After the MISD Athletics Department became sponsored by Under Armour (UA) in November 2015, athletic programs including football, basketball and golf have started to purchase and wear more from the brand.

“This allows our community the chance to save money,” Head Track Coach Robert Johnson said. “That’s the biggest difference. Coaches, students and parents have the opportunity to get their hands on a great brand for a cheaper price, if not free.”

The teams receive a 40 percent discount on all clothing purchases and 35 percent off on shoes for going with UA.

“It’s like running to the mall once you hear there is a 50 percent-off sale on high-quality, expensive clothing,” Johnson said. “With the money you saved, you are able to buy something else as well. That’s huge and parents love to take advantage of it (the discount).”

Baseball players like senior Jimmy Nguyen said he prefers the lighter, less bulky uniforms compared to the previous years with Adidas.

“It’s more comfortable and you sweat less,” he said. “It’s easier to move around the field which helps us perform better.”

The district estimates the transition to the brand will be complete by 2020.

“Some kids have been raised on the Adidas or Nike brand their entire lives,” Johnson said. “So it is hard to just make that change so fast. The parents are okay but the students are slowly getting used to it.”

Football player Matthew Ontiveros said he likes the UA shoe quality.

“Last year, my Adidas cleats wore out really quickly and the bottom sole even broke off,” he said. “The quality of Under Armour’s cleats are way better.”

In addition to the discounts, individual programs will receive a 10 percent credit back on all purchases.

“The extra money really goes a long way to buy more things that are needed,” Head Girls Golf Coach Lindsay Matthews said. “It helps out the coaches because we can get some of the best quality equipment while saving a lot.”

Head Softball Coach Rachel Hudson said she likes the variety of options coaches can choose from.

“I am excited about having a different kind of cut of uniforms,” she said. “Especially since we are bringing out the accent colors of the school more. We have maroon, white and gray uniforms now instead of the black.”

Because it is still the first year of the partnership, only a limited amount of uniforms are available for sports with larger teams like football.

“It’s a slow process, but we’re getting there,” junior Noel Ofori said. “Varsity always gets the new stuff while freshmen and JV teams get passed down the older uniforms.”

Ofori said the new sponsorship has unified schools.

“It’s bringing the district together,” he said. “We might be rivals when we play against each other but UA puts us all on the same page.”

The district will not get rid of the old uniforms but will purchase from UA in the future.
“One of my philosophies is that you practice how you play,” Hudson said. “If you look sharp, you’re going to feel better which is going to enhance your overall performance.”

Prior to the sponsorship, teams had the freedom to choose what brand they wanted to purchase.

“The best athletes in the world use Under Armour,” Matthews said. “We went from being able to pick what we wanted to now having a great discount and uniforms of the best quality.”