While Michael Jordan has the iconic ‘Air Jordan’ sneaker, he’s not the only athlete associated with Nike shoes. Although Bo Jackson doesn’t have a style officially named after him, the legendary athlete is linked to several styles from Nike.
Jackson was the first athlete to play both professional baseball and football in the same year, lining himself up with Nike as the brand began to expand beyond sport-specific footwear. The Nike Air Trainer SC is largely considered to be the brand’s ‘Bo Jackson Shoe.’
A poster featuring legendary student-athlete Bo Jackson, a Heisman trophy winner and former player for the Auburn University Tigers War Eagle SEC NCAA college football team, displayed on the exterior of Jordan-Hare Stadium, an American football stadium in Auburn, Alabama, on the campus of Auburn University (Credit: Critical Labz / Shutterstock)
Although there is no ‘official’ Bo Jackson shoe, the Nike website still tags the Nike Air Trainer 1 as being part of its “Bo Jackson Shoes” range on its official website.
Who’s Bo Jackson?
Bo Jackson is a former professional baseball and football player in America. He’s the only professional athlete to be made an All-Star in two major North American sports – setting him in a league of his own.
Jackson is considered one of the greatest athletes of all time as he’s been involved in multiple sports across different categories.
Former professional baseball and football player Bo Jackson is the only professional athlete in history to receive All-Star honors in two major sports in North America (Credit: Bart Sherkow / Shutterstock)
He played college football with Auburn Tigers as a running back, winning the Heisman Trophy in 1985.
Jackson graduated to the National Football League (NFL), playing for the Los Angeles Raiders. He also played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the California Angels, Chicago White Sox, and Kansas City Royals.
Jackson’s talent was recognized in 1996 when he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. He started being associated with Nike through the mid to late 1980s before starring in the ‘Bo Knows’ campaign in 1989/1990.
What are Bo Jackson Shoes?
Unlike Michael Jordan, Bo Jackson does not have a specific shoe named after him. Instead, the professional baseball and football player has several styles associated with him that he wore throughout his career.
Bo Jackson shoes include the following:
Nike Air Trainer SC
The Nike Air Trainer SC Bo Jackson was reissued in Summer 2017 in the Auburn colorway, which is a tribute to Bo Jackson’s alma mater, Auburn University
Nike Air Trainer SC 2
Designed by Tinker Hatfield, the Nike Air Trainer SC 2 originally debuted in 1990. and was inspired by Bo Jackson’s dual-sport career as a baseball player and football player
Nike Air Trainer SC 3
The Nike Air Trainer SC High was originally known as the Nike Air Trainer SC III
Nike Air Trainer Max ‘91
The Grey Stone/Yellow-Black-White colorway of the Air Trainer Max 91 Bo Jackson, released in 2010, is a retro edition paying homage to the original Air Trainer Max 91 from 1991
What Was the First Pair of Bo Jackson Sneakers?
The first pair of Nike shoes Bo Jackson wore professionally was the Air Trainer 1. However, these sneakers are largely associated with John McEnroe, the former American professional tennis player.
Tinker Hatfield designed the Air Trainer 1 as a multi-purpose sneaker to wear on the court and at the gym. The Air Trainer 3 – and subsequent Air Trainer SC – is an evolution of the style.
Although the Nike Air Trainer 1 was the first Nike footwear professionally worn by Bo Jackson, former professional tennis player John McEnroe was primarily responsible for popularizing the style
Most sneaker collections consider the ‘medicine ball’ version of the Air Trainer 3 as the first pair of Bo Jackson sneakers. The Medicine Ball sneaker was launched in 1988.
The Nike Air Trainer SC 2, the follow-up to the Air Trainer 3, is not named after Bo Jackson, but he is the professional athlete most associated with the style.
The Nike Air Trainer 3 Medicine Ball is considered the first pair of Bo Jackson sneakers
Another sneaker associated with Bo Jackson is the ‘Air Trainer Max’ launched in 1991.
It features similar straps to Air Trainer SC models but switched the plastic out for nylon, incorporating more Nike branding. The style also took inspiration from the Air Jordan 7 with the ankle designed to create the allusion of a hoop.
The “Bo Knows” Marketing Campaign
The so-called “Bo Jackson Shoes” were released between 1988 and 1991. While none of these styles were directly named after Jackson, they featured in the popular “Bo Knows” campaign that was used for several Nike commercials relating to the Air Trainer.
The original “Bo Knows” campaign featured a television commercial where Jackson played baseball with Kirk Gibson, who said, “Bo knows baseball.”
The next scene featured Jackson with quarterback Jim Everett, who tells the audience, “Bo knows football.”
The subsequent scenes feature Jackson running and playing tennis, ice hockey, and basketball with athletes like Joan Benoit, John McEnroe, and Michael Jordan.
This advertisement ends with Jackson trying to play guitar with Bo Diddley, who tells him, “Bo, you don’t know Diddley!”
Famously, the ‘Bo Knows’ campaign first aired during the commercial break that came right after Jackson’s home run in the Major League Baseball All-Star Game in 1989.
Nike has revisited the ‘Bo Knows’ ads several times since the ’90s, including later editions where he played cricket with Ian Botham, soccer with Ian Rush, and cycling.
Another version of the ‘Bo Knows’ ad changed the ending to have Jackson learning how to play the guitar with Bo Diddley, who wrote and performed the music for the marketing campaign.
The 2022 Bo Jackson Sneakers
While the most popular Bo Jackson sneakers came out in the late ’80s and early ’90s when he was still a professional athlete, Nike has released more recent models.
The latest Bo Jackson sneaker was launched in 2022 as the ‘Air Trainer SC High.’ It featured the ‘Auburn’ colorway for the first time since 2017.
The colorway was a subtle nod to Jackson’s time playing for the University of Auburn, where he won the Heisman Trophy in 1985. The blue and orange accents match the college’s varsity colors.
The Nike Air Trainer SC High Auburn re-released in 2022 features the same Auburn colorway as the original, designed by Tinker Hatfield and made famous by Bo Jackson
Although the shoes feature the University of Auburn’s color scheme, they don’t include any official logo. The ‘Auburn’ Air Trainer SC High retro sneakers were launched in September 2022 and retailed for $130.
The 2014 Bo Jackson Sneakers
2014 also saw the launch of a Bo Jackson sneaker with the Nike Air Trainer SC “Broken Bats.”
The name was inspired by Jackson’s habit of breaking bats during baseball games. The sneakers featured his number ‘16’ on the back with an arcade-inspired image of him snapping a bat in half with his knee.
‘Broken’ and ‘Bats’ appeared on the right and left soles, respectively, with a wood grain print on the sides of the sneakers. Nike released the shoe in April 2014 with a sticker price of $130.
Released in 2014 as a tribute to Bo Jackson, the “Broken Bats” edition of the Nike Air Trainer SC High PRM QS showcases a white leather upper with black and grey accents, a speckled white midsole, black outsole, and special details like a cracked bat graphic on the tongue and a broken bat hangtag, honoring Jackson’s legacy of breaking bats in MLB
While Bo Jackson may not be as famous as Michael Jordan in the sneaker world, this iconic athlete has inspired several shoes by Nike.
The 2022 ‘Auburn’ Air Trainer SC High retro sneaker is the most recent Bo Jackson shoe. You can find the original Nike Air Trainer SC sneakers and subsequent newer releases on the re-sale market.