He called Ben Herman, the Penn State assistant athletic director for equipment operations, and shared his lament. On July 1, Penn State officially ended its 33-year partnership with Nike and embarked on a new one with adidas. Just recently a staffer, attending a function inside Beaver Stadium, happened upon a mannequin dressed head to toe in Nike gear. And shoes, shoes, shoes and shoes. options and the particularness of athletes, the courts and field around Penn State turned into test labs as the flip date neared.