Well, first thing’s first. Any athlete that looks as cool as Denard Robinson will be great for marketing, regardless of his feet. He gained like 8,000 yards last week, running all over Notre Dame as my one Michigan friend texted me the same thing over and over: “The Catholics can’t handle BLACK JESUS.” And they couldn’t.
You Know Who’s Not Tired Of Shoelace’s Shoelaces? Adidas
And as you may have heard roughly 10,000 times by now, he did it all with untied shoelaces. The story’s been beaten to death, yes—first by bloggers, then by mainstream journalists, and finally, by announcers—but that doesn’t make it any less awesome that this dude’s running all over the field with untied shoes.
Adidas, for one, is not complaining.
Because you know what it means when networks and journalists constantly re-hash the shoelace story? More photos of Adidas’ shoes!
From today’s Detroit Free-Press:
"It's great exposure for us," said Chris McGuire, head of sports marketing for Adidas. "Obviously from a brand standpoint we're all about producing products that improve and help athletes do their best on the field. Each individual has their own way of customizing their footwear that they like to wear that's comfortable for them, and we'll support that. We're excited Robinson has his unique style and unique look."
Adidas signed an eight-year contract with Michigan, worth $7.5 million annually, in July 2007. ... Robinson's success -- and his untied laces -- can only help U-M's position when it's time to renew the contract.
So... To review.
- Adidas? Gettin money.
- Michigan? Gettin money.
- Rich Rodriguez? Beat Notre Dame, helped his job security. So, gettin money.
- Denard Robinson? Gettin stipends once-a-month for food.
HA! Aren't college sports fun? ....... But whatever, no reason to be cynical here. Denard "Shoelace" Robinson still has the coolest nickname in college sports, and he's been one-man wrecking crew through the first two games of the season. The NCAA may be fiercely hypocritical and fundamentally unfair, but Shoelace is too busy ballin' to worry about all that. He's too busy for a lot of things, actually.
Have you heard? He's even too busy tie the laces to his excellent, lightweight Adidas Superfly Mid football cleats! Look at the untied laces on these affordable, super-lightweight cleats. Just $59.99!
Yeah... Just look at those shoelaces! And the Superfly Mids!
Promise this isn't a sponsored post, part of an agreement with Adidas where we write about Shoelace for each of the next 12 weeks. Or maybe it is... Who cares? This story's just too crazy and unique to ignore!
Ahem... SB Nation? Better believe we're gettin that Adidas money. All day, baby.
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