Thanks to Phil’s recent “Worst Uni Ever” poll, you’ve seen plenty of Colorado Caribous photos lately. But most of you probably haven’t seen this one.

That shot, along with a bunch more (click on the thumbnails for larger versions), come from this site devoted to NASL jerseys, which reader Rob Bryant just brought to my attention.

In a nutshell: The site is so awesome that I might just have to become a soccer fan after all. A very small selection of the highlights (click on little pics to see big pics):

• Totally digging the chest logo used by the Montreal Olympique.

• Stripe-o-rama! That’s the Rochester Lancers, 1971. Interesting to see that they used a different font for the rear uni number.

• Love how the San Francisco Quakes used the cross stroke on the Q to form a fault line — or, better yet, to fracture a soccer ball. (As an aside, did you know there was an indoor soccer team called the San Francisco Fog? How awesome is that jersey?!)

• Sort of quaint how Minnesota teams are always named after the state, not after a particular city, as in the Minnesota Strikers. Not such a bad thing when it results in the state outline being depicted on the jersey, though.

• Check out the silver chain-stitching on this Las Vegas Quicksilvers jersey (which also has one of history’s clunkiest, most awkward NOBs).

• Uni typography doesn’t get much more quintessentially ’70s than this Edmonton Drillers design. Only problem is that the jersey is actually from 1982. Interestingly, the 1970s-esque design replaced something that was much more ’80s-ish.

• Very odd insignia for the 1980 Houston Hurricane. Don’t think I’ve ever seen a team intentionally obscure part of the type like that. But it’s probably better than this.

• The Adidas logo really ruined the elemental simplicity of this 1979 California Surf design. Looks better in this overexposed photo, since you almost can’t see the logo creep. (And speaking of the Surf, check out this shot from a game played at Vets Stadium, complete with all the MLB logos in the background. Ah, the indignities of being a minor sports league.)

• My vote for best NASL sleeves goes to the Tampa Bay Rowdies, for obvious reasons. Mmmm, tasty.

• Then again, the Toronto Blizzard had some pretty cool sleeves too.

• What happens you’re your team uses really huge-ass NOB lettering (and, as an aside a sews the apotrophe on backwards)? You run the risk of ending up with a DDNHOB (double-decker hyphenated NOB, duh)! Those jerseys are from the Hartford Bicentennials (now there’s a team name with a short shelf life), who had a very cool chest logo.

• Do you get the feeling that maybe the Detroit Cougars didn’t originally plan on using NOBs?

• On the other hand, the New York Cosmos left plenty of NOB room but didn’t know how to use it.

• So much to like in this photo of the Chicago Sting vs. the Dallas Tornado.

• Now that’s a weird number font. If you scroll through this page, you’ll see that the Clippers used all sorts of weird number treatments in their brief two-season existence.

• Starred socks! As worn by the Houston Stars, natch.

• Okay, I don’t mean to harp on the NOBs, but come on. Joe Hilseberg, where were you when this league needed you?

• I hate logo creep but love ticking stripes. So what do I make of this? Hmmm, that’s a tricky one. The team in question, by the way, is the 1980 Memphis Rogues, although they weren’t the only team using that design element.

• Interesting to see that the Philly Fury used a contrasting placket. Looked pretty good!

• Does this 1967 St. Looie Stars jersey totally look like a thrift store special or what? Yes, I’ll buy it for $6, sold!

And look, the site even has a page devoted to NASL cheerleaders. Would you believe the KC Spurs called their cheering corps the InSPURettes? And the Tampa Bay Rowdies called theirs — wait for it — the Wowdies.

And just to bring everything full circle, reader Raifie Bass has a real prize in his collection: a Colorado Caribous satin jacket!

That settles it, from now on Uni Watch will cover soccer exclusively, the end.

Research Query: Two years ago I wrote an ESPN column in which surveyed the Cowboys’ assorted uniform quirks, past and present. The following summer, I wrote similar columns about the Cubs and White Sox.

Those columns were really fun to write, and popular besides. I’d like to do more of them, but I’ve had a hard time identifying other teams that would benefit from the same treatment. Maybe the St. Looey Cardinals..?

Can you think of other teams that would fit the bill here? Remember, the operative concept here is NOT “Let’s look at this team’s entire uni history”; the idea is to find teams that have had interesting uni histories, replete with quirks and underappreciated nuances. If you go back and read those three previous columns, you’ll see that the Cowboys, Cubs, and Chisox fit this description exceedingly well. If you think any other teams qualify, don’t be shy about telling me. Oh, and please don’t bother suggesting Oregon’s football team, thanks.

Uni Watch News Ticker: New Aussie football kit for Port Adelaide (designed by a seven-year-old girl — no, really, read the sixth graf) and West Coast (with thanks to Jeremy Brahm). … Also from Jeremy: Check out this bizarre baseball jersey patch. That’s the Rojos del Aguila de Veracruz, circa 1940s. … Phil found some interesting shots of Teddy Ballgame wearing cut-off windbreaker sleeves and an undershirt. Here’s another. … Apparently Kareem didn’t get the memo about which shoes and socks to wear to the photo shoot (with thanks to Jeremy Richardson). … Danny Millan has started a new Brooklyn-centric clothing line. I appreciate the sentiments, although I hope the Brooklyn Nets never actually come to pass. … Remember these football gloves? Here’s the next evolutionary step (with thanks to Jonathan Mayer). … Ever wonder why David Vyborny used to use solid-black sticks? Right, me neither, but Columbus Dispatch beat writer Aaron Portzline had this to say during a recent online chat: “David Vyborny was so peeved that he didn’t get a stick deal that he used to spray paint his sticks black to keep from advertising the manufacturer. Vyborny was an interesting dude” (with thanks to Kellen Dargle). … Scandalous news out of New Jersey, where a little birdie informs me that the Devils’ throwbacks, slated to be worn on March 17th, will be lame-o fauxbacks. According to my source, they’re just using the current jersey template with green replacing the black. Also, they’re using the modern red and a darker green. Pfeh. … What team is this? Details here. … Troy Polamalu’s little embroidered cross is suddenly everywhere. Word I hear from league sources is that they’re okay with it because it’s covered by his hair, sort of like if he had a message on a T-shirt under his jersey — out of sight, out of mind — but I suspect the real story is that they don’t want to wade into the thorny thicket of religious expression. … Lots of Mets fans sent me this item about the new cream-base pinstripes, which will be officially introduced in a few weeks. The item implies that the cream pins won’t have the black drop shadow — I hope that’s true, but it does not jibe with the information I have. … Yesterday’s Portland Beavers entry inspired Craig Rockhold to send over a bunch of pics from that PCL exhibit at the San Francisco airport. … In a move that’s waaaaay overboard for a high school, Under Armour is sponsoring River Hill High in Maryland and has provided them with a different uniform for every game this season (with thanks to Jonathan Blake). … Pete Woychick recently rediscovered these two high school hoops warm-up tops in his parents’ attic. Super-offensive logo icon on one of them, but nice pieces nonetheless. Odd to see St. Joe’s abbreviated as “St. Jo’s,” no? … Throwbacks will be in the mix this season for Loyola Marymount. No images yet, but the game dates are listed in the middle of this page. … 1957 A.L. Red Book, in what looks to be tip-top condition, available here (thanks, Teebz). … Back to Uni Watch’s new favorite sport: Coachie Ballgames has done an analysis of World Cup uniforms and concluded that it’s all about the collars.

By Phil Hecken & James Huening

Back with my wingman, and UW pollster, James Huening again today, to bring you our nine finalists in the “Worst. Uni. Ever.” poll. You selected the nominees, and you voted (oh, boy did you vote), and now we’ve narrowed it down to the nine worst. One last round of voting will decide the winner of perhaps the most inauspicious title in all uniformity: Worst Ever.

Not much else for me to say, so I’ll turn it over to James who’ll take you through the final piece of the process. Here’s James:

Last weekend, we presented our candidates for worst uniform in the history of ever (or at least in the history of North American team sports). We asked you to vote in a survey to determine the finalists. More than 2,600 responses were received, which means this was our most successful survey to date.

The field has been narrowed down. We’ve got our nine finalists. Now it’s up to you to decide what is the worst (North American) uniform ever.

So without further ado, let’s meet the finalists.

In the Major League Baseball category: the 1978 San Diego Padres.

From the National Basketball Association, the expansion Toronto Raptors.

Representing the National Football League, we have the Seattle Seahawks‘ lime/electric/snot/neon green alternate.

The National Hockey League gave us our only truly close race. Only a handful of votes separated our top vote-getter from the second place finisher. And that top vote-getter is the “Flying V” of the Vancouver Canucks.

The next category is for Short-lived Uniforms. These are the ones that lasted a handful of games at most. It seems fitting that the 1976 Chicago White Sox get that “honor.”

Next, the Minor Leagues. This one wasn’t even close. The Tucson Toros absolutely ran away with this vote. Is it any wonder?

The University of Oregon Ducks and their mix & match “diamondplate“ look are representing the NCAA in our poll.

Our soccer representative is another runaway winner. The Caribous of Colorado got nearly triple the votes that the other two contestants did.

Last up, we have the Orlando Thunder of the WLAF representing the Miscellaneous Pro Football category.

Full results are here, here and here.

Now that you’ve met the contestants, please tell us which is the worst of the worst. There are more pictures in the poll. You can click on them to see the full-size versions.

The poll can be found here. Time to vote!

Awesome work, James. Big round of applause to Mr. Huening for undertaking the monumental task of tallying more than 2,600 votes. But our work here is not quite done. We still need to pick a “winner.” So follow the link provided above and cast your final vote for the “Worst. Uni. Ever.” The future of the world is depending on you We’ll have the results next week. And may the worst uniform win.

OK, I’ve been receiving a LOT of NFL uniform tweaks from you guys (thanks!)…so many that if I don’t start running a few with each post, well…there will be a couple of weekends of JUST uniform tweaks (and we really don’t want that, do we?). I kid, I kid. But many of these are really good, and so, today I will begin to mete out the first buhch I received.

Our first set of tweaks comes from John Mattson, who writes:

Here’s my shot at
Bengals (also here and here), Vikings, Falcons, and Cardinals.

It am not a graphic designer and it is done on the simple Paint application on all windows PCs.

Thanks for all your great work. Let me know your thoughts.

Next up is Andrew Greenwood (”Greenie”), who sent me the following just as we were beginning our polling:

Phil,

In anticipation of the news that the Buffalo Bills were the lowest scoring team in UniWatch’s first ever jersey poll ranking, I’ve come up with this new design. Simply put, the Bills need yellow. There is no yellow in the AFC East, and there are already enough teams that wear red and blue. Since the Rams dumped this color pairing when they switched to the metallic gold, it’s a team identity up for grabs. Also, this color scheme compliments the only other Big 4 team that Buffalo has, the Sabres. Simple helmet logo (someone on UniWatch had the idea to get rid of the red line on the logo, and I believe you did your quick and dirty best to show it), classic NFL helmet striping blue-fat white-blue, two fat shoulder stripes for contrast, and a UNIFORM stripe pattern on all three pants. Two more fat stripes on the sack finishes the look. Can’t wait for the poll results.

(I actually voted the Jags and Cards lowest, but I think the Bills will edge them out. Go Pack!)

Next up is Shaun Tunick, who sent me a few different concepts, in a couple of different e-mails (so this may sound somewhat ‘cut and pastish’). We’ll look his tweaks for the Broncos, Patriots, Falcons and Giants now:

Tweaks for the Broncos and Pats, for the Broncos i took out the weird side to chest stripe/panel, and changed the color scheme back to the royal blue and orange, and then switched the jersey back to orange… i mean they have never had a blue jersey before, so why should they? i also replaced the horn stripe thing on the pants with the striping from the 1977 orange crush uniforms. also, i got rid of the weird helmet stripe. for the patriots, all i really wanted to do was get rid of the really frickin annoying blue side panel on the away jersey, and i ended up taking it off and also the piping from the home jersey. edited the pants stripes a little.

[PH here - Shaun did two Falcons mockups -- an original and a revised edition, which he describes below -- his first version is here]

i wanted to change the pants piping, i hate how it flares out at the bottom but i just didnt want it to look like complete garbage. i really like the striping that you guys did on the bengals, cant remember what it is called… but i meant to get rid of the piping on the pants. something like what they wore 97-02 would look great too. and on the jerseys the one thing i was thinking about was getting rid of the black, i dont really mind the piping there.

And about the helmets, i just wanted to see what a red mockup of the current helmet would look like, and i just threw the mid 80s helmet in there for kicks because that is IMO the best set theyve had… the one with the logo resting on the shoulder stripes, something that would never work today.. On the pants, it is silver, something that they started in 78 and then decided to ditch with the new uniforms.

Hey sorry forgot to throw in the giants, i edited the away jersey just a bit… anyway thanks a bunch for checking this out!

Moving on, we have a submission from Ed Westfield, Jr. (”Eddie Atari”), who wanted to fix the Giants. Here’s Ed:

I liked Phil & Ricks’ NFL uni tweaks, and I have another one for the
Giants. I’ve said before that there is not enough blue in the road
kit, so how about… BLUE PANTS?!

Here’s my Photoshop mockup.

I’m usually a Giants purist, but I actually like this, especially with
the red/grey/blue stripe in tact. Note: It should ONLY be worn with
white jerseys…

Last up for today is a first batch from Uni Watch’s #1 Broncos fan, a man who simply goes by Denver Gregg. He first sent me a batch, of (surprisingly) Denver Broncos mockups. We’ll look at those today. Here’s Gregg:

Hiya Phil

You do a great job with the weekend site!

I’ve been a Broncos fan as long as I can remember, and there has always been something that’s bothered me about the unis. I remember doing a copper and silver redesign in 1973 (long since mercifully lost). Anyway I decided to do a 2010 re-design, incorporating elements of current and past unis. I’ve kept the elements I like in the current set – especially the number and letter typefaces, the colors and matching the helmet color to the principal jersey color. I know my MS paint skills aren’t that great, so there are a few things that look a bit off (like the hue of the orange). There’s something in this set from each of the five generations of Bronco uniforms.

I did four variations on the socks. Denver2010 is probably a bit too out there. Denver2010a may look too similar to another team’s 75th anniversary throwback attire. I don’t really like Denver2010c, but it’s needed to balance out Denver2010b.

I also took the liberty of changing the helmet logo. The first one I remember is the horse coming through the ‘D’. I thought that was too busy and had the drawback of a horse facing the wrong way on one side of the helmet. When I saw the “amoeba horse” of the 1960s in old pictures, I was horrified – regardless of its eye color. I don’t like all the swooshes on the cyberhorse. So I took the best past element and isolated it. It probably needs work, but the idea could be worth pursuing.

I fully understand if (1) you have other stuff on deck; and (2) this isn’t up to snuff from a craftsmanship standpoint. If you have time to give me feedback, though, that would be great.

That’s gonna do it for today on the NFL tweaks. I’ve got LOTS more in store for you in the coming weeks, so if you sent me something and it’s not in this batch — don’t despair — it’s coming. For anyone else interested in sending in mockups, gimme a shout.

Our man in the street, Jim Vilk (taken at the Kent State/Akron game) brings you his “Top 5″ Best and one WORST college football uni matchup from yesterday:

5. Oklahoma/Nebraska: I miss seeing this every Thanksgiving weekend.

4. Furman/Auburn: Tigers are back, and bringing some snazzy Paladins with them.

3. LSU/Alabama: Best conference with another of the best uni-matchups.

2. Washington/UCLA: Even without the Bruins throwing back, this is a Top-Fiver.

1. Duke/UNC: It’s awesome, baby!

And the worst matchup: Navy/Notre Dame: It’s like going to a dance with your twin – it just ain’t right.

And as a special bonus pick, Jim awards “UW Honorable Mention to” Tulsa/Houston: Now Leon’s not the only one seeing red when it comes to Tulsa unis

Guess The Game From The Scoreboard: OK — back to football today. Not sure if you guys like these, but this one may be interesting. You should be able to determine the location and the teams with ease. So it’s just a date and a final score that’s needed. Ready? Guess The Game From The Scoreboard. Place a link to the answer from pro football reference. And if you want to keep this going through the fall, please send me some new scoreboards! Drop me a line and help a fella out, k? Thanks!

UW #1 Seahawks Fan Michael Princip has been tracking the Oregon Ducks and all of their 2,456 possible uniform combinations this season. He’ll be updating it after each game. Unfortunately, the Ducks winning streak came to a screaching halt yesterday, as they were upset down in Palo Alto by the Cardinal. In their second loss of the season (a possible derailment of their bullet train to the Rose Bowl), one stark fact emerges: White unis=bad. Might be safe to say this is the last time they’ll be outfitted in both white pants and jerseys in 2009. Here’s Your Updated Ducktracker.

You knew the Boys of Benchies liked football and baseball, but today we find they also have an affinity for a non-major sport. They’re up to their usual hilarity and hijinx when one of the Original Six makes an appearance in their hometown. That Mick…he kills me. On that note, Enjoy Your Benchies for today.

Couple last things: Pacific Rim Correspondent Jeremy Brahm reports that even Japan is doing the Olde Tyme Baseball thing — check out that catchers’ mask! … Yesterday, both Oregon/Stanford and USC/ASU featured games where the officials were wearing one blue sleeve (sorry, no screen grabs) — it could best be described as a “long” blue sleeve worn on the right arm, underneath their regular official’s jersey (sort of like Jacoby Ellsbury in reverse). Anyone know what was up with that? … No Legacy Games today in the NFL, but we can all look forward to the Buccaneers busting out Bucco Bruce and the creamsicles in the Battle of the Bays (and that’s the early FOX game).

That’ll do it for today. Everyone have a great Sunday, and don’t forget to cast your vote for the WORST UNIFORM EVER.

By Phil Hecken and James Huening

The long awaited “Worst. Uni. Ever.” nominees were submitted (both in last weeks comments as well as dozens of e-mails) and now, James is ready to bring you your selections in a knock-down, drag-out poll format. After receiving literally hundreds of nominees (many of them the “usual suspects” but some we never expected), James has devised the following poll, the link to which appears below. We’ve broken them down into nine categories, the winners of which will “face-off” shortly thereafter in a cage death match to find the absolute worst of the worst, as voted by you. Sounds complicated? Not really.

Simply read James’ descriptions and the pictures of your worst uniform nominees below, as broken down by category. We’ll take the top vote-getters in each category and have them all go up against one another. So with that, lets take a look at each of the nine categories, followed by the poll. James takes it from here:

1. First up we have the Cleveland Indians and their solid red uniforms that were worn from 1974 to 1977.

2. Next are the Houston Astros‘ beloved “Tequila Sunrise” uniforms.

3. This one’s sure to be a crowd-pleaser: the New York Yankees’ venerable pinstripes.

4. The Tampa Bay Devil Rays’ original unis.

5. The 1997-2000 Anaheim Angels.

6. Finally, the 1978 San Diego Padres.

1. Our first contestant is the Buffalo Bills.

2. Joining them are the Cincinnati Bengals.

3. We go back to the dawn of the AFL for our next nominees, the original Denver Broncos uniforms, which have been on display this season as throwbacks.

4. And of course, we have the Seattle Seahawks and their new alternates.

1. Starting with the Atlanta Hawks’ 1995-99 uniforms.

2. Staying in the mid-to-late-90s, we have the Cleveland Cavaliers

3. The Detroit Pistons

4. The Houston Rockets

5. The early 90s and the Philadelphia 76ers are not to be forgotten.

6. We’ll head back to the mid/late 90s for the NBA’s two Canadian Representatives: the Toronto Raptors

7. And Vancouver Grizzlies

8. This decade is not completely off the hook, as you can see from the Washington Wizards’ recently-retired alternates.

1. We start with the Anaheim Mighty Ducks and their whimsical “Wild Wing” alternate.

2. Staying in California, but going back farther in time, the California Golden Seals had a look that seemed as though it was inspired by UCLA football.

3. Moving to the present day, we have the Atlanta Thrashers alternate.

4. Back to California for the Los Angeles Kings and their “Burger King” jersey.

5. The Nashville Predators and their mustard-colored alternate that was worn from 2001 to 2007 are up next.

6. Next, let’s see the New York Islanders and the “Gorton’s Fisherman” jersey.

7. Back down south for the Tampa Bay Lightning and their 1996-99 alternate.

8. Our only Canadian nominee in this category is the “Flying V” of the Vancouver Canucks.

9. And rounding out this category, the Phoenix Coyotes alternate some refer to as the “Picasso” sweater.

1. We’ll lead things off with the Baltimore Orioles and the orange jerseys and pants they wore for two games in 1971.

2. Joining them are the Chicago White Sox “short pajamas” that were worn in 1976. Nobody really seems to be able to agree on how many times they were worn. Most accounts have them being mothballed after a single wearing, but some say they were worn as many as four times.

3. Next up, the New York Mets and their “Mercury Mets” outfit that was worn as part of the Turn Ahead The Clock promotion in 1999.

4. The Philadelphia Phillies gave us the “Saturday Night Specials” for one game in 1979.

5. The only non-baseball nominee in this category is the Dallas Mavericks “trash bag” alternate uniform worn for a single game in 2004.

1. Starting with the American Defenders of New Hampshire whose regular uniforms feature a camouflage motif.

2. The El Paso Diablos wore yellow, pinstriped uniforms with red pillbox caps in the early 1980s.

3. Our final nominee here is the 1980 Tuscon Toros According to an account I read, the back of the jersey was turquoise.

1. First, we’ll have a look BYU football’s 1999 redesign

2. Next up, we have Florida A&M football

3. Turning to basketball, NC State’s “leotard” experiment makes an appearance.

4. It wouldn’t be a worst uni poll without Oregon football’s “diamondplate” mix & match set.

5. We’ll close out this category with a pair of football teams dressed from head to toe (or head to knee, at least) in orange: Syracuse

6. And UTEP.

1. First, we have the Caribous of Colorado from the NASL. Their innovative jerseys featured fringe.

2. The early days of MLS gave us the Kansas City Wiz (who later became the Wizards).

3. Our third and final soccer nominee is Team USA for their 1994 World Cup unis.

1. From the CFL’s south-of-the-border expansion days are the Memphis Mad Dogs.

2. The Orlando Rage represent Vince McMahon’s XFL.

3. And we’ll wrap things up with another nominee from Orlando, the 1991-92 Orlando Thunder.

On to the poll then: GO HERE FOR THE WORST UNIFORM EVER NOMINATIONS POLL.

Thanks again to James Huening for working on this and for coming up with the poll format. We’ll keep the nomination poll open for a week, and have the “playoffs” for the worst ever uni shortly after that. Thanks in advance for your participation!!!

5. Texas/Oklahoma State — A real orange bowl, eh?

4. Tulane/LSU — Green Wave a little too green, but that light blue redeems them.

3. Temple/Navy — A wise old owl didn’t need to tell me to add this to the list.

2. UCLA/Oregon State — My color palette special of the day.

1. Ole Miss/Auburn — Nothing scary about this Halloween matchup at all.

And the worst matchup of the day: San Jose State/Boise State– At least the field looked nice…

More Mongo

Still More Mongo

Remember, Mongo only pawn in game of life.

Happy Halloween matchups.

5. Miami, Fla./Wake Forest

4. Cincinnati/Syracuse

3. Grambling…uh, I mean Georgia/Florida

2. S. Carolina/Tennessee

1. Coastal Carolina/Clemson

Spooky…thanks, Jim.

Good stuff there. Thanks to Jim & Rick & James & Mike and everyone else along the way. Don’t forget to vote for the WORST UNI EVER nominees. You can even post your guesses as to who you think the nine finalists will be in the comments, if you want.

And for all you uniform designers, and wanna-be designers, if you missed yesterday’s column, be sure to check it out — a chance for you to design a baseball uniform, logo and cap!

One legacy game today: Titans (Jets) versus Dolphins — should be cool to see the fish in something other than dropshadow for a change — you’ll be reminded how good they once looked, and could look again, if they wanted to make that look permanent. Game IV of the World Series tonight. Don’t forget to push your clocks back, if you haven’t already! That extra hour of sleep is so awesome, no? Of course it is.

Everyone have a great Sunday!

By Phil Hecken and Jim Vilk

Today, I’m joined by Jim Vilk, who is here to tell us about one of the more obscure sports, but one where they still wear uniforms. Indoor soccer. Yup. I remember that, a couple of decades ago, and it was pretty popular. I’m pretty sure there was a team that played in the Nassau Coliseum back then, think they were the New York Arrows. Might have even gone to a game — one of those deals where you clip enough coupons from a milk carton, you get free tickets — something like that. Anyway, the idea of watching soccer, played on a hockey rink with miniature golf grass laid on top was, shall we say, novel. Not my particular cup of tea, but who am I to say anything?

So, here we are, decades later, about to discuss a sport that apparently still exists. Actually, when it first started, it seemed pretty popular. I think even the Cosmos, of NASL fame, fielded an indoor team. But Jim enjoyed it then, and still does it now. He’s here with a look back at the halcyon days of the MISL (or “Major Indoor Soccer League”) and his choices of the top eight uniforms of the day.

In a bit of scheduling serendipity, Paul just yesterday ran a column featuring some of Jim’s DIYs (great stuff, Jim). So, before we hear about the MISL uni’s, let’s take a moment to meet Jim.

Phil Hecken: What got you into unis?

Jim Vilk: I’ve always liked the aesthetics of sports, sometimes as much as the actual game. I’ve always loved helmets, too. Growing up I wanted to be an astronaut or a football player, almost anything with a cool helmet. I like numbers, too – not math, just numbers.

PH: How did you find UW?

JV: I was checking scores on ESPN.com and noticed one of Paul’s Page 2 articles. I then discovered the UW blog and I’ve been hooked ever since. It’s daily required reading for me.

PH: Do you have a unique or special uni?

JV: I don’t have many jerseys. I’m cheap and I like the feel of cotton better. I do have lots of NFL, CFL, USFL, MLB, MLS and NCAA t-shirts. I especially like the ones that look like a jersey. I do have a replica jersey of my favorite Pirate, Willie Stargell. I wish I still had my old softball uniform — we had jerseys that looked like the ’70s Tequila Sunrise Astros, only in blue. You could call them Tequila Moonrise jerseys.

PH: Obviously you have a passion for DIY projects. Do you do a lot of DIYs?

JV: I do a lot of DIY. I paint electric football teams in USFL colors, I made a replica of the Cavaliers’ Miracle of Richfield at the Coliseum using Lego basketball players, an indoor soccer game and a miniature curling game. I’m working on a little ski jump using electric football players and popsicle sticks. I used to have a DIY wiffle ball field in my back yard. You can still play there, but only the bases remain.

PH: Do you have a favorite uni?

JV: My tastes go from traditional to a little out there. You found out my favorite uni in this piece (which we’ll see below). I also love the ’50s New York Football Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers, the ’80s Denver Nuggets, the early ’70s Houston Oilers with the blue helmets and the entire late ’70s to early ’80s Canadian Football League. I can’t forget the Killibrew-era Washington Senators, the ‘71 Pirates with the mustard gold, the old St. Louis Football Cardinals, Penn State football and Villanova basketball.

PH: Wow. Thanks Jim. You’ve been a great contributor to the site, and I love your DIY stuff, which I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of in the future. OK, then, lets get on with the MISL:

With Paul and the ESPN gang looking back at the 1980s, it seems appropriate to include a very ’80s sport that became oh so tantalizingly close to being our fifth major sport.

The Major Indoor Soccer League was born in 1978 and ended in 1992. There was another MISL … which used to be the National Professional Soccer League … which used to be the American Indoor Soccer Association … which was hatched in 1984 as a rival to the original MISL. The 2nd MISL turned into the National Indoor Soccer League in 2008. As if that’s not enough soccer madness, the original MISL competed with the indoor arm of the North American Soccer League for its first few seasons.

Yes, there is indoor soccer to be found in America to this day, but it is a shell of what it was in the glorious 1980s. I hope the NISL grows and flourishes so I can do a piece on it in the future. Today, my focus is on the mid-1980s, when the MISL provided some of the best soccer, and in my opinion some of the best uniforms the sporting world has ever seen.

For a complete history of the MISL, go to this very excellent website. Now, please join me as we take a look at the Top 8 MISL uniforms of the 1980s. If it were a Top 10 list, then my beloved Pittsburgh Spirit would be included. Sadly, they must sit out this one.

Anyway, on with the countdown:

8. St. Louis Steamers: I’m a sucker for light blue – and for teams that use green and blue – so the color scheme and these cool uniforms assure the Steamers of a place on this list. The colors and stripes make me think of the Mississippi River and its layers of water and silt. I’m not sure why the sleeve stripes are green on blue, as opposed to the shoulders being blue on green. Here’s a look at the road uniform.

7. Chicago Sting: One of two former NASL teams who brought uni greatness to the MISL. Black and gold like my good old Spirit, but the Sting kicked their unis up a notch. Here’s a great look at the away uni, and another look at it next to the home kit. I like the sleeve numbers on the home whites and the subtle diagonal lines. The ’90s could learn a lesson from this design — a little goes a long way. I wasn’t a fan of the team, but I loved these unis. Great alternates as well.

6. Cleveland Force: Yeah, they had Darth Vader come out to begin one of the coolest player introductions you’ve ever seen. George Lucas eventually got wind of this and made them stop, but later he reached an agreement with them. Man, I couldn’t stand this team at the time, but I loved working their games. I was a souvenir and food vendor at the Richfield Coliseum. I used to wear a Spirit button and a Baltimore Blast button on my uniform — how I didn’t get canned is beyond me. Here is the road uni and here are front and back looks at the home uni. I liked the player names under the number. The Force folded in 1988. A year later the Cleveland Crunch formed, and they won three NPSL titles. Don’t let Cleveland fans whine to you about a championship curse! Thankfully they changed their name to the Force for a few years before they too folded. By that time I had become a fan. Don’t know what you got ’til it’s gone, so I’m glad I had a second chance to enjoy them, albeit briefly.

5. Baltimore Blast: My second-favorite team of all time, and my favorite current team. Yep, the Blast are still alive and … wait for it … kicking. The current Blast began as the NPSL’s Baltimore Spirit. When one of the original Blast owners bought into the new franchise he brought back the name. They won the inaugural NISL title this year, a year which marks the 25th anniversary of the Blast’s first title. In between they won four of the last six championships in the second MISL. The new Blast look nice but nowhere near as nice as this or this. That’s the late Stan “The Pizza Man” Stamenkovic in both pictures (not to be confused with Mike Stankovic in the home whites with him). Loved that nickname and loved that player! He loved scoring goals as much as he loved eating pizza and it showed in the stat sheets and in his physique. My hero. Towards the late ’80s the Blast tried a different slant on their unis, but those mid-80s ones were the best for me.

4. Kansas City Comets: Cosmic, man. Here are side and front views of the home whites, and here is a look at the visiting blues. A hint of purple in those diagonal stripes, but we won’t hold that against them, will we, Paul? Paul?? I didn’t see them play a lot, but they made an impression on me.

3. Minnesota Strikers: This was the other NASL team who jumped leagues and did it stylishly. The San Diego Sockers may have dominated both leagues, but they have to be content with their championships on this list. Actually, the Strikers had a 3-games-to-1 lead in the ‘85-’86 championship, but lost to the Sockers anyway. Oh well, what did Billy Crystal say…”It’s better to look good than to feel good.” The Strikers were absolutely mahvelous, dahling, both at home and on the road (that’s against the Sockers, by the way, in one of their better home looks). Look carefully on the previous picture. There are parrots on goalkeeper Tino Lettieri’s jersey. Fun guy — he used to keep a stuffed parrot in the nets when he tended goal.

2. Los Angeles Lazers: You sort of see their road unis on the team page — that was the best I could find. The home whites show up better here. Another predominantly black and gold team, but owner Jerry Buss added a purple Laker trim to make them stand out from the others. Sorry, Paul, but I think these unis are so hot it takes Smokey the Bear to put out their fire. The logo and the abdominal stripes are just so ’80s. That means they’re timeless to me, but then again I still listen to Duran Duran.

Drumroll, please………

1. Tacoma Stars: Completely ignore the uniform you just saw on the team page. It doesn’t exist in my world. The Stars made it to the top of the list for these brilliant creations here and here. I know, I know, it looks as if Charlie Brown collided with Dan Issel or Alex English and fused into one being, but that is what makes it so endearing to me. Here’s a rear look at the home whites and the away blues. That’s right, I love these babies so much I had one made for my membership card. The Stars not only looked good, however, they were good. They were the only team to beat San Diego in a playoff series, and they were one game away from winning the ‘86-’87 title. The Stars lost a thrilling game 7 to the Dallas Sidekicks before more than 20,000 fans packed into the Tacoma Dome. ESPN covered the series…unfortunately, I didn’t see it. Hear that, ESPN Classic?? If you showed USFL games for me you could show some of your old MISL coverage. Please?

Well, some of you may want to have my membership card revoked after this, but hopefully more of you enjoyed this look back at a fun league from a fun decade. Can’t wait to see your opinions.

Thanks Jim! Opinions of unis are totally subjective, so I can’t take any umbrage with your “top 8″ or your views. I gotta say, tho — “became oh so tantalizingly close to being our fifth major sport”? Seriously? I know you were undertaking a certain amount of hyperbole there, but c’mon. Everyone knows there are only three major sports, anyway.

But great, great job. It’s probably safe to say there has never before been such a thorough look back at the uniforms of the MISL of the 80s on Uni Watch.

Guess The Game From The Scoreboard: You guys are proving too adept at this game, so the following scoreboard will probably prove to be a piece of cake. A couple of readers have asked that while you keep to the practice of posting the retrosheet or other link to the answer, in order to assist some of the readers who may not be so skilled at guessing the scoreboard, if possible and without revealing too much of the answer, in addition to posting it, could you sort of “talk us through” how you went about solving the scoreboard mystery? (How’s that for a run-on sentence?) In other words, what about the picture were clues and how did they assist you in solving it? Plus, how you solved it might be different (but equally effective) than how someone else solved it. OK? OK. So with that, Guess The Game. And tell us how you did so.

Benchies is back! Remember The Boys of Benchies? Well, Ricko’s back and so are they! Here’s Today’s Benchies. Enjoy.

From the Squiddie Files: Another wonderful batch of Life archive photos from Lance “Squiddie” Smith comes to us today. Lance explains, “These aren’t really uni related and I don’t have much to say about them. I still think they’re interesting.”

The photos come from a set, one of which Lance had posted in the comments section some time ago. “A while back I posted a link to a Life photo of someone looking out from the scoreboard at Griffith Stadium,” Lance elaborates. “I’ve found that that photo was from a 1956 photo essay about how teenagers were spending their summer. They had one boy fixing TVs and a girl working as a life guard and so on. (The one boy who was fighting wargames with miniatures was obviously way ahead of his time.)”

With that, let’s take a look at what Lance has gathered for us. He’s broken them down into a couple subjects, but “Other than that I have no details. The photos are still pretty cool.” Thanks, Lance.

“Outside photos of the scoreboard from the field:” here and here. Beautiful shots, Lance.

“Outside shot of teen watching the game from a slot in the scoreboard:” here, here, here, and here. These are magnificent shots — how fun would it be to be that kid?

“Inside the scoreboard looking out:” More great pics here, here, here, as well as here, here, and here. I love the ‘classic’ undershirt and jeans look (I’m thinking “Fonzie” from Happy Days) of the kid inside the scoreboard.

“Working the pitch count display (WWDC must have sponsored Senator games in the 50s.):” More great shots here, here, and here.

“Lucky Strike cigarettes on hand:” Great find, Lance, such attention to detail have you!

Finally, Squiddie says, “This may be the best photo but it needs to be rotated 90 degrees.” Here it is all upright and proper-lookin’.

Great stuff, as usual. Lance concludes, “While my first thought was, ‘What a great summer job!’ I’m now thinking it would be pretty hot running that thing in July. Obviously there wasn’t any air conditioning and probably little ventilation.”

OK. That’s all for today folks. Everyone have a great Saturday.

Time to pay another visit to our friend Will “Doc” Ginn (if you missed his Uni Watch debut, look here). Here’s his latest batch of unusual memorabilia:

• “I’ll bet you’ve never seen these three stickers together,” says Doc. Interesting how they didn’t try to make “Washington” fit in that little well between the “b” and the left wrist, the way they did with “Capital” and “Baltimore.”

• Here’s a rarity: a World Team Tennis bumper sticker — with a suggestive slogan to boot.

• And speaking of suggestive bumper stickers from fringe sports leagues, check this out. The team in question is the Connecticut Bicentennials of the NASL.

• Apparently sports in the 1970s was on big sexytime-o-rama. Nice to see the Spirit stuck with Pittsburgh’s black/gold theme, though.

• “I have never seen this Pistons logo anywhere else,” says Doc. Me nether. Dig the basketball-patterned “hubcaps.”

• Before the NFL’s Houston Texas, there were the WFL’s Houston Texans. I love — love — the “globe” in the center. If the WFL had used that for their logo, instead of this, they might still be around today.

• Did you realize that WFL teams played a 20-game schedule? I didn’t, until Doc showed me this.

• More WFL ephemera here. Note that the signature at lower-left is from a guy identified as “Portland Storm Governor.” Man, a football team with a governor? I thought that was strictly a hockey thing.

• “Love this little Houston Rockets guy,” says Doc. Me too.

• And speaking of the Rockets, I had actually forgotten that they once played in San Diego.

That’ll do for now. My thanks to Doc for sharing more of his stash with us.

The Proctor Chronicles, Continued: Terry Proctor has an interesting take on the snafu involving the North Lawndale basketball uniforms. Dig:

I put the blame squarely on the shoulders of the manufacturer and then the dealer that sold the uniforms to the school. Since the majority of basketball uniforms are sold for use in high schools, it should be the manufacturer’s first responsibility to make garments that comply with the rules set forth by the NFHS (National Federation of State High School Athletic Associations), which are clearly outlined on the NFHS web site.

I personally check over the uniform rules before each season. For example, in 2008-09 every home team was supposed to wear white uniforms, rather than gold or light blue or silver gray. This rule was announced two years ago, in order to give schools enough lead time. But as I watched high school games this season, I saw that many schools were still wearing light (non-white) colors at home. When I would ask about it I was told that “the local association gave us a waiver.” Well, that’s fine. But in a state competition, the state association will not be so understanding. That’s what happened in Illinois.

Are the uniform rules silly? Yes, a lot of them are. But they’re presented clearly and understandably to the schools and with plenty of lead time to make the changes. …

I couldn’t stand to know that a uniform I sold was declared illegal and ended up costing a team a game (or worse, a state championship). Without bragging, I take enough pride in my craft to know the rules going in. I’ve alerted manufacturers of impending changes so that they can check them out and make appropriate corrections. I’ve had to tell schools that a particular design feature or lettering graphic they want is not legal and then I suggest acceptable options.

No, I feel the ultimate blame for this incident lies with the manufacturer/sales agent. They frankly did not do their homework. It’s just that simple.

In case you missed it yesterday afternoon, my own take on the North Lawndale situation is here.

Uni Watch News Ticker: As promised, my “I flushed the toilet at the Mets’ new stadium” T-shirt is now available on eBay. … The Lions’ new helmet logo and wordmark have been leaked — by the NFL Shop. They might take that item down, but too late — it’s all over the web now. … Several readers have noted that Xavier’s C.J. Anderson wore brown tape over his white socks during the Xavier/Wisconsin game. But I think he was actually wearing low socks and sweatbands, not tape. … Reprinted from yesterday’s comments: Admirably obsessive breakdown of the Rockies’ performance in each of their uniforms here. … Jeff Popovich notes that the L.A. Galaxy and D.C. United both wore American flag sleeve patches on Sunday. “I don’t remember flags being on kits before,” he says. Anyone know more? … Bizarre scene in Clevo the other day, as a Lake Erie Monsters hockey game had to be postponed because the pink ice (for breast cancer awareness) became unplayable (thanks, Vince). … Check this out: An old Pennsylvania Railroad baseball uniform with safety messages. … Here’s something odd: Boomer Esiason wearing a No. 63 helmet (with thanks to Stephen King). … Lots of old Wrigley Field photos here, and old Comiskey pics here. My favorite: Chisox usherettes (nice find by Steve Shanabruch). … Here’s a new one, at least to me: Some NCAA umps have been wearing pullovers with zip-off sleeves. Reminds me of the button-on sleeves that players used to wear (interesting find by Rob Montoya). … I’m pretty sure we’ve covered this before, but someone please refresh my memory: What’s the deal with the Bears wearing block numerals? … Dog Bites Man Dept.: MLB is once again warning players not to pull their pant cuffs down under their shoe heels. They go through this dance every season and then the players keep doing it anyway. … Good mask-painting story here (with thanks to Mark Snider). … Is it possible that the good people at Nike might be selling a substandard product? This article thinks so (with thanks to Greg Riffenburgh). … Is this the cast of a high school musical? A troupe of mimes? Nope — it’s the 1982 boys’ gymnastics team from Alan Borock’s high school. … Best White Sox ever, by uni number (with thanks to Steve Johnston). … You wouldn’t believe the response I got to yesterday’s meat bracket (among other things, the national meat buyer for SuperTarget liked the article so much that he’s sending me some steaks) — never imagined it would generate so much fun feedback. My only regret: I forgot to work a reference to this 45 into the piece. … And speaking of meat, the fourth graf of this item states that the new Yankee Stadium will include “a window found in the left-field concourse of the Field Level where fans can see butchers from Lobel’s of New York [best butcher shop in NYC -- PL] preparing prime, dry-aged steaks to be served in various locations in the Stadium.” … Now that’s some nice eye candy right there (thanks, Scott). … A 1910 New York Giants uniform was appraised on Antiques Roadshow the other night (with thanks to Casey Lute). … Chris Mycoskie reports that the Louisiana-Lafayette baseball team has been going high-cuffed recently.

One of the highlights of my recent trip to Pittsburgh was a visit to the Heinz History Center, which includes the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum. I took a lot of photos here, so let’s get right to it (with apologies for the inevitable problems with glare and reflection when photographing things in glass cases):

• Here’s a great factory team uniform, circa 1955 (details here), along with a jacket from the same team, different year.

• And here’s a junior police team uniform, circa 1944, worn by a young player whose high school didn’t have a team.

• This is an autographed 1960 Dick Groat jersey, notable primarily for its tagging.

• Would you believe that a big league GM gave a player a raise in 1948 without the player even asking for it? It’s true, at least according to this letter.

• May favorite thing in the entire museum was this display, devoted to a local marble-shooting champion. Yeah, I know, marbles, but c’mon — look at that jersey and patch!

• If you’ve spent any time looking at Negro Leagues photos, you know it’s practically an iron-clad rule that one player was always wearing last year’s uniform, or another team’s uniform, or something out of step with the rest of the team.

• Here’s a really great story: In 1949, a local schoolgirl embroidered this shirt with the likenesses of Ralph Kiner, Wally Westlake, and Babe Ruth, and then sent it to Kiner and Westlake for them to autograph (the Babe had already died, alas). Kiner not only autographed it but sent it back with this cover letter. Dig that stationery!

• The football section included an entire wall of letterman jackets and sweaters. But my favorite jacket was this one. That chest patch is near-perfection.

• I really liked this display showing a ref’s jersey, whistles, score sheet, and flags.

• Another highlight: This Steelers cheerleaders display. Additional pics here.

• I was happy to see they had a small mention of L.C. Greenwood’s gold shoes.

• This was a local football team called the Oilers. I love that there’s an oil derrick in the background.

• And here’s an all-black football team, wearing a jersey style I’ve never seen before.

• You know those old-fashioned football nose guards? Here’s an early patent drawing.

• Apparently the Pittsburgh boxing community is still pissed off about the Louis/Conn fight (Conn was a local hero). I didn’t get any pics of the Conn memorabilia at the museum, but I did get a shot of this great robe and accompanying set of trunks. Not sure why a Pittsburgh fighter had “NY” on his trunks, but whatever — gorgeous.

• This is Chuck Cooper’s All-American uniform. Note the photo at lower-right — I didn’t realize the Celtics had once worn uni numbers on their shorts. And why doesn’t the shorts number match the jersey number?
• Several excellent old basketball uniforms here.

• I love the soccer jacket shown on the right. Here’s a close-up.

• And it won’t surprise anyone to hear that I also love this Pop Warner jacket, rendered in green and gold.

• Unusual artifact here. The United Black Front was a local activist organization, and you’ve gotta love an activist agenda that includes softball.

• The museum even features some swimming exhibits, including a tremendous Olympic time trails patch, a photo of the 1932 U.S. Olympic team, and a shot of some rather revealing swimwear.

• Finally, there’s this. I’ll let it speak for itself.

Phew! It’s worth noting, incidentally, that the Heinz facility also features a really great exhibit that documents the history of the Heinz company itself, including a photo of the Heinz baseball team, circa 1907 (note that they’re even using Heinz baseball bats), and a display showing the uniforms worn by female workers at the Heinz plant. Just goes to show that all roads lead back to uniforms.

And now a word from Vince Grzegorek: If I have one lasting legacy at Uni Watch, it probably won’t be writing about Brownie the Elf at every opportunity, or for being Paul’s first intern. No, it most likely will be for running the site’s annual NCAA tournament contest.

So let’s get this going. In the past I’ve come up with convoluted point systems and spent a lot of time scoring each entry by hand. But I’m much too busy for that this year, so screw that. Instead, we’re going to run a normal bracket challenge. To sign up, go to this site. Our group name is Uni Watch, our group ID is 68140, and our password is stirrups (all lowercase).

The top five winners will get to choose from the following prizes, all provided by Paul:

1. A free Uni Watch membership.

2. A free T-shirt from our friends at Pennant Race Gear.

3. An MLB logo wristwatch. (Full disclosure: Although it’s never been used, it appears to need a new battery. — PL)

4. A Bimbo Mexican soccer jersey, size large (contributed to the cause by reader Jeremy Deason — PL).

5. A copy of the new book Cubs by the Numbers.

Top winner gets his or her choice of prizes, second-place winner gets to choose from the remaining four prizes, and so on.

Hey, how about that economy?: Paul here again. As some of you are aware, changes are afoot at Distant Replays. Here’s a quick imaginary press conference about what this means from a Uni Watch perspective:

New enrollees in the membership program used to get a $10 Distant Replays gift code. Are you still offering that benefit?
No, effective immediately.

I ordered my membership card a few weeks ago but haven’t received it yet. I thought I was getting the $10 gift code. What happens to me?
There are 16 of you out there who fit this description (some of you have been waiting way too long for your cards, and I’m sorry about that — life has been hectic lately). Those 16 cards will mail out this week, and unfortunately they will not be accompanied by Distant Replays gift codes. If you feel gypped or baited-and-switched, get in touch and we’ll work something out.

I received my Distant Replays gift code with my membership two months ago but haven’t redeemed the $10 code yet. Will I still be able to redeem it when the company goes back online?
Good question. I’ve asked Andy and Rav about this, and so far they haven’t responded. I know them well enough to know they aren’t just blowing me off — I think they just have much bigger things to worry about at the moment. If I had to guess, my hunch would be that old gift codes will not be honored when DR resurfaces. But we’ll have to wait and see.

Sorry for the hassle. Feel free to be in touch if you have further questions about any of this.

Uni Watch News Ticker: The Thrashers appear to have a 10th-anniversary logo slated for next season, and holy shit is it a stinker. … Negro Leagues shorts alert! That’s Prince Joe Henry, the Detroit Clowns player who often had some, uh, unique uniform stylings (but not always). Those pics were contributed by Jared Wheeler, who also sent along shots of an old Houston warm-up jacket from the Slama era, a 1940s Harvard hoops jersey, a Senators jersey with a Jerry Cosby tag (”Never seen his tag on a baseball uniform,” says Jared), a Willie Stargell cap (that’s the closest look I’ve ever gotten of the stars — note that only the one on the right appears to be properly oriented), and — the real prize — a sleeve patch from the 1944 minor league Orioles. Thing of beauty, no? … This is really cool (nice find by Charles Neiswender). … But this is just ridiculous (blame Mark Doescher). … Jordan Wiley has created an interesting project: He’s created an a listing of the best logo treatment for each letter of the alphabet. In other words, this is A, this is B, etc. I don’t agree with most of his choices, but that’s kinda beside the point, cuz it’s an interesting little project. I wish he’d put all his letter choices side by side in one big composite alphabet (get working on that pronto, Jordan!), but for now you can check out his breakdown here. … On Friday I mentioned that I’d been surprised to learn that the Milwaukee Braves had offered stock to the public. That prompted the following from Terry Paffenroth: “The stock was a huge issue when the team’s new ownership started making the plans to move the team out of Milwaukee, because they had buy up that remaining stock from people, most of whom who were not about to sell and lose the team. The plan that eventually took shape was that minority stockholders who would not sell were given a letter saying that their shares were being voided in exchange for a voucher for season tickets — in Atlanta. And just for the first season. Next time I see my grandparents, I’ll try and find their old stock certificate, along with the letter and voucher. They small stockholders and were given two tickets. The largest number I have come across was for six tickets.” … Kentucky wore black uniforms on Friday. … The Fresno Grizzlies have some new alt/promo jerseys (with thanks to William Paul Barrett). … Check out this square-formatted NOB (nice find by Robert Saietta). … Tequila sundrise over Blacksburg. … Brett Crane notes that Kevin Youkilis is wearing his #20 elbow guard in the WBC, even though his WBC uni number is 21. … Maybe we’ve covered this before and I’m just suffering from brain-lock, but what’s up with the ‘Pops’ patch? … Here’s the logo for the 2011 Pan-Am games (with thanks to Jeremy Brahm). … Bob Ruffolo was inside the new Yankee Stadium on Saturday and took a bunch of photos. … The Rangers’ two-tone helmet lives on, at least for now, in a team commercial (screen grab courtesy of Josh Jarmon). … Lots of college basketball uni musings here. … Greg Riffenburgh notes that Arsenal’s Russian signee, Andrei Arshavin, has been wearing at least two different kinds of cleats, as seen here and here (that’s him in the background). … Soccer note from Joe DeLong, who writes: “I was watching Serie A soccer highlights on Sunday and saw that Filippo Inzaghi of AC Milan scored his 300th career goal and was immediately presented with a No. 300 jersey.” Details here. … Doug Keklak sent along this shot from the 1956 Johnstown High School yearbook. Weird to see that the whole team had uni numbers in the 70s and 80s — I realize those numbers were legal in h.s. hoops back then, but it’s still odd that they’d only use numbers in that range. … Luke Mohamed reports that Sidney Crosby, who normally wears a visor, was visor-free during part the first period of yesterday’s Pens game. … The 1898 Spalding Ice Hockey and Ice Polo Guide, which is believed to be the earliest hockey guidebook, is now accessible online — complete with ads. … Interesting 2005 story here about bunting — this kind, not this kind (nice find by Mike Ortman). … St. Paddy’s Week has officially arrived, as the Raptors wore green last night. … As promised, supercross racer Kevin Windham wore Saints-themed gear on Saturday (with thanks to Sean Clancy). … Don D. snapped this shot of an adult league hockey team called the Charlie Browns. “The uniform also has a shoulder patch with Snoopy biting through a hockey stick, à la the Sharks,” he adds. … Only in America, or so I’d assume (thanks, Phil). … Also from Phil: Think this guy’s got enough swooshes?

By Phil Hecken

Following the failure of the first women’s professional soccer league (WUSA, or “Women’s United Soccer Association”) in 2003, the future of women’s pro soccer in the United States looked bleak. After all, if a league featuring most of the ladies who catapulted USA women’s soccer to the forefront of our collective American minds following their World Cup victory in 1999 (who can ever forget this?), largely due to mismanagement and poor marketing, a new league, “Women’s Professional Soccer” (”WPS”) is back to pick up the mantle where the WUSA failed. Will it survive? Who knows. They begin play later this month and there will be teams from seven geographic locations (which I say because there are teams from “New Jersey/New York” and the “Bay Area”), specifically: Bay Area, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New Jersey/New York, St. Louis and Washington, D.C. in 2009. There are currently plans to expand to 10 teams in 2010, when the league will add Atlanta, Philadelphia, and Dallas.

Couple of things I learned about the league: They’ll be using a cool new ball design. The logo features a silhouette based on none other than Mia Hamm. Also, all the kits and the balls will be made by Puma.

The league, which had gone by the working name “Women’s Soccer, LLC”, announced its name and logo in January 2008. Since that time, teams have been having tryouts and signing “name” players from around the globe. With a little fanfare last month, the league held a “fashion show” during which several of the players were seen wearing what are described as “skorts” (’skirt/shorts’). This caused a bit of an uproar around the blogosphere, including on Uni Watch, as this was decried as “unprofessional” and other unflattering things. Speculation that this was done solely to attract a male audience was rampant. However, upon further review, and since this was, after all, just a fashion show, it was ascertained that the “skorts” would not be worn during actual game play. A collective sigh of relief was heard around the globe. Each team has it’s own weblink, and all are accessible through women’s pro soccer (dot) com.

Since I know next to nothing about soccer, I’m not prepared to comment upon the success or failure of the previous incarnation of women’s pro soccer, nor do I wish to speculate on the future of the new league. I do know i watched with rapt attention the 1999 World Cup and thought the final against China was one of the greatest sporting events I ever had the pleasure of watching (at least on TV). It was one of those sporting events where I will remember the exact setting, location and time I saw it. While I doubt this new league can ever match that one, single event for pure excitement and historic proportions, I would hope the WPS is successful in this go-around. So, without further ado, lets have a look-see at what the ladies will be wearing, uniform-wise, in their inaugural season.

Bay Area FC Gold Pride: The Gold Pride will wear black and gold uniforms, with the black kit (I believe) serving as the home. The gold top will serve as an away jersey, and black pants (not skorts) will be worn with both. As with all these uniforms, I am not certain what, if any, advertising will appear on them, nor do I wish to speculate if there will be any at this time (although, it being soccer, it’s hard to imagine there not being any).

Boston Breakers: Unlike the defunct USFL team of the same name, these Boston Breakers hope to last more than one season. I don’t believe the jersey I just linked to (also see here) will actually be what the team trots out, nor will this one (yes, that’s Steve Nash, who will play a role in the new league), although both uniforms were, I believe, originally considered. Instead, the Breakers will sport white and blue kits, the ones seen in the fashion show. (Those original light blue kits were probably just props for the 2008 announcement of the first signees.)

Chicago Red Stars: Of all the jerseys, these are probably my favorite. The away kit features a white jersey, with 4 red stars, and the home jersey is light blue, also with four stars. Both tops have the team crest just below the left shoulder. Unlike some of the other teams, the home and away kits will have different color shorts. Not sure if the cleats will remain black with the away whites and white with the home blues.

Los Angeles Sol: The LA Sol will also feature home and away uniforms with separate shorts for each. Socks on each kit will also match the uniform’s color. Home will be dark blue and white will be away, and both have gold stripes on the shoulders, plus the “soul patch” (lol) on the upper left portion of the shirt. In a development leading me to believe advertising will adorn all WPS uniforms, I found this shot of star player Marta with Kobe, showing the “Amway” logo. I’m guessing, of course, but I’d be willing to bet all the jerseys will have something like this on them when the league begins play shortly.

New Jersey/New York Sky Blue FC: OK, I’m not in love with the name (’tis quite the mouthful, no?), but i do very much like the aptly named Sky Blue uniforms. The kits will be sky blue for home and orange for away, and (although they can’t be seen in) white socks with both, and white shoulder stripes. I also like the boots that will likely be worn with the unis. Although not all merchandise is yet available for all teams, I would expect that most will have something like this available for sale before the first games begin.

St. Louis Athletica: Best logo, IMHO, of them all. It is evocative of Joan of Arc, and interestingly, spells out “Saint” rather than just using the “St.” abbreviation which is common to teams from that city. The lady on the horse, surrounded by two fleur de lis’ and holding a “St. L” flag (to cover all bases) is resplendent in teal green, blue and gray. Mimicing the logo’s colors, the team uniforms will also be teal and gray, with the home uniform comprised of all teal white the away kit will feature a gray top. While I’m not a designer, I’d venture to say the designers spend proportionately more time on the logo than on the uniform itself, but what do I know? Socks will be gray with teal stripes.

Washington Freedom: The final team in the inaugural season of the WPS will be the Washington Freedom. Despite the apparent ‘orangish’ hue to those jerseys, they will indeed be both red and blue, with red socks for the red uniform and blues for the blue. (They’re from Washington, maybe you were expecting purple and teal?) Like all the uniforms for this new league, they are decidedly understated. As appears in the fashion show shoot, the boots will be white. However, we’ll see how they look when the ads appear. The red, blue and white trim are perfect for DC, although it looks like the red kit will have both white and blue thin stripes, and the blue shorts will have a wide swath of white on them.

Well, there you have it. The 2009 Women’s Professional Soccer league. I wish I knew more about the sport and I welcome any of you who have more knowledge of it and the league to please enlighten me (and all of UW) with the details. I’d always like to learn more about this sport. If you’d like to work with me on a future column on soccer, gimme a shout.

So, what do you all think of the unis? Anyone with more info on the possible adverts? The floor is yours.

This and That: I’ll probably have a post on the World Baseball Classic tomorrow, but the New York Times has an interesting take on the Australian team … The New Mexico Women’s Lobos will be auctioning off their Pink Zone unis to benefit breast cancer research and the Kay Yow Foundation … Ken Rosenthal opines that if you’re going to use PED’s, maybe you should learn how to do them properly … Sports Illustrated had a nice little piece earlier this week (carrying an AP Wire story) on the Cuban Baseball “amateurs” and how they view MLBers … Not used to seeing Garrett Anderson in anything but a Los Angeles California Anaheim Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim uniform? Neither are these guys, who think he looks pretty sharp in a Bravos uni … Are you concerned about J-Roll’s health? You shouldn’t be, at least not according to Rollins himself … Sad news in the world of puck, as Mrs. Hockey has passed on … Who knew? Apparently having too many home furnishing stores in your city is a sign of being “unmanly” … Here’s an odd set of convergences: Dubai gets fined $300,000 by the WTA (World Tennis Association) for not allowing Shahar Peer, a female Israeli tennis player a visa, yet they have granted a visa to male Israeli tennis player Andy Ram … The NCAA has put Florida State University on four years probation for major violations including academic fraud involving 61 student-athletes across 10 sports — who knew they had 61 “student-athletes”? … Serena Williams has joined the chorus of top tennis players who believe new anti-doping measures on athletes are “too strong” — a claim Serena’s opponents often level against her … the Cleveland Cavs threw-back again last night — do the ever wear their standard unis? … uh oh, Yankee fans — CC winces — 7 years, $161 million sighs emanate from Yankee camp … I’d love to see this in Whaler green next season … This may have been reported already, but the Phillies will don gold-trimmed jerseys on opening night … and finally, this comes from Teebz (don’t ask me why he’s reading Glamour magazine) — present day actresses recreating famous American icons — the last of which ties a nice bow on this soccer post, eh?

Don’t Forget To set your clocks an hour ahead tonight — daylight savings time is here!

By Phil Hecken

It’s that time of year again. The annual barrage of teams wearing pink in support of breast cancer research and funding, or in support of The American Cancer Society, with proceeds used for cancer research. The prevailing trend now though, is Think Pink, which seeks to raise breast cancer awareness.

Just Google “pink uniforms” and you’ll see page after page of stories on teams who dress themselves in the color pink to promote some form of cancer prevention, research, or other endeavor. Especially with the recent passing of Kay Yow, many of the “Think Pink” cancer prevention efforts are now moving to to raise awareness for the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund. Worthy causes, all. And in all seriousness, who would be against cancer funding and awareness raising? But, does every team (seemingly) have to don pink? Is the trend getting to be, if not counter-productive, certainly watering-down the whole ‘uniqueness’ of the cause? That’s debatable of course, but lets focus instead on the actual uniforms and the myriad and sundry accoutrements surrounding the pink phenomenon.

Of course, wearing pink as an accent color has been around since at least the 1990s, and of course Andre Agassi, the ‘rebel’ himself, was at the forefront. At the time, though, there was no ’cause’ associated with it. Other athletes in non-team sports are still quite fond of pink, including Paula Creamer, self-proclaimed “Pink Panther”, who not only wears pink outfits but is also the only professional golfer to stroke a pink ball.

Moving onto team sports, however, the sartorial splendor of pink-clad squads is debatable. Again, for the purpose of this exercise, we will not debate the rationale or cause behind the donning of the pink, but merely the performance and appearance of the uniform and accessories. Kind of a skewed take on the Uni Watch dictum of “Is it good or is it stupid?”. In this case, the qualifications are merely, “Is the uniform good or stupid just really pink?”.

It seems like women’s college hoop teams are the primary wearers of pink. Personally, I don’t mind this, although there are certainly different shades of pink to be worn (which is nice — I’d hate to think they were all just one shade). I’m definitely less fond of the lighter pink sported here (yet, with different lighting, it appears slightly darker) or here. The brighter, hotter and deeper pinks seem to jump out more (since they’re less akin to pastels), and when accented with black, stand out. Course, it could just be the lighting, but this looks less pink and more ’salmon’ to me. And don’t forget to match the sneakers to the uniforms.

Women’s basketball is far from the only sport which has jumped into the pink craze. Both men’s and women’s hockey have entered the fray. “Pink at the Rink” is the new battlecry, featuring pink ice, pink-accented unis, pink sticks, pink-accented gloves, and, of course, pink uniforms for both the ladies and the guys. Even the refs have gotten into the act. Not a big fan of the pink at the rink myself, although it looks much better when the socks are coordinated with the sweaters, and the pants are in a complementary color.

Both men’s and women’s soccer sport the pink uniforms (although the Sevilla player is wearing, I believe, a change kit, and certainly not anything related to breast cancer causes) as well. Palermo also sports pink, as do several women’s colleges, with the latter donning the pink for cause-related reasons. Of course, you gotta start ‘em young.

In other, somewhat “individual” sports such as the triathlon and cycling, pink can always be found. Other semi-team sports like gymnastics will also find the pink in small numbers. Not to be forgotten, USA Softball has also gone pink for a good cause.

OK, that’s enough of the uniforms, but what about the accessories? The NFL got into the act by having the refs don pink ribbons to support breast cancer awareness week in October. Nice touch. Not to be forgotten outdone, the AFL used a pink-accented ball. I’m not sure this is official, but the Cowboys seem to have dabbled in pink, and this is always a welcome Dallas Cowboys cheerleader. But will her boyfriend QB ever slip on a pair of these?

You already they manufacture pink golf balls, but you gotta put your balls on one of these, right? Of course, if you’re gonna play with pink balls, well then, shouldn’t you stroke them with pink clubs? And what better place to keep your clubs than in a pink bag? Of course, tennis players can also hit a pink ball too.

And what of those soccer players? Well, the pink clad ones can certainly kick a pink ball with their shiny pink boots. And the sport of boxing? Sure, why not use pink gloves.

Coaches and fans? Sure, dye your hair pink or put on some pink Chucks. May as well pile on the pink bodypaint for the cause, too.

But surely, surely, the greatest sport of all, which gives millions of dollars to multiple charities, supports many causes, and provides entertainment for millions, would never resort to a gimmick? Surely, baseball would never resort to the pinkification of sport, would it? I think you know the answer to that question. At least they haven’t introduced pink gloves…yet. But they’ll never make the uniforms pink, right? You never know — once you stop taking roids, nothing is out of the question.

Happy Valentine’s Day. Remember, think pink.

So how did you do for the holidays? Get any good uni-swag? Santa was pretty kind to LI Phil, as he scored a Giants sweatshirt (a reminder of good things in the past and better things yet to come) and an Isles sweatshirt (with “19″ and “80″ on the sleeves, to mark the year of their first Cup). This was a reminder of great things in the waaaaaaaaaayyyy past and nothing but futility, heartache, and despair in the immediate future.

But the real uni-prize came from a buddy, to whom I off-handedly mentioned I’d love a Bimbo kit after reading Bryan’s “Lost In Translation” piece more than a year ago. (Yeah, I know it’s the sponsor and not the team, but think of the conversation starter it would be for the unknowing.f) I searched high and low for a Bimbo jersey, to no avail, eventually losing hope and interest. Sure, Nike made one, but no way was I paying no $80 for one (that’s a lot of pesos, y’know). So, at the annual exchange of Xmas presents this year, I was so pleasantly surprised to receive that gorgeous thing pictured above. I don’t know if it’s their new shirt, or if it’s even the same team as featured in Bryan’s article (it’s prolly something he scored in the bargain bin) — and quite frankly, I don’t care. Sure, it’s not quite the Islanders Fisherman sweater I really wanted, but damn, it’s close enough.

So, it’s show and tell time. How’d you do? What’d ya get? Uni-related gifts and/or nekkid pics of your significant other/gf/wife only please! — Phil

First things first: Paul has a new Page 2 column here.

As daunting as it is to be handed the keys to Uni Watch with instructions that include “Don’t screw it up,” even more daunting is starting the week with a picture that isn’t from the NFL Draft. Picture lots of guys with No. 1 jerseys, template-stamped hats, and awkward smiles — all accompanied by Roger Goodell and RBK. Sweet.

So instead of all of that, which is boring to begin with, you get this guy. It’s Miguel Veloso of Sporting from the Portuguese liga, and he’s one of the few men in the world who can go with a faux-hawk, a mullet, AND a chin strap. And highlights! But I need help, futbol fans — what are those black splotches on his sleeve? I’m assuming it’s a sponsorship thing, but it’s hard to find information (in English, at least) for a Portuguese team. So enlighten us, if you will. I have no prizes, no authority to give prizes, and no desire to give prizes. So just tell us what the deal is, huh?

I’ll be here all week: Here’s how things are going to go — we’ll have a main entry and a ticker, which will be compiled by Vince. There may be a couple of standard daily posts, but for the most part it’ll be in the weekend format. And that means a picture and a quick paragraph or two, followed by the standard daily discussion. Since most of us are grownups, it goes without saying that we should be all be able to handle ourselves. But if you can’t, you’ll get a warning and then the boot. So be cool, just like Miguel Veloso. –Bryan

And Now a Note from Paul: Yeah, I’m in New Orelans by now, stuffing my face with crawfish, but over the weekend I got an interesting communiqué from a reader named Sean Fish, who’s a student at USC’s Marshall School of Business. He wants to make Uni Watch the focus of a school assignment he’s working on. I’ll let him explain it in his own words:

I’m a long-time reader and occasional contributor to the Uni Watch comments section. My class about online media has a final project that I think could be interesting if done on Uni Watch. The project is a study of an online community (in my case, Uni Watch), and the basis of the study is to find out how members of the community joined, how they communicate, whether they meet in person (or stay anonymous), and how they feel the community has affected their daily lives, among other things.

I have some questions below. If you can take a moment, it would be great if you could answer by e-mailing me your response at sfish [at] usc [dot] edu. Even if you can only answer some of the questions, any information you can provide will be very useful.

Thanks in advance for your help. But most of all, thanks for creating a unique, nationwide community of Uni Watchers! Keep up the good work.

Here are the questions:

1) What is your view of Uni Watch as an online community? Do you consider it a community? To what extent is it, in your view?

2) If you do view Uni Watch as an online community, what makes Uni Watch an online community to you? Do you feel included in the community? Is there any way that it could be made into a stronger community? Would you want it to be a stronger community?

3) How did you discover Uni Watch? Were you specifically searching for a place to share your thoughts/feelings on sports uniforms? Did you you find it on ESPN?

4) How involved are you in Uni Watch? Do you post comments frequently? Occasionally? Rarely? Never? Read Daily? Occasionally?

5) If you post on the comments section, do you use a pseudonym or part/ all of your name? Do you prefer to be anonymous to your fellow readers?

6) Have you ever made contact with a fellow Uni Watcher outside of the blog/message board?

7) Have you ever met a fellow Uni Watcher?

8) Have you attended a Uni Watch Party?

9) Have you thought about initiating a Uni Watch party without Paul’s involvement (i.e., even if he’s not passing through your town)? Why or why not?

10) Have you started a serious relationship (friendship or more) through Uni Watch?

11) Do you regularly read or participate in other uni-centric blogs, such as the ones Paul links to on the site?

12) If I have missed anything, please feel free to add it here.

And there you have it. I spoke with Sean after he first contacted me, and I’m intrigued by his project, which I think strikes at the heart of what many of us find so remarkable about this site (i.e., that a bunch of strangers congregate each day to share some very specific niche-driven information). I encourage everyone to participate to whatever extent you’re able.

And now over to Vince for today’s Ticker….

Uni Watch News Ticker: Interesting old jerseys up for action here and here. … Figure skater Cecelia Colledge, who competed in the 1932 Lake Placid Olympics when she was only 11 years years old, died a few weeks back. Check out the amazing sweater she wore at the 1936 Olympics, where she won the silver. … You’ve heard of ivy on the Wrigley Field wall? The St. Paul Saints have put their own spin on that maneuver. … Further news here about those Chinese sneakers that some of the Rockets are wearing (with thanks to Brett Crane). … Remember that Colts secondary logo contest? Jon Gates notes that choice No. 4 has changed since the voting started — it was originally this, but then it changed to this. Hmmmmmm. … Steven Wyder notes that Matt Garza has been pitching with a visible underbrim sticker for a couple of starts now. … Brian Temke notes that Ryan Braun was wearing Mike Rivera’s helmet the other day. … There he goes again. … The Rams’ memorial patch for Georgia Frontiere will look like this. … James from Knoxville shares some pics from local Farragut high school where the baseball team has a throwback doubleheader each season, complete with uni’s and concession prices. … Fascinating article on a man who designed some jerseys for his youth group to wear when they saw the Pope at Yankee Stadium and the newfound demand for his wares (a blessing to Jim Roddy for the info). … The University of Cincinnati unveiled new Adidas football uni’s. Bleh. … Those new super speedy Speedo swimsuits that have the whole sporting world aflutter have apparently angered Japanese swim coaches because Japanese athletes have to wear only suits by Mizuno, Asics, or Descente. One coach is calling for those manufacturers to make something as fast as the new LZR Racer. No word on if they want the same creepy x-ray vision aspects or not (thanks to Jeremy Brahm). … I’ve got a feeling we can all agree that this guy has to have the coolest damn socks in the entire Turkish basketball league (with thanks to Matt Eliot, who attended this game in person and captured the sock beauty). … James Poisso notes that Louisiana Tech’s new end zone design will mimic the team’s jersey design.