UA Deal, Mack's Contract, Rausch

Dave Reardon has a wrap-up of the Under Armour deal announcement, along with some quotes from Greg McMackin and Rocky Savaiigaea.

So far, players are ecstatic.

"This is the trendy thing," McMackin said. "I just talked to (linebacker) Blaze (Soares). He's as excited as heck."

Defensive tackle Rocky Savaiigaea was among players who saw a preview of the products.

"It looks great. Nike's a big-time thing, but Under Armour, that's no joke there," Savaiigaea said. "They're giving us a bunch of things. It's not just one shirt, one shorts. The jerseys are nice, they're giving us a bunch of travel gear.

And an interesting comment from Derek Inouchi:

The uniform designs are still being finalized.

"I've seen the mock-ups, and it's a lot different look," UH media relations director Derek Inouchi said.

Ferd Lewis writes about the deal and has more interesting quotes.

Western Athletic Conference commissioner Karl Benson said, "my understanding is this appears to be the richest apparel agreement of any of the WAC schools. I'm sure that last season's football success led to this type of a deal."

And this kinda contradicts what Inouchi said:

UH officials said there will be some changes from the recent uniforms but they wouldn't be "radical."

It's all smokescreens! Gonna have aloha print jerseys, you wait.

McMackin said the new UH uniforms, to be worn for the Aug. 30 season opener at Florida, could include some green. He also said he was intrigued with the possibility of sometime unveiling "throwback" uniforms. "The thing about these guys we're working with is they give you a lot of options."

Here's video coverage of the deal from KGMB's Liz Chun. Can't wait to see the new unis.

Ferd Lewis has details of Greg McMackin's contract. I like these quotes from Mack:

The 58-year-old McMackin said he wanted a contract that bound both he and the school for the term. "I think what is different between the last contract and my contract is that I wanted to make sure I'm committed to being here and they were committed to me," McMackin said. "I'm bringing my whole family (to Hawai'i) and I wanted them (UH) to commit to me and I think they have."

McMackin's daughter and two grandchildren are due to join him and his wife here.

McMackin said yesterday's announcement of a landmark eight-year apparel and marketing deal with Under Armour is a reflection of his commitment. "I mean, that's why it is eight years, because I told them (Under Armour) that's about what I'm thinking — 8 to 10 years."

And finally, Britten Gerrard of "The Chapparal," College of the Deserts student paper, profiles UH QB recruit Brent Rausch.

"I couldn't even believe it," Rausch said. "To get the opportunity to live in a climate that has 85-degree weather year-round and play football is like a dream come true."

In the meantime, Rausch knows he has some work to do before he leaves for paradise.

"The Hawaii coaches want me to bulk up," Rausch said. "Right now I'm at about 190 pounds and I'm pushing for 210 by the time I head over there. I just need to keep pushing it in the weight room and keep on drinking those protein shakes."

A proven winner, Rausch led his high school squad (Desert Chapel) to two championships during his junior and senior seasons before leading the Roadrunners to a 9-2 record in 2007, their best season in decades.