Matt Rhule is the new head coach of the Carolina Panthers, but there’s something from his time with Baylor that might be flummoxing football fans.
Did he really wear a smock while coaching on the sidelines?
The answer is: sort of!
During the 2019 season, fans began noticing the then-Bears head coach was wearing something that wasn’t quite a vest or a sleeveless sweater. It was deemed a smock, even by Rhule himself.
But it turns out it’s something called a Shield Vest and it’s made by Nike. Luckily, The Athletic covered this subject extensively and we have some answers to all our smock questions:
Let’s start here: Even Rhule refers to it as a smock, but it’s not a smock. It’s a vest-hoodie hybrid worn over a T-shirt. Nike calls this product a Shield Vest, a polyester armless jacket with a hood. In the 2019 Nike team catalog, it’s described as a piece meant to be worn during pregame or practice, one that was “inspired by player needs” and that “blocks weather to help keep you comfortable.” Rhule laughed when asked to make the case for why this vest is a winner.
“Oh, it’s unbelievably comfortable to wear,” he said. “If it ever starts raining, it has a hood. And I’ve got tremendous movement in my arms. And it’s got zippers on the side. If you ever need more room, if you’ve had too much for Thanksgiving, you can just open up the zipper.”
But there’s symbolism attached! More from The Athletic:
The story behind the vest goes back to Baylor’s August practices. Throughout preseason camp, Rhule wore either a Bill Belichick-style cutoff hoodie or the team-issued hooded vest pretty much every day. He’s a believer in decision fatigue and prefers to keep it simple with his clothing choices. Before the season started, the head coach had a message for this team: Go play just like you do in practices.
I think that was a step we had to take,” he said. “We were a really good team out here at practice. We weren’t always a good team on game day.”
And so he donned the gray vest for the season opener as a symbolic gesture, one intended to show his players he meant what he said.
Now fans are wondering: will he end up wearing a Panthers smock?
