Sports Compression Shirt

Abstract

A sports jersey / shirt suited for athletic participation, and particularly suitable for playing football, rugby, and the like where carrying a leather ball is involved. The shirt has several features that enhance the wearer's ability to firmly carry the ball with minimal slippage while improving the comfort of the shirt. The jersey includes a tactified surface on the outside surface of the sleeve where the ball contacts the arm as the player carries the ball in a tucked position. The surface is tacky to the touch to improve the connection between arm, shirt, and ball, thereby promoting enhanced ball security.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0001]The present invention relates generally to sports apparel, and more particularly to a shirt or jersey that is particularly suited for football players due to the built-in features that enhance ball security.[0002]Football is a game that is often decided by the team that commits the fewest turnovers. In particular, a costly fumble can make the difference between a close victory and a defeat. While most coaches preach ball security to their players every day, even the most skilled players have the ball stripped from their possession from time to time. A fumble that results in a change of possession is at the least a momentum changer, and at most a game changing event. A ball carrier with a reputation for fumbling the ball will find himself the focus of even greater attention from defenders who will try to strip the player of the ball. As young players seek to move up to the next level, from high school to college, and college to the pros, the ability t...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0005]The present invention is a sports jersey / shirt suited for athletic participation, and particularly suitable for playing football, rugby, and the like where carrying a leather ball is involved. The shirt has several features that enhance the wearer's ability to firmly carry the ball with minimal slippage while improving the comfort of the shirt. The present invention has particular benefit to ball carriers and receivers in that improved ball security is enhanced. The jersey includes a tactified surface on the outside surface of the sleeve where the ball contacts the arm as the player carries the ball in a tucked position. The surface is tacky to the touch to improve the connection between arm, shirt, and ball, thereby promoting enhanced ball security.

[0006]The tactified surface in a preferred embodiment can take the form of an outwardly radiating pattern, such as a spider web pattern, emanating just above the bicep and forearm where the point of a football is held in a normal carrying motion. The radiating pattern may alternate degrees of tactile response for heightened responsiveness. The sleeves of the jersey preferably include non-slip surfaces in the form of arches or rings on the inside surface at the wrist to resist the sleeve from riding up or down the arm, creating a more stationary point of contact for the ball. The elbow crease is formed to prevent binding or bunching of material when the arm is folded in the ball-carrying position, ensuring a smoother surface for better contact with the ball. The jersey also includes skid guards on the back of the sleeve and a closed-hole mesh under the arms for maximum ventilation, moisture transport, and heat dissipation. The jersey utilizes brilliant colors and eye-catching designs to garner notice and acceptance with a younger market.

Problems solved by technology

In particular, a costly fumble can make the difference between a close victory and a defeat.

The elements, moisture, grass, sweat, and humidity combine to make the surface of the ball and the player's hands slippery.

This, coupled with the fact that defenders try to violently separate the ball from the ball carrier on virtually every play, make the task of maintaining a firm grasp of the ball very challenging.

Moreover, arm pads and wristbands that help protect the ball carrier's forearms and wrists from injury can slide up and down the player's arms during play and may further contribute to an unstable contact with the ball.

These devices can also interact disadvantageously with the player's jersey to create an uneven contact surface.

While each of these devices seeks to solve a problem faced by athletes relating to unsure gripping surfaces, they are unsuitable or ill-suited to the problem at hand and do not overcome the shortcomings discussed above.

Images