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TOSU Apparel Sponsor (Nike)

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Dryden

Dryden

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http://www.wsj.com/articles/nike-re...o-extend-sponsorship-at-ohio-state-1452811305

Nike Reaches $252 Million Deal to Extend Sponsorship at Ohio State
Extends contract by 15 years, escalates an arms race over shoes and gear

By BEN COHEN and SARA GERMANO
Updated Jan. 14, 2016 8:36 p.m. ET

Nike Inc. has agreed to a $252 million deal with Ohio State University to extend its existing sponsorship by 15 years, escalating an arms race among sportswear makers and top sports schools.

Ohio State will receive $112 million in product from Nike and at least $103 million in cash, including royalty income, according to terms of the contract reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.

The agreement, most of which will take effect with the 2018-2019 season, includes more than $41 million in commitments beyond the Buckeyes’ athletic department to include scholarships and internships for non-athletes at Ohio State.

In the past year, Nike has also signed a 15-year, $250 million renewal with the University of Texas at Austin and reached an 11-year, $169 million deal with the University of Michigan, Ohio State’s rival. Nike takes over the contract with the Wolverines after the school’s current deal with Adidas AG expires this year.

Ohio State Athletic Director Gene Smith said the school was first approached by Nike in 2014 about extending the contract and completed its renewal in the past month. During that time, the Buckeyes won a national title in football and Ohio State executives waited for the outcome of Nike’s negotiations with both Texas and Michigan before completing its terms.

“We internally decided to wait to see how those two, in particular, turned out,” he said. Mr. Smith said that after the Texas deal was completed, Ohio State negotiated more favorable terms in its licensing agreement with Nike.

Cont'd ...
 
The prior contract effective July 2007 was $26 million for 7 years. In July 2014 Nike exercised an option to extend through July 2018 at an additional $18.5 million. This new agreement at $252 million runs July 2018 - July 2033.

The $252 number is funny, if only because it is famously the exact same figure Alex Rodriguez got from the Texas Rangers when he became the highest paid athlete ever. There's some symmetry in this, and I wonder if that was intentional given Gene wanted a better deal than Texas had received from Nike. 252 isn't some arbitrary contract figure.
 
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Hetuck said:
OSU got a whole $2 Million more than that [Mark May]ty Texas program? You drive a hard bargain, Gene. I can hear Phil Knight giggling from here.
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You really don't know how the real world functions, do you? The contract isn't based on how good of an athletic department a university has. It's based on the amount of revenue from apparel sales that can be produced for Nike. Texas is THE state school in a much larger state than Ohio. They have an extremely large alumni base, much like tOSU. When you combine their alumni with the supporters within the state who just support it because it is the state school, they will sell a ton of apparel. I'm not a fan of Gene Smith, but waiting until Texas contract was finalized and then getting a larger contract was a good move on his part.
 
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buckeyeintn said:
You really don't know how the real world functions, do you? The contract isn't based on how good of an athletic department a university has. It's based on the amount of revenue from apparel sales that can be produced for Nike. Texas is THE state school in a much larger state than Ohio. They have an extremely large alumni base, much like tOSU. When you combine their alumni with the supporters within the state who just support it because it is the state school, they will sell a ton of apparel. I'm not a fan of Gene Smith, but waiting until Texas contract was finalized and then getting a larger contract was a good move on his part.
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Agree fully. Every other Mexican day laborer and busboy in Chicago seems to wear Texas shit. Say what you want about their dumpster fire of an athletic department and comically delusional egos, but they move some product. For us to get a larger contract, even marginally, is a great sign.
 
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ORD_Buckeye said:
Agree fully. Every other Mexican day laborer and busboy in Chicago seems to wear Texas [Mark May]. Say what you want about their dumpster fire of an athletic department and comically delusional egos, but they move some product. For us to get a larger contract, even marginally, is a great sign.
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That's only because it's easy to find plenty of discarded Texas apparel in the trash bins outside any local alumni game watch location.
 
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buckeyeintn said:
You really don't know how the real world functions, do you? The contract isn't based on how good of an athletic department a university has. It's based on the amount of revenue from apparel sales that can be produced for Nike. Texas is THE state school in a much larger state than Ohio. They have an extremely large alumni base, much like tOSU. When you combine their alumni with the supporters within the state who just support it because it is the state school, they will sell a ton of apparel. I'm not a fan of Gene Smith, but waiting until Texas contract was finalized and then getting a larger contract was a good move on his part.
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Yeah, I do. And I know that in the real world, .8% isn't a big number. Texas and OSU are pretty close when it comes to marketing and merchandising and profitability and net worth, etc., anectdotal evidence of what some slobs in Chicago are wearing notwithstanding. Any OSU AD setting out to renew the contract with Nike was going to make it the largest contract out there. (And Texas will do the same the next time their contract comes up for renewal and so on.) $2 Million is a face saving figure. It screams "barest minimum."

How much did Adidas offer? Were they given a chance to make an offer? What about Under Armour? Gene could've and should've gotten more. He's making OSU football the most expensive ticket in the nation and makes the excuse that he could charge more. He's gouging the fans as though the Bucks are going to be winning championships every year. (And at those prices, they damn well better be. Just wait until OSU has some down years and see how fans feel about paying those prices.) Hell, he tried to charge $20 for spring game tickets! He's all about squeezing every last dime out of the fanbase but he's playing pussycat with Nike. $2 Million in a contract that size is chump change.
 
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Hetuck said:
Yeah, I do. And I know that in the real world, .8% isn't a big number. Texas and OSU are pretty close when it comes to marketing and merchandising and profitability and net worth, etc., anectdotal evidence of what some slobs in Chicago are wearing notwithstanding. Any OSU AD setting out to renew the contract with Nike was going to make it the largest contract out there. (And Texas will do the same the next time their contract comes up for renewal and so on.) $2 Million is a face saving figure. It screams "barest minimum."

How much did Adidas offer? Were they given a chance to make an offer? What about Under Armour? Gene could've and should've gotten more. He's making OSU football the most expensive ticket in the nation and makes the excuse that he could charge more. He's gouging the fans as though the Bucks are going to be winning championships every year. (And at those prices, they damn well better be. Just wait until OSU has some down years and see how fans feel about paying those prices.) Hell, he tried to charge $20 for spring game tickets! He's all about squeezing every last dime out of the fanbase but he's playing pussycat with Nike. $2 Million in a contract that size is chump change.
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It's not "2 million". It's 2 million more than any other program gets. I don't care if the AD was Corky from Life Goes On, it's a hell of a deal.

Also, as much as I loathe the alternate uniform fad, Nike consistently has the best looking uniforms out of the big 3. Adidas and Under Armor are fucking amateurs. Nike is the lesser of three evils imo. UA and Adidas produce some of the ugliest, tackiest uniforms I've ever seen. Marylands helmets should have put someone in prison, and Adidas managed to make TSUN uniforms even uglier than they already were. The tsun unis were so fucking ridiculous that their entire fan base was ecstatic to resign with Nike, despite Nike using their basketball brand for football.
 
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I'd like to suggest that those who are criticizing Gene Smith for not getting a bigger deal could not, themselves, have gotten a bigger deal.

Also, if you don't like having Nike dictate uniform design, the solution is simple: pony up a quarter-billion $$ yourself.
 
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Hetuck said:
Yeah, I do. And I know that in the real world, .8% isn't a big number. Texas and OSU are pretty close when it comes to marketing and merchandising and profitability and net worth, etc., anectdotal evidence of what some slobs in Chicago are wearing notwithstanding. Any OSU AD setting out to renew the contract with Nike was going to make it the largest contract out there. (And Texas will do the same the next time their contract comes up for renewal and so on.) $2 Million is a face saving figure. It screams "barest minimum."

How much did Adidas offer? Were they given a chance to make an offer? What about Under Armour? Gene could've and should've gotten more. He's making OSU football the most expensive ticket in the nation and makes the excuse that he could charge more. He's gouging the fans as though the Bucks are going to be winning championships every year. (And at those prices, they damn well better be. Just wait until OSU has some down years and see how fans feel about paying those prices.) Hell, he tried to charge $20 for spring game tickets! He's all about squeezing every last dime out of the fanbase but he's playing pussycat with Nike. $2 Million in a contract that size is chump change.
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No. You REALLY don't know what you are talking about.
 
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