4B - The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, September 6, 1995
Company trying to take
advantage of Moeller caper
saw a disturbing sign
yesterday on campus. There
at a kiosk on neon yellow paper
was an advertisement for an audio
cassette and a transcript. This is no
ordinary cassette or transcript,
though.
It seems as if some sick people
are trying to make a profit off of
an event that nearly destroyed a
former Michigan football coach's
life. Team
Solutions, a
Royal Oak,
Mich.
business, is
selling copies
of these items,
trying to make
a few bucks
on the
incident that
finished Gary
Moeller's 24-
year career at
.. .
ANTOINE
plTTS
Pitts
Stop
Cincinnati Bengals.
Moeller returned to the area
when the Bengals played the
Detroit Lions in a preseason
contest Aug. 10 at the Pontiac
Silverdome.
Moeller is coaching tight ends
- including former Wolverine
Tony McGee - on coach Dave
Shula's staff. During games, he sits
in the press box and assists the
offensive coordinator in making
substitutions.
The trip to the Detroit area
marked the first time that Moeller
addressed anyone from the local
media since the April 30 incident at
the Excalibur Restaurant. He held a
press conference Aug. 9 and
answered questions on everything
but his past.
The only thing he would say
about longtime friend and current
coach Lloyd Carr and the
Wolverines is, "We've got to have
Michigan in the Rose Bowl."
Following the game the next
night, I talked to Moeller as we
walked from the press box to the
lockerroom. I couldn't recall a
time in recent years at Michigan
when Moeller smiled and looked
like he really relished what he was
doing.
"I've enjoyed it," Moeller said
of his time with the Bengals. "The
hardest adjustment is in
terminology."
Moeller waved to fans that
called his name and grinned from
Michigan.
Another disturbing fact is that
there has been significant interest in
the items. Advertisements in
college football publications across
the nation have received quite a
response according to Team
Solutions.
' The real fact of the matter is that
r this is a dead issue. Moeller does
FIL..not talk about his firing from
FILE PHOTO/Daily Michigan publicly. He never denied
anything that happened. His
A Royal Oak, Mich. company is trying to make money on last spring's arrest of then Michigan football coach thoughts have turned to his new job
Gary Moeller. Team Solutions is offering consumers copies of the 40-page arrest report and audio cassette. as an assistant coach with the
How to
han
full
coursel(
ilea
)ad.
Kipling "Strength" backpack in black,
hot brown, red or spruce, $69.
cheek to cheek, looking like he
really liked what he was doing.
It definitely seems that Moeller
has put the past behind him. He
talked about learning everything he
could about the NFL - he really
looks forward to spending a long
time in the league. Returning to
college is not in the current plans.
What happened last spring
doesn't seem to be consuming his
thoughts. Other people just can't
seem to forget, though.
A representative from Team
Solutions said they are offering
the tape and transcript as a public
service. It seems the only service
they are providing is to their
pocketbooks. These same
documents are available to anyone
via the Freedom of Information
Act.
In the day and age when
souvenir salesmen set up outside
the Los Angeles County Criminal
Courts Building to hawk
merchandise on the O.J. Simpson
trial, this kind of thing should not
be a surprise.
Team Solutions steps way out of
bounds in trying to capitalize on
Moeller. You have to wonder if
they have any t-shirts, bumper
stickers, etc. that they are about to
market. That would really be taking
one for the "team" all right.
Let's forget about this issue
folks. Let it rest in peace.
- CommentsforAntoinePitts can be
directed to apitts@umich.edu.
'M' garb
dominates
Niketown
By Nicholas . Cotsonik
Daily Sports Writer
CHICAGO - The team sports
section at Niketown in Chicago dis-
plays a who's who list in collegiate
athletics. The Dukes, Florida States
and Colorados ofthe world each have
their own little set-up, but they can't
compare to Nike's new kid on the
block.
Michigan has its own wall.
"(The Wolverines) are our biggest
sellers," said Niketown manager Steve
Kichakawa. Wandering through the
shoe company's commercial complex,
fans can choose from a wide assort-
ment of Michigan apparel. There are
T-shirts, hats, sweatshirts and even
maize and blue shoes.
The Wolverines are big business
to Nike and, since the company struck
a $7 million deal with a university last
spring, sales have been strong.
"For every two Seminole or Buf-
falo hats we sell, we sell three Michi-
gan ones," Kichakawa said. "(The
Wolverines) are definitely popular.
Maybe it's because we're close (geo-
graphically)."
Sometimes, it's even simpler than
that. "I just like the colors," said Rob
Dowd, 12, of Skokie, Ill. "The 'M' is
pretty cool too."
Forwhatever reason, Michigan
Avenue and, of course, Ann Arbor is
flooded with Wolverine parapherna-
lia donning "Swooshes." But Nike
isn't the only party benefiting from
the partnership.
Michigan's 22 teams receive
workout clothes, uniforms, shoes and
other accessories worth a total of $1
million a year for seven years. In
addition, the University receives more
money for women's athletic scholar-
ships and a sports writing fellowship
has been added.
The deal was cut when Michigan
Athletic Director Joe Roberson got
fed up with his coaches doing their
own endorsement deals with sporting
goods manufacturers. Roberson fig-
ured that if the school's reputation
was to be used for marketing, the
University, not the coaches, should
reap the rewards.
But not everyone is cheering about
the little logo on the left breast of
Michigan's football players. "The re-
markable thing about this is that the
crass commerciality doesn't seem to
bother people any more," said David
Ross, a professor of Classical Studies
at the University.
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