The New York Observer has a hilarious story on the new urban chic clothing--Ivy League regalia--in "What's that 'H' Stand For? Ivy League Teams Go Urban." The title of the story relates to this exchange:

When asked about the provenance of his Harvard jacket, Shakeil Brown, a St. Anthony High School student in Jersey City, responded: "I don't know," He helpfully pointed to the back: "It says 'Crimson.'"

And since I can't pass on an opportunity to promote my alma mater, I will note the number 1 selling institution:

In fact, Harvard, Yale and Princeton are not the top sellers, Mr. Cuff said. While buyers in suburban markets like those clothes more, the urban market's most popular school is, surprisingly, the one in New Hampshire.

"The No. 1 seller of 2006 would have been Dartmouth," he said. "And Cornell was very, very popular." In the 2007 video for rapper Mims' recent song "This Is Why I'm Hot," a young man is completely accessorized in Cornell University gear.

Although we can't boast too much, as we can't claim too much credit for being the colors of choice: "Harold Soto, 18, who works the register there and owns a Dartmouth track jacket and matching hat, said that the combo nicely matches his green-and-white Air Jordan shoes. When asked about the school name, he said, "It's like a university, right?" [TZ notes: No, its a COLLEGE!]

As for the rapidly-gaining Cornell:

A worker at a hip-hop clothing store named Morlee's in Jersey City showed me a fitted Cornell hat ($25, plus tax) and chuckled that the kids thought it was for the Cincinnati Reds (which it does resemble). I asked him what the hat did represent. "Some college team," he said. "Clemson, I think."

Harvard's sales suffer, it seems, because the Bloods have adopted Harvard's garb because of the colors (there's a phrase I never thought I'd be writing).

But don't go looking for this stuff in your local bookstore--"We don't sell our product to the bookstores," Mr. Cuff said. "Our price points are much higher than what you'd find at bookstores."