In Birmingham, Mark Heim noted as Ohio State placed football coach Urban Meyer on "paid administrative leave," some web sites had been "offering 'Urban Meyer Knows' T-shirts." The shirt had been part of a broader sports-wide T-shirt campaign from Fanatics and Nike. Fanatics posted on its site that the Meyer shirt is "currently unavailable." Whether it is "sold out or it was pulled is unclear." Lids, meanwhile, is "selling the T-shirt at clearance prices." Social media was "quick to point out the irony of the T-shirt" in wake of yesterday's report on Meyer and a former OSU assistant coach (AL.com, 8/1).
GOING BACK FOR SECONDS: Smithfield Foods has extended its 30-race primary sponsorship of Stewart-Haas Racing's No. 10 Ford driven by Aric Almirola for ’19. When Smithfield joined the team last year, SHR co-Owner Tony Stewart said the deal was multiyear -- but it apparently was for one year with an option to extend for an additional one. Smithfield, whose spend is believed to be between $10-15M annually, has seen increased retail activation from its grocery partners off the track this year while also seeing greatly improved performance on the track (Adam Stern, Staff Writer).
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT: In Baltimore, Holden Wilen noted Under Armour "unveiled a collection of gear" honoring Pro Football HOFer-elect Ray Lewis ahead of his induction this weekend. The collection includes "shirts, cleats, sneakers and sweatshirts featuring black and gold palettes." Some shirts "feature an icon of Lewis doing his signature dance." The collection also includes shirts featuring the Univ. of Miami's "famous green and orange color scheme, in honor of Lewis' college playing days." Some of the apparel "features Lewis' initials, 'RL.'" Lewis "started his own apparel line" in '10 called RL 52 Style (BIZJOURNALS.com, 8/1).
