: “Under the previous agreement ... we spent about $775,000 of cash towards product each and every year. Our new agreement actually eliminates the cash-spending portion of our contract" (Jackson CLARION-LEDGER, 9/1).
WHAT A HOOT: Temple yesterday announced a 10-year extension with Under Armour, which will see the brand provide uniforms, apparel and footwear to all 19 of Temple's varsity sports. UA also will have a larger presence on campus, including a concept store opening this fall that will carry school apparel (Temple). In Philadelphia, Marc Narducci cited sources as saying that the deal "is worth" $30M. The sources said that the previous five-year deal totaled $1.5M, so the extension is "for 10 times that amount." UA Senior Manager of Global Communications & Entertainment Danielle Daly noted that the brand "has relationships" with more than 40 D-I schools, 31 of which "are all-sports deals" (PHILLY.com, 8/31).
ON TOP OF THE WORLD: Western Kentucky and Russell Athletic yesterday announced a five-year, $3.5M renewal of their apparel deal. The partnership runs from July 1, 2016 through June 30, 2021. Russell has been an official partner of WKU since '07 (WKU). The BOWLING GREEN DAILY NEWS noted Russell will "continue providing WKU with uniforms, as well as sideline, workout and travel apparel." The last deal, which began in '11, "runs through the upcoming school year" and was worth $1.735M. A redesign of WKU's football uniforms, "as well as other teams, will be part of the new extension." WKU AD Todd Stewart said the school will "maintain the integrity of the brand" and will not take uniform overhauls to the extreme, but that Russell Athletic will try some new things (BGDAILYNEWS.com, 8/31).
