As one steps into Sam Gutierrez’s Milwaukee apartment, tucked in a small corner in the living room there lies a heat press and a Cricut machine.
In his room, four organized cubes of jerseys can be found. One of those cubes houses 15-20 Marquette basketball jerseys that Gutierrez has produced or collected, exhibiting countless colors and designs.
One is light blue with a skyline. Some have retro logos. Some are yellow, others are dark blue. Six of them are made by him.
Gutierrez, who graduated in 2023, comes from a long line of Marquette alums, including his parents and his mom’s three sisters.
“Growing up, it was always Marquette basketball as the sport to watch,” Gutierrez said.
The creations all started with the untucked jerseys made by Bo Ellis during the 1975-76 season. Gutierrez found inspiration from those revolutionary uniforms to create his own.
He also worked in Marquette’s spirit shop for three years, leading him to be surrounded by merchandise and design ideas which ultimately sparked his motivation to want to create his own designs.
In 2021, he decided to surf the internet for a website that would help him create a throwback jersey that paid homage to the classic untucked jerseys.
He came across a website from TikTok, JerseyBird, that created one-off customizations. Gutierrez put his desired design on the website and after two months of shipping, it finally came. But one vital detail was missing.
Gutierrez was set on adding the arrowheads on the side of the jersey that represent the old warrior mascot of Marquette.
So, he went to his sister, who is fluent in arts and crafts, for help. She showed him how to use a Cricut machine (which is used to cut, write and draw on various materials). With that, the first Sam Gutierrez jersey was created.
The Cricut still sits in his living room now, which he uses to add the arrowheads to his own designs.
After making only two jerseys, his website got shut down as it went through a transitioning period of managing operational and future long-form content, which forced him to pivot to a new way to produce.
Gutierrez soon came up with the idea of buying a blank Jordan jersey from the Nike Team Store to put designs on.
After receiving a Cricut of his own for his birthday in 2025, Gutierrez started to flex his creative muscles, making a jersey for the Big East tournament that incorporated artwork from artist Keith Haring that was displayed in the Haggerty Art Museum at the time.
Gutierrez realized he could step up his game and asked himself to figure out a way to climb even higher.
“I know I can do this. What can I keep doing to level up?” Gutierrez said.
Gutierrez invested in a heat press machine and set up a crafts corner in his apartment dedicated to making jerseys, which helped him produce two over the summer of 2025.
Now, the production process only takes two days. Not 60.
Gutierrez now wants to create new and unique jerseys that are as authentic as possible utilizing his grown skills and advanced machines.
“The goal now is to challenge myself to make two different jerseys [that] connects to the people, the campus and the city,” Gutierrez said.
In the next five years, Gutierrez would love to think he’s still making jerseys, but maybe for his own kids. He hopes to stay loyal to the Marquette community and be a part of determining what it means to be a Golden Eagle.
This story was written by Ben Ward. He can be reached at benjamin.ward@marquette.edu or on Twitter/X @BenWardMU