10 serious reasons to be excited about A&T footbal

[Bornthrilla]

You might want to look into the legal ramifications of using the phrase "12th man" on any T-shirts. I know Texas A&M and the Seattle Seahawks had a big court battle over that issue last year. I think A&M won.

[Bornthrilla]

Seattle-Texas tug-of-war puts 12th Man in courtroom

SEAN ROBINSON; The News Tribune
Published: February 1st, 2006 02:30 AM



The Aggies are suing, the Seahawks aren’t talking and a Texas judge is about to hear arguments in a lawsuit filed by his alma mater.
The questions burn. The legal arguments consume.

Plaintiff: Texas A&M University, proud holder of the trademarked phrase “The 12th Man.” Defendant: the Seattle Sea-hawks, and little blue towels labeled with the number 12, too flimsy to sop a spilled beer.

Venue: 85th District Court, Brazos County, Texas. Judge: J.D. Langley, an A&M graduate.

The Aggies scored first, gaining Langley’s approval to hear arguments in the case, starting Thursday. The university will seek a temporary restraining order against the NFL team.

The university wants the Seahawks to stop selling trinkets that feature the sacred words. The legal battle, amplified by Super Bowl hype, has provoked online dust-ups among Seattle and Texas supporters. Sports columnists, starved for fresh angles, are fueling the trash talk.

“The entire state of Texas is under attack from the Pacific Northwest, where a trademark flap involving an obscure Seattle football team now has the people of Washington state whipped into a venti-cappuccino-size froth,” wrote Bud Kennedy of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Steve Moore, chief marketing officer for Texas A&M, says the case is far from frivolous.

“It’s really about the sanctity of the trademark,” he said. “If we didn’t think we were very right on this, we wouldn’t have gone this far.”

Moore said two other National Football League teams, the Chicago Bears and Buffalo Bills, quickly stopped using the 12th Man phrase when the school brought the trademark status to their attention.

In Detroit, where the Seahawks are preparing for Super Bowl XL, team chief executive Tod Leiweke said the franchise’s lawyers just received copies of the legal filings, and declined comment.

The Aggies say their use of the phrase dates back to 1922, when a spectator at a game supposedly suited up for the short-handed football team.

For what it’s worth, the trademark is official: Records from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Web site show Texas A&M registered it in 1990 and again in 1996, for “entertainment services” and conducting “intercollegiate athletic events.”

The history of sports trademark wars includes several high-profile examples, one involving another Seattle team.

NBA coach Pat Riley trademarked the term “threepeat” back in the 1980s, when his Los Angeles Lakers tried (and failed) to win three straight league titles. A few years later, when Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls won three championships in a row, Riley took a cut of the merchandising cash for “threepeat” trinkets.

In 1995, when the Seattle Mariners clawed their way to an improbable postseason run, their buzzword was “Refuse to Lose,” a slogan later copyrighted by college basketball coach John Calipari. Archived reports from the Boston Globe say Calipari earned royalties from merchandise that contained the slogan, including Mariners T-shirts.

Trademark lawsuits revolve around money, and plaintiffs and defendants fight to protect their commercial interests.

The legal standard in trademark cases often hinges on the phrase “likelihood of confusion.” In the A&M-Seahawk case, the university might be forced to provide evidence showing that the Seahawks’ use of the phrase could confuse consumers who don’t know the difference between Seahawk and Aggie merchandise.

Another Texas columnist, Kevin Blackistone of the Dallas Morning News, scoffed at that idea in a column published Jan. 31.

“Who is going to confuse the Sea-hawks’ 12th man cry with A&M’s 12th Man Foundation? No one,” he wrote.

The argument is already echoing in the South Sound. Jeff Chandler, co-owner of the Ram restaurant chain, revised a Super Bowl promotional campaign after hearing of the concerns from Texas.

Last week, Chandler was pushing a 12th Man contest at the Ram on the restaurant’s Web site. He said he had the blessing of the Seahawk franchise, but he got a call from a Texas reporter.

“He said, ‘Don’t you know that’s a protected trademark?’” Chandler said. “I called the Seahawks and told them. They had no idea what was going on.”

Chandler said he has altered the wording of the promotional campaign a bit to avoid additional problems.

In Detroit, one Seahawk said the tangle was dividing his loyalties. Defensive tackle Rocky Bernard played at A&M in his college days.

“I love both organizations,” he said. “I love A&M. I love the Seahawks. I just hope they get it all worked out. … I guess (Texas A&M) started it, but every stadium should have a 12th Man.”

Sean Robinson: 253-597-8486

[e-mail] Staff writer Mike Sando contributed to this report.

[DOOMS]

Let me get this straight.

1. Our head football coach came from Texas A&M
2. Our mascot is the Aggies, same as Texas A&M
3. We want to use the exact same 12th man slogan that Texas A&M has trademarked

What in the hell are y'all thinking?!?!? Do we want to be the new very first case of classic trademark violation law students read about in their class on trademarks? We clearly have or should have knowledge of the existence of the trademark and we would be using it in the exact same realm.

Stop. Not now but right now. Cut up the shirts and burn the screen. Seriously. Just run it by University Counsel.

[aggiemarketingman]

DULY NOTED !!! Coach Fobbs had nothing to do with that..

[Bornthrilla]

Here's what Fobbs said about this subject in his exclusive interview with bluedeathvalley.com:


Coaching at Texas A&M the last couple of years, you’ve had the privilege of being around some of the most passionate fans in all of sports. Do you envision that type of fan culture developing here to Greensboro?

Fobbs: “I certainly hope so. The symbol of the 12th Man at College Station is huge. The kids in the student body feel just as much a part of the football team as the players on the team. As coaches, we wanted the students to feel as if they were apart of the team and close to it. We have an award called the M.T.X.E, which stands for mental toughness, extra effort. Any time our players went out and exemplified that, we would reward them with the M.T.X.E. And there were many times when we would reward our home fans with the M.T.X.E – we would put it up on the scoreboard. That’s because they were great when our opponents had the ball. We played Clemson for the first time ever in College Station two years ago they couldn’t even hear. They used up all their timeouts in the first half because our fans were so loud every time they had the ball. That’s why our fans were known as the 12th Man.”



Is that type of passion something you can put in a bottle and ship to Greensboro or is that something fans are just born with? Do you think it will be possible to someday make the atmosphere here at Aggie Stadium similar to what you witnessed at Kyle Field?

Fobbs: “You’d probably have to identify it a different way because of the stamp that (Texas A&M) has already placed on it. Everybody has tried to (copy) it but A&M is known for being the home of the 12th Man. You know, they have pep rallies before the games on Friday night and there are 40,000 people in the stands. I’m not saying here in Greensboro or North Carolina it’s not like that, but in Texas it’s a way of life. If you don’t play football, there’s something wrong with you. That’s just the culture of that place. But at A&M it was a little something special and the students took pride in it because they felt like they were doing their part to help the team win. When the team won, the town won.”

[Uncle AJ]

#42 Robert Russell Photos (3)... Landry, L B, HS Roster 2006 Mississippi - SO2005 Mississippi - FR2004 Landry, L B, HS - SR

Player Alerts:
Add to My HotList™ Player's Feed


Robert Russell Scout.com Headlines:
Robert Russell
Sophomore will learn all three LB slots
-by OMSpirit.com Aug 11, 2006
Linebackers breakdown
Saunders seeing 'flashes' of what he's looking for
-by OMSpirit.com Apr 16, 2006
Wednesday spring practice update
Rebs practice in shells for first time
-by OMSpirit.com Mar 8, 2006
Practice Report: Friday walk-through
Last-minute tidbits from 45-minute walk-through pracice
-by OMSpirit.com Sep 23, 2005
Russell ready to fill Willis' shoes
The true frosh LB will make his first start against Wyoming
-by OMSpirit.com Sep 23, 2005
Practice Report: Thursday
Rebs put finishing (almost) touches on preparations for Wyoming
-by OMSpirit.com Sep 22, 2005
Monday Press Conference
Coach O dwells on positives
-by OMSpirit.com Sep 19, 2005
Game Depth Chart
A look at who is likely to play
-by OMSpirit.com Sep 5, 2005
Practice Report: Tuesday afternoon
Rebs return to practice after two days off
-by OMSpirit.com Aug 23, 2005
Practice Report: Thursday
A day of corrections and reflections
-by OMSpirit.com Aug 18, 2005
1-10 11-20 >>



Injury News:

There are no Injury News items for display.

Site Search:
Stories containing Robert Russell
Forum Posts containing Robert Russell

Media Center:

No Matches This Player.

Ht: 6-0 Wt: 210 40: 4.7
Position: LB
Date of Birth: 9/13/1987
Year: Class of 2005
High School: Landry, L B, HS
(New Orleans, LA)
College: Mississippi



2005 Scout.com HS Football Rankings (full list):
Pos: LB Pos Rank: NR Pos Rating:

Biography:
Robert was named District 3A MVP and Metro MVP for the 2004 campaign.

He collected 168 tackles and 11 sacks for the year.

Had 120 tackles and 5 sacks as a junior. Quick linebacker that makes plays from sideline to sideline.



Scout.com Combine Results (full list):

MSL Combine (full list):
Combine Location: New Orleans
Height: 5-11
Weight: 200
40-Yard Dash: 4.48
Short Shuttle: 4.86
Vertical Jump: 32.0"
Figure 8: 8.59
Long Jump: 8-1
Angle Drive: 12.40
Bench Reps: 14
[Key]

[@ProfBellamy]

I don't have 10 things right now to be excited about.

but.

1) www.angelcityclassic.com/ (I guess its a deal...time to go out to LA)

[Bornthrilla]

Aggiemarketingman, what are the single game ticket prices going to be this year?

Before you answer, please remember that we went 0-11 last year and averaged about 2 thousand people for the last two home games.

[aggiemarketingman]

Single game $20
Single game (RESERVED) $25

*** Questions, concerns, comments... Ticket ofice # 334.7749

[Aggie Monster]

What's Homecoming pricing?

[Bornthrilla]

Does the ticket director determine the prices for single game tickets? Isn't that the job of a senior athletic department official?

Does anyone care that Aggie Stadium was 85 percent empty during the final two games of 2006?

[bluehaze]

admin said:

Does the ticket director determine the prices for single game tickets? Isn't that the job of a senior athletic department official?

Does anyone care that Aggie Stadium was 85 percent empty during the final two games of 2006?

I don't think the prices of the tickets had anything to do with the attendance. It was the quality of the play.

They could've PAID people $10 a piece and you probably would've gotten the same crowd.

[Bornthrilla]

The ticket prices didn't help.

We need to come up with some enticing group packages and mini-plans this season. Lets offer a way where someone a purchase a number of tickets and have a meal voucher for the concession stand included.

[DOOMS]

...unless we win a few games and do so pretty convincingly. Then it won't matter because people will see last year (and the two years prior) as an aberration.

[Maxell]

Just win, baby!