Now playing for Cal: Uh, I don’t know his name. Who’s number 34 this year?
(Written by jsnell)
There’s nothing that cures a season-killing streak in which you lose six of seven games like… removing names from your uniforms?
So says Jeff Tedford in today’s Chronicle:
Maybe as jarring as the gold stripe down the middle of the new Cal helmets, will be the lack of names on the back of the newly designed jerseys. Coach Jeff Tedford removed the names before last season’s Armed Forces Bowl as a tribute to the military, and he admitted Monday that the tribute will continue this season because it was a twofold statement. “After the way Washington and Stanford happened, it was evident that we all needed to come together and look at accountability issues,” Tedford said. “That’s what we did. It was taking identity off of individuals and putting it back on the team.”
Not to freak anyone out, but this is not the first time Cal has pulled a move like this. The last time it happened was during, you guessed it, the depths of the Tom Holmoe era.
Now I’m pretty sure that players are not able to spin their heads around, “Exorcist” style, and read their names (upside-down) on their jerseys as an ego boost. But there is one group that directly benefits from names being placed on jerseys: The fans.
While many of our readers no doubt can memorize the name and number of every Cal player — and can even pick on the subtle physical characteristics that differentiate that number 4 from that other number 4 — I’m betting that 99% of Cal fans can’t.
Names on jerseys help the process by, y’know, actually telling you the name of the guy who just made that play.
Of course the no-names-on-jerseys trick is a cheap motivator. But to me it reeks of desperation, perhaps (I admit) because this is the same kind of genius motivational tactic we saw in the tainted Holmoe era. And because it’s disrespectful to the fans.
But hey, I guess those of us paying hundreds or even thousands of bucks to go watch games in Memorial Stadium aren’t as important as a team-unity stunt. There are plenty of ways to preach team unity to a bunch of college athletes. Couldn’t they find one that didn’t degrade the fan experience?
(Update: Look, this is not exactly a gigantic issue that’s going to rock Cal’s football team to its foundations. But it’s just so stupid that it drives me batty. So I wanted to add one more point. If this is really about “taking identitity off of individuals and putting it back on the team,” why not go all the way? Assign jersey numbers randomly every week and give the number listing only to accredited members of the media! And don’t announce the names of players on the Memorial Stadium system! Make the fancy introduction video on the little BearVision screen all about the team and don’t read off the names of players in a pre-game ceremony. Sadly, the rules don’t allow you to remove numbers completely, but if you really want to “take identity off of individuals,” there are a lot of annoying things you could do. Why stop at nameplates? -J.S.)
July 29th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
I’ve pretty much agreed with everything you have said in this blog for a long time now. But I think you may need to relax a little on this topic. It’s not as if it’s going to be impossible for us to know the names of the players that we have been watching for over a year. There will be programs at the game and after every play the stadium announcer and the T.V commentator say the names of the players involved! And I for one am willing to sacrifice the names on the back of the jersey if the team believes that it will help in the team unity, which is one of the reasons for the collapse last year because there was an obvious lack of unity. So let it be.
July 29th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
Oh and by the way USC doesn’t have names on the back of their jersey’s and the fans and the team seem to be doing just fine.
July 29th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
Hey Ricky. I’m not Ken, I’m Jason, so for all I know you may have disagreed with every single thing I’ve written on this blog.
One might argue that every single blog on the internet would wither and die if everyone just “relaxed a little on the topic.” That’s what blogs are for.
I remember sitting in Memorial Stadium during the last time Cal dropped names off of its jerseys in the interest of team unity. And you know what? As someone who’s been going to games since I was a little kid, I find the names on the back of the jerseys to be really helpful. Yes, after a few great plays you learn that number 8 is Johnny Catchandrun, but reading a name in your binoculars sure beats having to pick up the Coke-spill-soaked program and find the rosters in the middle to figure out who the guy was who made that brutal hit right in front of you.
What I’m saying is, I’ve been through this before with Cal and it actually pretty much sucked. I was relieved when they got over themselves and put the names back. And now, here we are, and it’s gonna suck for a while until finally they give up and put the names back. I didn’t like the decision the first time and to me, the repetition of that decision seems insane.
Hey, if the team wants to wear blue and yellow underpants in order to foster team unity and win more games, they can go ahead. My point is that names on the back of jerseys are not the reason the team collapsed last year. There are any number of psychological tricks that coaches can use to motivate young athletes. I would prefer that they choose tricks that do not detract from the fan experience.
(And in my book, “USC does it” is not really an argument in your favor.)
July 29th, 2008 at 7:15 pm
First off I’d like to say that when I said “I’ve pretty much agreed with everything you have said in this blog for a long time now” I meant it towards whoever is writing on the blog regardless if it is you or Ken.
And in my book” USC does it” is an argument in my favor. I lived in Los Angeles for 2 years before moving back up to the Bay Area. While down there I had plenty of friends who were USC fans and spent hundreds or even thousands of dollars for season tickets and not once did I hear them complain about not having the players’ names on the back of the jerseys. And it’s because it did not detract from their experience at the game.
I’m not sure comparing Tom Holmoe to Jeff Tedford makes your argument any better. Tedford proved that he was a better coach and a better motivator after he took Holmoe’s 1-10 team and made them a 7-5 team.
You’re right, the names on the back of the jerseys was not the reason for the collapse. Against Air Force, the names were taken off to show respect to the men and women in the armed services. Tedford is doing the same thing now. Taking the names off the jersey, as much as you may disagree does send a loud message to the team that it’s not about the individual but about the team. Something seemed to be different against Air Force maybe along with Riley taking over at quarterback, the emphasis of team was the extra spark they needed.
Also, it is not Tedford’s responsibility to make the fans happy, it his responsibility to make the team successful. Apparently he thinks this will help. And I’m not ready to question the man that has completely turned around our program because he took the names off his players jersey’s.
I guarantee that no ones experience at Memorial Stadium will be detracted because they have to rely on the announcer at the stadium to tell them the names of the players that they can already find in their program.
July 29th, 2008 at 7:45 pm
“I’m not sure comparing Tom Holmoe to Jeff Tedford makes your argument any better.”
Let’s just say that it scares me that Tedford is pulling a trick out of the ol’ Holmotivation Handbook.
“Taking the names off the jersey, as much as you may disagree does send a loud message to the team that it’s not about the individual but about the team.”
And as I said, there are lots of ways to send that message that don’t impact the gameday experience for fans. Taking the names off does. What I’m saying is, could we maybe choose a motivational gimmick that doesn’t harm the fans’ gameday experience?
Maybe all the player should wear dark facemasks, too. So we can’t recognize them at all. That would send a message too… It’s just ridiculous. There are an infinite number of ways to motivate these players. This trick, to me, is about as hackneyed and laughable as you can get. I hope Tedford has better tools in his motivational arsenal, because if he doesn’t, he’s not as good a coach as I’ve given him credit for being.
The bowl game wasn’t won based on the lack of names on the back of the jerseys. Did they rip the nameplates off after they went down 21-0? Oh, no, that’s right, they came out without nameplates and showed off their team motivation by serving up a three-touchdown lead to the opposition. Then they changed quarterbacks and came back to win the game going away.
“Also, it is not Tedford’s responsibility to make the fans happy, it his responsibility to make the team successful.”
That’s true, but as I’ve said repeatedly now, there are lots of ways to motivate players that don’t involve harming the gameday experience. The worse the gameday experience, the less money will come in and the program will suffer. Donors — generally rich old donors who sit on the shady side of the stadium around the 50 yard line (I see them from just across the aisle) — are what fund the bulk of what happens at Cal. They will fund the stadium upgrades.
What if Tedford decided that, for the team to be better motivated, obscene rap and hip-hop would be played at ear-splitting decibels between every play? And that the current PA announcer (that’s Announcerbot 2.1 beta 3 for those scoring at home) would be replaced by a streetwise 19-year-old who shouts only in LOLspeak?
At some point the fan experience factors in. I’m not saying nameplates on home jerseys is going to drive fans out of the stadium. I’m saying that it’s a decision that degrades the fan experience and seems to me to be a really cheap, really weak motivational tool. The scales are not in balance.
I appreciate your guarantee, but it’s worthless to me. Because I’ve seen this before. It sucked then, and it’ll suck now. We’ll get used to it, and we’ll grin and bear it. Maybe it’ll wear us down so much that we don’t complain about it and just accept it as a fact, like the people at USC.
But it doesn’t mean I have to like it. I didn’t like it the last time Cal pulled a cheap stunt like this, and I still don’t. I expected better of Tedford, but given the comments he made in the Chronicle story today, I’m starting to wonder if his amazing impact on the program and his brilliant offensive coaching skills have allowed us to overlook some serious failures on his part in terms of managing his responsibilities and dealing with the personalities of the players on his team. That’s perhaps the most chilling thing of all.
July 29th, 2008 at 8:27 pm
Oh, I’m also mad about Scrabulous shutting down on Facebook. Did I mention that? Damn them!!!
That is all.
July 29th, 2008 at 8:56 pm
Oh okay, well maybe Tedford will change the uniform colors from blue and gold to pink and purple. Or what if Tedford changed the mascot from the Golden Bears to the Orange Turkeys. You can play the “maybe” game as much as you want. but the fact is that Tedford has really only changed the team in this one and quite frankly insignificant way.
And Jason you must have superman eyes to be able to see the player’s names that clearly. I see very few people carrying binoculars anyway. I can only guess this is because they know the announcer knows all the names and they have a program.
I’m not quite getting how you’re turning the taking of the names off the jerseys to maybe he’s not as good as a coach as I thought he was. Explain yourself a little more because I’m not getting the connection.
And the people at USC are not complaining about it because they have been so worn down that they just accept it. They don’t complain about it because it’s not a big deal. It’s really not a big deal at all. I think you love Cal football just as much as i do, i don’t question your fanhood at all but I think you’re just making mountains out of mole hills here.
July 29th, 2008 at 9:05 pm
I see all, Ricky. I’m looking in your window right now, in fact.
I say it’s a medium-sized deal (bigger than a molehill, smaller than a mountain), you say it’s not. We’ll have to disagree on that one.
July 29th, 2008 at 9:17 pm
That’s weird. But fair enough.
July 29th, 2008 at 9:26 pm
You think that’s weird, you should see what else I see with these eagle-eyes. (I also have pretty good seats and a long camera lens.)
July 30th, 2008 at 6:41 am
Ever sense the Yankees put numbers on their uniforms in 1929, fans have argued over the content of the clothes worned by team members.
Players names exist for fans, it should have no impact on “team unity”.
However, if Tedford thinks a ten win season is coming from removal of the names, then I’m all for that.
If removing the numbers adds another win, Ted go for it!
July 30th, 2008 at 9:49 am
See, I was going to mention the arrogance of the Yankees in omitting names from their home and road uniforms. But baseball and football are different enough sports that I think different rules probably apply. It’s harder to spot a given football player on the field (he could be anywhere!) than a baseball player (nine fielding positions and guys standing on bases).
Maybe if all the players wear camouflage body stockings and hockey masks we can win the national championship! The University of California Commando Killas.
July 31st, 2008 at 10:29 am
This is actually comical! Names on the back of jerseys is a joke. No college football team in the country should have them. That is what the numbers are used for; to differentiate between players. There are number distinctions according to position that are part of the rules of football as well. You can have two different players with the same number as long as they are not on the field at the same time. There is both rhyme and reason for numbers on the jerseys. Names on the jerseys is exceeding what is needed. They have no function other than for a few fans in the very first few rows. Now I know that Memorial Stadium is not a giant venue, but I would have to say that 80-90% of the fans, at least, can’t see the names on the jerseys. You are not taking away from the fan experience one bit by taking the names off.
If Tedford thinks that will raise accountability, then let him do it.
Omission of names from uniforms by teams like the Yankees, USC or Notre Dame is not about arrogance. It’s about tradition. It’s about having classic uniforms that transcend time and era.
Tommy Holmoe didn’t win because he was a bad coach, not because he took the names off the jerseys.
July 31st, 2008 at 10:46 am
So if there are double numbers, how do you tell which player is which when they’re out on the field? Sometimes it’s obvious, sometimes it’s not.
Also, don’t forget about the fan experience on TV, where you can see the names clearly.
Tom Holmoe was a bad coach, we agree. So what does it say about Tedford that he’s using some of the same motivational tactics that a bad coach used?
July 31st, 2008 at 12:01 pm
“If this is really about “taking identitity off of individuals and putting it back on the team,†why not go all the way? Assign jersey numbers randomly every week and give the number listing only to accredited members of the media!”
And to the refs, the real reason why removing numbers entirely isn’t allowed.
July 31st, 2008 at 12:09 pm
I admit it’s fun to imagine a world where jersey numbers are generated at random. Who will be number 14 today? It could be anyone! 😉
(And yes, pedants, you could generate them within certain ranges for players at certain positions if you wanted to, though the last time I checked, the NFL was the stickler for positions and numbers, while the NCAA seems to not really care as much.)
August 1st, 2008 at 2:55 pm
Names on jerseys help TV viewers. The names also help ticket holders who bring binoculars.
Otherwise, a fan must buy a program or print the roster from the Internet site.
Perhaps the Bay Area papers list the rosters, but us folks in southern Cal don’t have that pleasure.
August 3rd, 2008 at 8:26 am
Rick is correct about the tv viewer. Tedford is majoring in the minors. He has much bigger fish to fry — for instance, duh, who is going to be the QB.
August 7th, 2008 at 11:11 am
Viva La Evolucion 😉
August 10th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
All this time I thought was to show respect to the nameless tree sitters, who would have thunk!
August 11th, 2008 at 11:05 am
It should be remembered that it was not Tom Holmoe who initiated the removal of names from uniforms, it was done at the request of Matt Beck, linebacker and team captain.