Published in · 7 min read · Jan 31, 2020
This month we talked with Phil Hecken, Deputy Editor of Uni Watch, to learn about his background, his thoughts on the current state of uniforms, and more. Let’s go!
Varsity Partners: Thanks for taking the time to chat with us, Phil. Let’s kick it off with some background on how you got involved with the leader in athletic aesthetics, Uni Watch.
Your day-to-day for years was working in the New York Senate. Where did you meet Paul Lukas and how did you end up landing the Deputy Editor role for Uni Watch?
Phil Hecken: I was a reader (and pretty voracious commenter) on Uni Watch for about two years (pretty much from the blog’s beginning); in 2008, Paul reached out to me to become the “bench coach,” which was the original title of the person who performed the weekend duties (Paul had reduced his role from 7 days a week to just weekdays). Of course, back then, the weekend guy basically just threw up a photograph and a couple sentences on Saturday and Sunday. After Paul offered me the position, I told him I wanted to expand it and over the course of a year I did that. At the time, the “bench coach” was a one-year gig, but Paul enjoyed my work, so he offered me the position again, and I’ve never left.
Over the years, the weekend portion of UW has gotten quite large (often including several sub-ledes and a full ticker). I’m not sure exactly when, but I became the “Weekend Editor” and then “Deputy Editor” in somewhat short order. That title includes doing a full month of weekday entries, usually during the month of August, when Paul takes a sabbatical, or “blog-cation” as he calls it. Since Paul and I both live on Long Island (I’m in Nassau County, he’s in Brooklyn), I did meet him prior to becoming the bench coach, but since it’s a blog, we sometimes never meet the people with whom we work. Over the years, we became good friends, and for years we were both in a curling league in Brooklyn, go to at least one or more Mets games a year, and see each other on a periodic basis. It’s great that we’re close (both geographically and as friends), but it actually wouldn’t have mattered in terms of the position.
VP: Like Uni Watch, we talk a lot about people who get it. Define “get it” in your terms.
PH: To “GetIt™” (make sure you put the “TM” symbol in there, even though the phrase isn’t (yet) trademarked) is tough to define in just a few words, but basically it indicates that one is not only “into” sports uniforms, but one literally obsesses over them (hence the blog’s sub-title, “The Obsessive Study of Athletic Aesthetics”) to the point where, more often than not, the uniform is the most important element on a field, court, rink or diamond. We may have favorite teams, and favorite players, but our favorite uniform is the most important thing. We care about how the players look, minute changes (and major ones) to the uniform either over a season or over the years, caps, socks or stirrups, hats, helmets, etc. We care about it all. So someone who “GetsIt™” is passionate about, as Jerry Seinfeld said, the laundry.
VP: When it comes to pro jerseys league-wide, which league gets it? Which league doesn’t?
PH: Every league has teams that GetIt — they all wear uniforms. And in each league you’ll have teams with good unis and bad unis. Every league has some absolute classics (The Yankees, ManU, Packers, Celtics, Habs, etc.) that are timeless. I’m a “classicist” when it comes to uniforms, so I appreciate those that you can instantly see in a photo or a quick glance at the TV and instantly know who you’re watching. Every league has alternates (although a few teams refuse to wear them unless the league mandates), and some teams will wear dramatically different uniforms throughout a season, which tends to mess up both the overall continuity of color or style, but also tends to, in my opinion, cheapen the final product a bit. There may be a few people who want the Yankees to wear a midnight blue alternate jersey, but they hopefully never will. So I guess you could say some of the more traditionalist teams “GetIt” but that’s not really how I’d describe it.
VP: The Nike swoosh on baseball jerseys has caused an uproar with baseball purists. Are baseball jerseys forever sacred? Or will we eventually see a sponsor patch on MLB jerseys?
PH: I am sure we’re headed that way. In fact, I believe Rob Manfred has expressed an interest in at least exploring it; obviously ads (NOT sponsors) are already sullying NBA jerseys, so I think it may just be a matter of time before the other leagues follow suit. I’m not guaranteeing it, and even if it happens, I’m not saying it will happen within a year or two, or even five. But I do see the trajectory heading that way.
VP: Given its monetary success in the NBA, it seems some sort of jersey sponsorship across all American pro sports is inevitable. How important is the connection between the sponsorship brand and the fan?
PH: While I hate what the NBA has done, in some cases they seem to have tried to solicit ads from “local” businesses (like Harley-Davidson for the Milwaukee Bucks), but others like Rakuten on the Warriors? Golden State pretty much just sought to find any company who would pay its price. But will a fan in Milwaukee maybe want to patronize a Harley dealership because of the sponsorship? Maybe, but I’m not sure it would have much effect, if any, on sales. Those ad patches are for the national TV exposure, in my opinion, far more than they are for the “fans” of a certain city who happen to have a “local” sponsor. We’ve come a long way from Abe Stark’s “Hit Sign, Win Suit.”
VP: NBA teams are constantly unveiling new jerseys — is the NBA jersey game becoming oversaturated? At what point does aesthetic variety muddy a team brand and its recognition?
PH: The NBA is a total mess. Not only do we have ads on the jerseys, every team has, I believe, at LEAST FOUR different uniforms, and some probably have seven or eight. The latest round of City uniforms are an example — I wrote a piece on this a few months back (and the readers weren’t happy!) where I pretty much trashed almost every uni. I was probably a bit too harsh (and admittedly should have done a bit more “research” into Nike’s “storytelling”), but to me, I’d say 75% of those uniforms were created just to sell as merchandise. They totally muddy the brand, and in many cases, the colors and styles look like nothing the team has ever worn before.
VP: While we’re talking brand recognition, what’s your opinion on high schools using pro team brands as their own? Do you think it dilutes the pro team brand or expands the awareness?
PH: I am not a fan. In some cases, it’s done without seeking permission (and which in some cases results in a C&D from the team whose logo/name was pilfered), and in others, the approval is sought — for example, many colleges will allow a team to use their logo/likeness for $1 — but that doesn’t make the “theft” any less — it’s just legal. I think most of these schools could probably use their students — some of whom may not be athletes, but artists or creative types — to come up with both a name (mascot) and logo and use it as their own. I certainly don’t think this dilutes the pro or college brand, but it somehow seems like a bit of a cop-out for the high school. I can see how both a high school and the institution from whom they’re borrowing the logo/name might think it’s being honorific, but I value originality over all. Surely schools can use their students’ talents to come up with something that would be unique to their school.
VP: On the whole, Uni-Watch was the pioneer in bringing jersey aesthetics to prominence in the athletic conversation, influencing the likes of SportsCenter to dedicate segments to jersey drops. What’s the next frontier for you? Have teams contacted you and Paul for jersey consultations?
PH: You have to talk to Paul about a “next step” if there is to be one, but I’m not sure we could even engage in anything like jersey consultations. We’ve hosted a few “design a jersey/uniform” contests (always offering prizes or monetary compensation to the “winning” entry) for some lower level teams, but nothing at the major league level. For the past four Augusts, I’ve teamed up with the Grand Rapids Griffins, the AHL Affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings, to design a jersey to be worn for one game during the season, but I only host that — neither Paul nor I vote nor participate in any way. And that’s probably as far as we’d ever go (or be permitted to go). And while I like to think I’ve contributed a lot to Uni Watch over the years, all credit goes to Paul for making UW what it is. It was his dream, his vision, his baby. We’re all, including me, just along for a wonderful ride!
Check out Uni Watch on Twitter (@UniWatch) and Phil Hecken on Twitter (@PhilHecken).
Until next time, best swishes.
