Earlier this month, 13 North Carolina football players were suspended for the illegal sale of team-issued Air Jordans, a secondary NCAA violation of the school’s apparel deal. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, which self-reported its infraction, has reportedly contacted three additional Jordan Brand sponsored schools after learning that their players may have sold team-issued sneakers to the very same retailer where their team equipment was found.
Reported today by ESPN, the retailer in question is claiming that they’ve purchased sneakers from Michigan, Marquette and Cal players. Spokesmen from each of the three schools have acknowledged contact with UNC officials and are actively investigating the claims.
The budding industry of team-issued footwear begins and ends with Nike. Its co-founder, Phil Knight, a University of Oregon alum, began producing shoes exclusive for his alma mater’s sports teams more than a decade ago. Many of them being widely desired Air Jordans. The intrigue behind the limited edition sneakers grew quickly, as did the collective value of said sneakers. Given many of those shoes weren’t available in stores, that exclusivity allowed them to fetch double and even triple retail cost. Select pairs can bring in more than $1,000. Players can reel-in sufficient funds with the sale of one or more pairs of their Jordans. In greater perspective, Oregon Ducks issued Air Jordan 3s and 4s produced five years ago fetch more than $3,500 each.
Michigan, whose cultural currency is the highest among all schools mentioned, has long been a draw when it comes to school-branded sneakers dating back to the days of the Fab Five. ESPN, and our very own Nick DePaula, to fortify its investigation, enlisted the help of StockX to validate aftermarket retail value of team-issued Air Jordans in real-time. The Wolverines have 23 team-issued sneakers on their site. They average roughly $4,671 a pair.
This, of course, doesn’t necessarily insist that Michigan football or basketball players sold those 23 pairs to StockX or any other retailer. Jordan Brand often issues pairs to “friends and family” — executives, alumni, celebrities, etc. Their sale of the shoes is legal and largely slanted towards personal discretion. ESPN also reports that basketball exclusives are typically limited to around 50 pairs, while those for the football program usually range upwards to 200-300 pairs.
As a result of this ongoing investigation that could merit additional sanctions, universities are taking greater measures to prevent players from selling their team-issued sneakers for high-dollar return. Marquette requires their players to wear the sneakers multiple times thus decreasing the value on the basis of the shoe no longer being in mint condition. Further, pairs are now outfitted with player identifiers like their jersey number, making it much more difficult to sell with anonymity.
Oregon takes the greatest measures to prevent the sale of its player equipment. The athletic department issues shoes for travel and select events where players are required to wear them. Soon thereafter, the staff collects the pairs and stores them in trunks until players are set to wear them again. Players only have free rein on the pairs when their eligibility expires.
At present time, none of the three teams in question have announced violations or subsequent suspensions. New Jordan Brand schools, Florida, Oklahoma and Houston, will begin issuing players team specific Air Jordans in the near future.
