It was a good year for Adidas. Seven FBS apparel contracts changed hands in the 2017-18 academic year, according to research conducted by FootballScoop, and the Three Stripes scooped up all seven of them.
Across those seven, a clear pattern emerged. Adidas did not make much hay in challenging Nike for major college sports supremacy; the company did pull Washington away from Nike, but the list stops there. Instead, Adidas pushed Russell Athletic out of business at the FBS level and elbowed away Under Armour to stand as the clear No. 2 behind Nike.
Examine each conference and you'll see a clear pattern emerge. Adidas is an aggressive bargain shopper; the Three Stripes matches Nike's 26 Group of 5 contracts, and owns 20 of the 36 available contracts in Conference USA, the MAC and the Sun Belt. At the Power 5 level, Adidas mirrors Under Armour, owning a presence in every corner of the country, but not much more than that. Poaching Washington from Nike, for instance, gives Adidas one Pac-12 North school, matching its one Pac-12 South school, Arizona State.
The Three Stripes' small comeback in college football matches that of the entire company as a whole. Adidas reported first-quarter 2018 sales 17 percent higher than analyst expectations, and North American sales grew 29 percent in the final quarter of 2017. Under Armour's stock price, as high as $51.86 a share in September 2015, fell to $11.61 in November of last year and sits at $21.61 today.
Nike, meanwhile, has outfitted each of the nine programs to reach the College Football Playoff to date. Under Armour's highest finish was Wisconsin at No. 6 in the 2017 final CFP poll, while Adidas hasn't come closer than Mississippi State's No. 7 ranking in the final 2014 poll.
Now in its fifth year, behold FootballScoop's annual survey of Who Wears What in FBS.
Total FBS Breakdown
Nike - 68 (52.8%)
Adidas - 39 (30.2%)
Under Armour - 22 (17.1%)
Power 5 Breakdown
Nike - 42 (64.6%)
Adidas - 12 (18.5%)
Under Armour - 11 (16.9%)
Group of 5 Breakdown
Adidas - 27 (42.2%)
Nike - 26 (40.6%)
Under Armour - 11 (20.4%)
Italics - New deal announced in 2017-18
American
Central Florida - Nike
Cincinnati - Under Armour
Connecticut - Nike
East Carolina - Adidas
Houston - Nike
Memphis - Nike
Navy - Under Armour
South Florida - Adidas
SMU - Nike
Temple - Under Armour
Tulane - Nike
Tulsa - Adidas
BREAKDOWN: Nike 6 (50%), Adidas 3 (25%), Under Armour 3 (25%)
ACC
Boston College – Under Armour
Clemson – Nike
Duke – Nike
Florida State – Nike
Georgia Tech – Adidas
Louisville – Adidas
Miami – Adidas
North Carolina – Nike (Jordan Brand)
N.C. State – Adidas
Pittsburgh – Nike
Syracuse – Nike
Virginia – Nike
Virginia Tech – Nike
Wake Forest – Nike
BREAKDOWN: Nike 9 (64.3%), Adidas 4 (28.6%), Under Armour 1 (7.1%)
Big Ten
Illinois – Nike
Indiana – Adidas
Iowa – Nike
Maryland – Under Armour
Michigan – Nike (Jordan Brand)
Michigan State – Nike
Minnesota – Nike
Nebraska – Adidas
Northwestern – Under Armour
Ohio State – Nike
Penn State – Nike
Purdue – Nike
Rutgers – Adidas
Wisconsin – Under Armour
BREAKDOWN: Nike 8 (57.1%), Adidas 3 (21.4%), Under Armour 3 (21.4%)
Big 12
Baylor – Nike
Iowa State – Nike
Kansas – Adidas
Kansas State – Nike
Oklahoma – Nike (Jordan Brand)
Oklahoma State – Nike
Texas – Nike
TCU – Nike
Texas Tech – Under Armour
West Virginia – Nike
BREAKDOWN: Nike 8 (80%), Adidas 1 (10%), Under Armour 1 (10%)
Conference USA
Charlotte - Nike
Florida Atlantic - Adidas
Florida International - Adidas
Louisiana Tech - Adidas
Marshall - Nike
Middle Tennessee - Nike
North Texas - Nike
Old Dominion - Under Armour
Rice - Adidas
Southern Miss - Adidas
UAB - Under Armour
UTEP - Nike
UTSA - Adidas
Western Kentucky - Nike
BREAKDOWN: Adidas 6 (42.9%), Nike 6 (42.9%), Under Armour 2 (14.3%)
Independents
Army - Nike
BYU - Nike
Massachusetts - Adidas
New Mexico State - Under Armour
Notre Dame - Under Armour
BREAKDOWN: Nike 2 (40%), Under Armour 2 (40%), Adidas 1 (20%)
MAC
Akron - Adidas
Ball State - Nike
Bowling Green - Nike
Buffalo - Nike
Central Michigan - Adidas
Eastern Michigan - Adidas
Kent State - Under Armour
Miami (Ohio) - Adidas
Northern Illinois - Adidas
Ohio - Adidas
Toledo - Nike
Western Michigan - Adidas
BREAKDOWN: Adidas 7 (58.3%), Nike 4 (33.3%), Under Armour 1 (8.3%)
Mountain West
Air Force - Nike
Boise State - Nike
Colorado State - Under Armour
Fresno State - Nike
Hawaii - Under Armour
Nevada - Adidas
New Mexico - Nike
San Diego State - Nike
San Jose State - Adidas
UNLV - Nike
Utah State - Nike
Wyoming - Adidas
BREAKDOWN: Nike 7 (58.3%), Adidas 3 (25%), Under Armour 2 (16.7%)
Pac-12
Arizona – Nike
Arizona State – Adidas
California – Under Armour
Colorado – Nike
Oregon – Nike
Oregon State – Nike
Stanford – Nike
UCLA – Under Armour
USC – Nike
Utah – Under Armour
Washington – Adidas
Washington State – Nike
BREAKDOWN: Nike 7 (58.3%), Under Armour 3 (25%), Adidas 2 (16.7%)
SEC
Alabama – Nike
Arkansas – Nike
Auburn – Under Armour
Florida – Nike (Jordan Brand)
Georgia – Nike
Kentucky – Nike
LSU – Nike
Mississippi State – Adidas
Missouri – Nike
Ole Miss – Nike
South Carolina – Under Armour
Tennessee – Nike
Texas A&M – Adidas
Vanderbilt – Nike
BREAKDOWN: Nike 10 (71.4%), Adidas 2 (14.3%), Under Armour 2 (14.3%)
Sun Belt
Appalachian State - Nike
Arkansas State - Adidas
Coastal Carolina - Under Armour
Georgia Southern - Adidas
Georgia State - Under Armour
Louisiana-Lafayette - Adidas
Louisiana-Monroe - Adidas
South Alabama - Adidas
Texas State - Adidas
Troy - Adidas
BREAKDOWN: Adidas 7 (70%), Under Armour 2 (20%), Nike 1 (10%)
Did we miss anything? Let us know @zach_barnett on Twitter.