Bulldogs cash in on new all-sports apparel contract, taking lucrative 6-year deal

When Terry Tumey was hired to lead the Fresno State athletic department, he inherited a short-term extension on an apparel contract with Nike that was set up to leverage the success of the Bulldogs’ football and basketball programs.

Tumey cashed in on that deal Thursday, taking advantage of a shifting marketplace to land a six-year contract with adidas for uniforms, shoes, practice and travel gear and accessories that is worth more than double what the athletic department is receiving from Nike.

The contract has an average annual value of $1.275 million per year and includes performance bonuses, according to sources.

“It’s a deal that not only gives us more promotional dollars, it also allows us to have less dollars out — and that’s crucial; that is so vital,” Tumey said. “It allows us to have so much flexibility in other places.

“If you’re in the business of athletics, it’s all about how you use resources in an efficient manner; and that contract improves our efficiency double from what it was in the past. We’re excited about the adidas opportunity and how they have positioned us – we’re positioned as one of their premier institutions in California and on the West Coast.

The Bulldogs in a six-year contract with Nike that in 2018 was extended for two years received $575,000 annually – one of the smallest apparel deals in the Mountain West Conference. Fresno State, which has had an all-sports deal with Nike since 2004, will make the changeover June 1, 2020, when that extension expires.

In going with adidas and its three stripes over Nike, Fresno State will bolt from the bottom half of the Mountain West to the top half.

Boise State this year extended its contract with Nike and according to reports will receive $2.03 million per year in cash and apparel for its 20 sports programs in a six-year deal that runs through 2025.

Colorado State has a five-year contract with Under Armour that is worth $2.2 million a year through 2021 – that deal includes promotions and branding inside the football stadium, which opened in 2017.

UNLV, another Nike school, extended its contract in May for three years and receives $2 million per year in apparel.

San Diego State, also a Nike school, receives $1.2 million per year in apparel in a deal that runs through 2024.

In the Mountain West, San Jose State, Nevada (seven years, estimated at $900,000 per year) and Wyoming (eight years, $718,750 per year) also are with adidas.

Hawaii, a football-only member of the Mountain West, has an apparel contract with Under Armour that is worth $1.75 million per year through 2022 and includes $220,000 in cash.

Tedford, Hutson help bargaining power

When in negotiations last year, Nike offered the Bulldogs what essentially was a rollover of its existing deal, a source said.

Fresno State instead agreed to a two-year extension, betting that success on the football field and basketball court would raise its profile and make it more attractive to potential suitors.

“We have a great relationship with Nike and want to continue to move forward with that relationship,” interim athletics director Steve Robertello told The Bee when that extension was signed last April.

“We just felt that with where we were and the timing of everything it made sense to do a shorter-term extension and then see where we stand from a market-driven point as we go forward into our next negotiations.”

The Bulldogs then won the Mountain West championship in football under coach Jeff Tedford, and the basketball program went 23-9 in the first season under coach Justin Hutson.

Terms of the contract were not immediately available, but adidas’ contracts with Wyoming and Nevada include a number of financial bonuses tied to the success of their football and men’s and women’s basketball programs.

In football the bonuses include College Football Playoff appearances, national and conference coach of the year awards, conference championships, bowl victories and final national rankings.

In men’s and women’s basketball they include conference championships, NCAA Tournament appearances, national and conference coach of the year awards and final national rankings.

This story was originally published December 5, 2019 at 9:58 AM.