BERKELEY, CA - Cal officially announced the new playing surfaces in a release to the media today. With the launch of the 10-year, 86 million dollar deal with Under Armour a week ago, the rebranding of the school's athletic ventures was unveiled, and with the rebranding comes the new field and court surfaces in Memorial Stadium and Haas Pavilion, featuring the recently debuted Sather Stripe and an officially confirmed design of where the Hayward Fault line cuts through the Memorial Stadium.
The statement from the Cal football release noted the reasoning for the changes, with a note that this was paid for by Under Armour as a part of a "transition bonus."
"At Memorial Stadium, each end zone has been branded with Cal's new Sather Stripe design and font using the traditional California and Golden Bears wordmarks, while a gold script Cal returns across the 50-yard line. Fans will also notice a distinct jagged mark running along opposite corners of the field, just outside the playing area, designed to represent a fault line in recognition of the facility's unique location directly above the Hayward Fault. The fault line design has not yet been installed but will be added in the coming days.
A dark green surface of FieldTurf, voted the top artificial surface by the NFLPA for 10 consecutive years, replaced the stadium’s previous turf. The new synthetic turf is used by 22 NFL teams and a majority of the Pac-12’s football programs. Construction began on May 13 directly following graduation and will be completed this weekend.
At Haas Pavilion, home to both the men’s and women’s basketball programs as well as volleyball and men’s and women’s gymnastics, the first-grade maple now displays the traditional Cal script logo at center court. The old maple wood surface was used for 17 seasons, reaching the end of its functional lifespan. The Sather Stripe makes an appearance on both baselines, as does the new font, again spelling out California and Golden Bears.
The upgrades were paid for with a transition bonus from Under Armour, which allows for Cal to update playing surfaces and additional venue signage without being charged against the athletic department’s operating budget. Cal and Under Armour launched their 10-year partnership on June 1."
One other note to come from this is the end of the Kabam licensing deal, as the field bore Kabam logos due to a 15 year, 18 million dollar deal signed in December of 2013. Cal and Kabam have decided to mutually end their agreement, with Kabam set to pay one-third of the remaining amount as a buyout, amounting to a little less than 5 million dollars. From the release, Athletic Director Mike Williams noted that they will be looking for a new partner for naming rights.
“We plan to start looking for a new naming rights partner immediately,” Williams said in the release. “While we don’t have a timeline yet, we will be seeking a partner that matches the values of both our campus and our athletic department.”
Takeaways:
This was touched on a bit in the Sunday Thoughts piece, but the two-toned field and court look very sharp at the current juncture, and the Sather Stripe looks to be incorporated in a way that isn't overbearing. The representation of the fault line should be a neat touch, especially for a school that's steeped in tradition like Cal. The focus on incorporating little touches like this shows the care that Under Armour representatives are taking.
In all, it's a sharp looking redesign that they didn't have to pay for, which really is the goal at this point.
Next up is the unveiling of the jerseys, probably the biggest piece that fans are looking forward to. A personal hope is for Joe Roth throwback jerseys, similar to what they wore during a 2007 game vs. USC.
