Press Box Attire - College Football

At least you can tell he doesn't have a shoe bomb.

 

Exactly. And not in the newsroom, either.

 

Or anywhere else, really.

 

FTFY

 

It's no surprise to me that "dressing up" makes so many of us self-conscious. On me - at least lately - it has the opposite effect. I find it soothing. It does away with self-doubt; and as Cranberry said, a suit takes a whole range of bad fashion choices out of play. I.e, do these pants go with this shirt / with this jacket / with these shoes? A suit - especially a dark solid color, conventionally cut - answers most questions before they're even asked. Matched (always, in my case) with a white shirt and an understated necktie, it's an absolute Model T of an outfit.

But there's a weird sort of imperative to the casual in America, a kind of argumentative reverse snobbery - plenty of which has been in evidence on this thread - that suits are for fops and aristos, and that real men wear pajama bottoms and Crocs everywhere. Look closely the next time you're at the airport and you'll realize how many American men between the ages of 15 and 65 dress exactly like toddlers: big baggy cargo shorts and puffy athletic shoes and a souvenir T-shirt.

 

As I've said, I am very casual. The only time I have worn long pants since, maybe, February, was a couple of month ago when I was going to attend a memorial gathering, which was held at an exclusive country club in West L.A.
I wondered what to wear.
The deceased was a golfer who grew up with money but certainly wasn't snobbish. His widow is the sister of a beach volleyball legend. There is a lot of volleyball in those families and a lot to those attending were of the beach volleyball ilk. I would have felt weird had I worn a suit and had the brother-in-law show up in shorts and flops.
I opted for casual gray pants and my most subdued, stylish Hawaiian shirt, which is black; and dress shoes.
When I arrived, the parking valet warned me that I had to tuck in my shirt. I said, even Hawaiian shirts? He just shook his head and said yeah.
Inside, there was a great range of clothing. Most of the women were dressed up. Only a couple of guys were in shorts and several in golf shirts. The beach volleyball star was wearing a full suit, as were his two boys.
I did not feel uncomfortable, except for having my shirt tucked in.
Meanwhile, I have gotten word that I am going to be invited to play golf at a different, exclusive country club near UCLA. I checked their website on dress code and I will undoubtedly have to buy some suitable slacks for the occasion. I've never played golf in slacks. No shorts allowed.
I will soon be breaking out the jeans. I believe there is an NHL mandate to keep the arenas at around 50 degrees to help the ice. The second you walk in the door it's like entering a freezer, especially since it has been 80-90 degrees outside for several months. Fifty degrees might not seem cold to a lot of you folks. I don't usually get cold, nor complain about it. But I have been very cold sitting in that for 3 hours.

 

Covered the ACC basketball tournament at the Capital Centre in Landover, Md., once when leather Topsiders were my work shoe of choice. Press row(s) were situated such that my tootsies were a mere foot or so above the ice. That Friday, with games going from noon until about 9 or 10 p.m., I thought my feet were gonna fall off.

 

Cargo shorts are wonderful for me when I'm flying. With boarding passes, phones, receipts, the $3 in change that inevitably accumulates during a trip, etc., every pocket has something in it. I rather enjoy the functionality there.

I like to take a "When in Rome" approach to attire. Dressing up is not always dressing appropriately for what you're covering.
If I'm going to a banquet that requires a shirt and tie, then yes I'll wear a shirt and tie or a suit. If I wear that to walk the sideline at a high school football game, or to cover a game at a dusty baseball field, people will rightly look at me like I'm a moron. Not only is it overdressed, it's going to ruin the suit. Even with basketball, when I often have to shoot pictures and am bouncing around or sitting on the floor a good bit, it's not the best choice.
If I'm at the office all day, it's usually a button down or polo shirt and khakis because that's our dress code. If I wore a tie I wouldn't necessarily look weird, but it would be odd.
I can see dressing neatly if you're in the press box for a college or pro game (it might even be required in some places), but if you're exposed to the elements or have to walk any distance to and from the stadium it might be something you regret.

 

I covered the ACC there in 1981 and concur. I damn near froze my feet that first day. I was never so happy to get to the press room at halftime and between games.

 

Completely agree that running up and down the sidelines of a high school football in a beautifully tailored gray flannel suit would require a very special kind of madman, but the original question was about a Division I game, so sort of assumes a press box, and maybe a trip downstairs to the locker room or media set-up for quotes.

And it's easier and more comfortable to travel in a suit than people think, I guess. Lots of pockets.

And if your dress shoes don't allow you to walk long distances, they don't fit.

 

I highly doubt "reverse snobbery" is in play but at the same time don't be uber cocksure that the only respectable way to travel is by suit and that those in cargo shorts and tennis shoes are sloppy simpletons and clods.