SAN DIEGO – San Diego State men's basketball has partnered with Nike for a fifth consecutive year through its N7 program, and the team will wear turquoise Nike N7 uniforms during the Tuesday, Nov. 27, game against Jackson State to celebrate Native American Heritage Month. The color turquoise represents harmony, friendship and fellowship for many Native American communities.
It is the 11th year of Nike's N7 program and the eighth year the brand has created NCAA uniforms for the N7 program. In addition to partnering with nine men's and six women's collegiate basketball programs to celebrate Native American Heritage Month with N7 turquoise uniforms and other N7 apparel and footwear, each team will be given a new Nike Sportswear N7 hoodie to wear on the hardwood during pre-game warm-ups.
Along with SDSU, 14 other schools are participating in the initiative to highlight Native American Heritage Month. The uniforms also complement the 2018 Nike N7 Collection, which is inspired by rapper Taboo's relationship with his Native American heritage. San Diego State will wear the Jordan "Why Not?" Zero.1 Lows for their on-court shoes, which feature a raised graphic pattern on the upper that models Native American beadwork, which meets a turquoise base color at the molded foam heel.
With San Diego having the greatest consolidation of tribal nations than anywhere in the country, SDSU and Nike N7 are teaming up to leverage basketball as a way of showing how Native youth can lead physically active lifestyles to be a positive force of change for future generations.
The San Diego State-Nike N7 partnership represents the University's commitment to the education, health and wellness of indigenous communities. Through SDSU's partnership with Intertribal Sports, the school has been able to introduce Native American youth to the rich opportunities for learning and career development that exist on university campuses.
The San Diego State campus itself resides on Kumeyaay land and is the home to Viejas Arena, an American Indian Studies department and multiple research initiatives. The Educational Opportunity Program's Elymash Yuuchaap (EY) Indigenous Scholars and Leaders program at SDSU, meanwhile, has created new opportunities for students to develop as leaders through the lens of their own identities.
About N7 Fund
Nike believes kids aren't meant to sit still, they're Made to Play. The N7 collection supports Nike's commitment to get kids moving through the N7 Fund, which supports organizations to provide sport and physical activity programming to kids in Native American and Aboriginal communities so that they can lead healthier, happier and more successful lives. Since its inception in 2009, the N7 Fund has awarded $5.6 million in grants to 243 communities and organizations, reaching more than 420,000 youth. Harnessing the power of sport as a unifying force, the N7 Fund helps kids reach their greatest potential and reflects Nike's belief in creating more equal playing fields for everyone.