"Anchor Down" Almost Gets Vandy A Penalty

((HT: ESPN/SEC Network))

Let's face it...

It was a long night for Vandy football in their Derek Mason debut...

A long lightning delay and torrential rains kept fans out of the stadium, the doors locked, and kickoff pushed back an hour and fifty minutes. Temple took care of business 37-7 and there was even a fat guy TD in the game that ended close to 2AM eastern time.

But the game didn't even start well for the Dores. They had their catch phrase, "Anchor Down," on their backs instead of nicknames- which made for a very cool effect. The refs weren't sold, but they should have left the idea alone.


When was the last time you saw an e-mail shown to an official to wipe out a penalty...???

That was, definintely, a first...

1:30 PM Update:

This from Chuck Dunlap, SEC Director of Communications

"A miscommunication resulted in Vanderbilt wearing jerseys during its football game Thursday night that are not permissible under the NCAA football uniform regulations. Before production of the jerseys, Vanderbilt sought approval of the jersey design from the NCAA, which included the words “Anchor Down” on the back panel. The NCAA responded with written approval of the design as presented and Vanderbilt proceeded with the jersey production, assuming the approval was applicable to the slogan as well as the colors and overall design in the submitted layout."

"NCAA football regulations do not permit the use of slogans on jerseys. Vanderbilt was originally penalized for the jerseys during the game and after being shown the written correspondence, the head referee also interpreted the correspondence to mean the slogan had been approved. Vanderbilt has been notified it cannot wear the slogan on its jersey for future games and has agreed to comply."

Gotta love corporate efficiency.

US Patent Office Cancels Washington Redskins Patents

((HT: WJLA-TV))

How's that one for you...???

On the grounds that the Washington Redskins nickname is of a "disparaging manner," the United States Patent Office has decided to pull the team's patent because of the apparent "offensive nature to Native Americans."

Team owner Daniel Snyder has given the NFL office and Commissioner Roger Goodell the "over my dead body" response in changing the team's nickname (though, he doesn't understand that he could have two separate revenue streams if he played his cards right). And, now, the NFL has gone ahead and taken this ingeniously active maneuver.

Here's the early returns
The team can, obviously, appeal- which they may already be doing after the 2-1 decision. And, here's the decision in full for your reading pleasure...

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office decision canceling Redskins trademarks

Anyone want to print up some Redskins t-shirts with some funny sayings to make a mint in the near future...???

Brother J-Dub... the floor is yours...

Anti-Redskins Nickname Ad Running During NBA Finals

((HT: National Congress of American Indians))

The NCAI wanted to run this ad during the Roman Numeral Classic, but they weren't allowed to...

So, they're doing the next best thing...

Running it during the NBA Finals and the HQ is quite sure that the Washington Redskins won't like it


If Daniel Snyder would only see a change to the nickname as a different revenue stream instead of a roadblock to maintaining the "history" of the franchise, things might be better off.

But the HQ also knows that stubborn people will always be stubborn people.

OSG Prem: FA Rejects Hull City Name Change Request

And, now, it's in the court of Hull City Tigers owner Assem Allam as to what will happen next...

Ben Smith at the BBC, through his Twitter, says 63.5% of FA Council members voted to block changing the name to Hull Tigers. Not as unanimous as I had expected

But Assem Allam, who took charge of the club in in December 2010, has threatened to sell if he is not allowed to change the 110-year-old name. Here's an interview that is all puppy dogs and roses from a few weeks ago about the Allam's time with the club...
((HT: Hull City their own selves))


Contrary to what he says in this clip...


There was a vote earlier this week involving Hull City cardholders where the name change was narrowly approved, but look at the numbers...

2,565: Yes to Hull Tigers with the Allam Family continuing to lead the club

792: I am not too concerned and will continue to support the club either way

9,159: Number of season card holders who did not vote

2,517: No to Hull Tigers

More than almost two times the numbers of card holders DID NOT EVEN VOTE in the process than actual votes were recorded...

That should tell you something about the process...

And Now We Have A Letter From Congress Over The Redskins

((HT: ESPN/Olbermann))

In a letter written by Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Representative Tom Cole (R-Okla.), the complaints are ramping up over the use of the Washington Redskins nickname. Cantwell is chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee and Cole is a senior member of the appropriations committee -- and a member of the Chickasaw Tribe.

Read the letter in full here

Cantwell told the New York Times newspaper the tax-exempt status will be looked at if things don't change...

"You're getting a tax break for educational purposes, but you're still embracing a name that people see as a slur and encouraging it," Cantwell told Emmarie Huetteman of the Times.

More from Huetteman on the Cantwell-Cole letter:

“The National Football League is on the wrong side of history,” they wrote. “It is not appropriate for this multibillion-dollar 501(c)(6) tax-exempt organization to perpetuate and profit from the continued degradation of tribes and Indian people.”

The letter also refers to a recent case, unrelated to the N.F.L., in which the Patent and Trademark Office rejected a trademark application that included the term “redskin” because, the office said, it is a “derogatory slang term.” Ms. Cantwell said Sunday that lawmakers would consider the roles of that office, the Federal Communications Commission and other agencies in urging the team to change its name.

Commissioner Roger Goodell actually said in a recent press conference that 8 out of 10 who were asked thought the Redskins nickname was fine...

The HQ, on the other hand, would love to know the sample identified for this survey... and the Redskins are still the Redskins in all of this. Daniel Snyder, despite all the revenue that can be gained from having two nickname streams, is adamant he is not changing his team's moniker...

Redskins spokesman Tony Wyllie sent out this statement in an e-mail: "With all the important issues Congress has to deal with such as a war in Afghanistan to deficits to health care, don't they have more important issues to worry about than a football team's name? And given the fact that the name of Oklahoma means 'Red People' in Choctaw, this request is a little ironic."

So, yes, he really did go there...

Here's Chris Cooley discussing the idea with KO, who disagrees with 47 on his thoughts...


As do a lot of us in this topic...

Chris Cooley Defends Redskins Nickname

((HT: Olbermann))

Well, okay then...

Here's the segment with Keith...


Yeah...

The HQ is of the opinion that a LOT of people disagree with Cooley...

OSG Prem: Allam Says He's Out In "24 Hours" If Name Change Fails...

((HT: Sky Sports))

Hull City FC owner Assem Allam says that, if the FA doesn't allow for the name change that he is trumpeting something fierce, that he will be more than happy to leave the club "within 24 hours" if he doesn't get his way.

Allam has maintained that changing from Hull City FC Tigers to just Hull Tigers- a long-sought after marketing ploy for Allam that he thinks will increase his marketing potential- is going to be the make or break for him...

Which is silly, but big businessmen are silly with their toys...

The Tigers have been witnessing protests within their stadium by Hull City AFC supporters this season to remind Allam that he would be peeing all over a hundred years of tradition by pulling this stunt...

In an interview today with Sky Sports, where Hull City announced two signings during the transfer window, Allam was still defiant:

"No-one on earth is allowed to question my business decisions - I won't allow it," he told Sky Sports News. "And I'll give you my CV to give you comfort and show you what I have achieved.

"I'm here to save the club and manage the club for the benefit of the community - it will never, ever be the other way around - take it from me.

"But the community can say "go away" and I will go within 24 hours."

When asked what would happen if the FA said he could not change the club's name, Allam said: "The same thing. It's a free country. There are no two ways about it - I have never said something and then gone back on it."

Here's an interview from a month ago Allam gave the BBC about his idea...

Atlanta Sports Talk Station Running Anti-Redskins Nickname Ads

From time to time, the HQ gets a heads-up on things that are just too "off" to be true...

Unless, they are true...

A sports talk station in Atlanta, 790TheZone, has drawn the ire of the ALS community with a completely unfunny work on Steve Gleason in the past and now, they may draw the ire of the National Football League for an ad campaign that the station may have actually allowed to purchase time...

We all know that the Washington NFL franchise is having issues over their nickname- as well they should...

As one of the "official" radio stations of the Atlanta Falcons, 790 runs a lot of Falcons content... the fact that they may be selling spots to the Oneida Nation on the topic won't play well...

From the Oneida about the spot they produced:

”Washington Reverend Graylan Hagler expresses his obligation as a faith leader to oppose the team’s use of a racial epithet. As Senior Minister at Plymouth Congregational United Church of Christ in D.C., Hagler has spoken out against the D.C. team’s name for more than 20 years.

Hagler mobilized more than 60 D.C. faith leaders who sent a letter last week to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and Washington team owner Dan Snyder calling upon the team to change its hurtful mascot.

“It is truly heartening to see religious leaders join the Change the Mascot campaign and recognize that this is more than a civil rights issue, it’s a moral issue,” said Oneida Indian Nation Representative Ray Halbritter. “We thank the more than 60 clergy members who have expressed their united opposition to the derogatory R-word, and we hope that their courageous actions will inspire others across the country to do the same.”

The ad can be listened to hyah...

If the spot is being covered as a news item, that's one thing...
If the Oneida bought ad space, that's another and 790 just can't get out of their own way...

Here's part of the past discussions with the team, the owner, and the nickname in the past few months...
((HT: The Oneida/ESPN))

OSG Prem: How Not To Win Friends And Influence People At Hull City

((HT: NBCSN))

Hull City owner Assem Allam bought the team in 2010 and is now deciding whether or not he wants to re-brand the club to be only the "Hull Tigers."

That hasn't gone over well with the fans as they openly protest at home games now...
Like last week...


The rallying cry has been "City til we die..." and Allam is now telling the fans who feel that way to, well, go ahead...

Allam told the Independent newspaper's Richard Rae that he wouldn't put another pound into the club if he felt the fans weren't with him and his policies...

"They can die as soon as they want, as long as they leave the club for the majority who just want to watch good football."

"I'm a simple man. Do they want me to stay? If it's 'No thank you', fine, in 24 hours the club is for sale, I do not put in one more pound and hopefully things happen quickly."

Manager Steve Bruce is going to have a chat with his owner about his comments, according to the Independent's Rae:

"...However I’ve got to have a conversation with him because I don’t think he quite understands what it means to the supporters in the history and tradition.

“All he thinks about is going forward and that the brand would be better. That’s his opinion, but obviously there’s thousands who don’t share it, and I understand them because there’s no one more of a traditionalist than me. But we can’t let it fester because when things aren’t going so well it creates an atmosphere, which none of us want.”

So, what happens first time out after the new round of furor...
HCAFC beats Liverpool...


Knowing Allam, after the meeting, Bruce will be on the clock, too...

Oneida Nation Wants Meeting With All 32 NFL Owners

((HT: WUSA-TV))

The Oneida nation leaders met with the National Football League in New York City to discuss the state of the Washington Redskins nickname and their feelings on it...

"Their feelings on it" are that Redskins owner Daniel Snyder should receive some kind of sanction if he continues to use the nickname in future seasons. The Oneida have even invited Commissioner Roger Goodell and Snyder to Oneida homeland.

Here's coverage of the meeting...
 

"We met at the request of Ray Halbritter of the Oneida Nation," the NFL said in a statement. "We listened and respectfully discussed the views of Mr. Halbritter, Oneida Nation Wolf Clan Representative Keller George and their colleagues as well as the sharply differing views of many other Native Americans and fans in general. The meeting was part of an ongoing dialogue to facilitate listening and learning, consistent with the commissioner's comments earlier this year."
But... the Bravehearts...??? Really...???