"Saturdays At The U" Celebrates Tiger Football
July 22, 2010
For the third consecutive year, Towson University is promoting "Saturdays at the U" as its football season advertising campaign.
The campaign serves to inform fans that Tiger football is more than just a 60-minute football game.
"Saturdays at the U" is a campaign that was developed by the Leffler Agency, a Baltimore-based creative advertising, branding and public relations agency.
"We are closely targeting the Towson and Baltimore County areas with our advertising this year," says Rachel Crawford, Account Executive at the Leffler Agency. "Our focus is to appeal to the average adult, who is looking for something fun to do. We are also reaching out to families who are looking for an affordable and enjoyable outing like the one that Tiger football provides."
"Saturdays at the U" is the Tigers' rallying cry to the entire Baltimore metropolitan area, from students to alumni, neighbors to newcomers, to support the Tigers' football program as they enter the 2010 season.
Bob Leffler, the Founder and President of the Leffler Agency, adds, "'Our 'Saturdays at the U' campaign is all about a great day of the total college football experience in a very comfortable facility. Unitas Stadium ('the U') and Towson Tiger football provide a wholesome, fun atmosphere for all of the greater Baltimore area to enjoy. Our campaign seeks to communicate to an expanded customer base beyond the basic sports fan groups."
Seton Hall Athletics Announces Agreement with The Leffler Agency
July 22, 2010
Director of athletics Joe Quinlan announced an agreement between Seton Hall Athletics and the Leffler Agency on Wednesday to become the Pirates' agency of record.
"The Leffler Agency brings a wealth of experience in both intercollegiate and professional sports that will benefit our program," Quinlan said. "We are pleased to partner with them as we look to expand our reach in the New Jersey sports community."
UB listening for conference calls
May 31, 2010
The landscape of collegiate athletics is potentially in for a seismic shift caused by conference expansion.
Talk of expansion and potentially high-stakes musical chairs began in December when the Big Ten Conference announced it would begin a 12-18 month evaluation on the merits of adding additional teams. The Big Ten currently has 11 teams and could expand to as many as 16.
Why all this talk about expansion? Follow the money, said Tom McElroy, former senior associate commissioner of the Big East and a graduate of St. Bonaventure.
"Membership in varying leagues are pressing conference offices to make more money," said McElroy, now senior vice president/sports division of the Leffler Agency, a sports and entertainment advertising agency. "The cost of business is going up for all of us. If you're able to sit back and take a long-term view of where college athletics has come it's almost like an evolutionary thing. If you apply simple laws of economics and marketplace, it makes sense of what's happening: We're looking for a bigger piece of the pie."
2010 Preakness Logo - WBAL-TV
May 13, 2010
Check out the segment on WBAL-TV detailing the creation of the Preakness Stakes logo.
Baltimore Hockey History: The Last Baltimore Hockey Team....For Now
May 12, 2010
Two years after the Skipjacks left for Portland, Maine; Bob Teck and Alan Gertner thought it would be time to bring some kind of hockey back to the area, because they had thought it was for the best. These two pump millions of dollars to get the Bandits off the ground. They also had the backing of the Disney Corporation, who designed the raccoon logo and jerseys that were worn on-ice (As an aside, anyone with a lead on where to get one of these jerseys-- let me know). With that kind of clout and the mentality that they would be able to provide a good atmosphere for the fans, there was a positive vibe for the team to come through the struggles and actually make Baltimore more than a hockey footnote.
The ideology was superb to start. Teck said that with over 30 area high schools having teams and kids playing in the streets, it was the right time in order to expand the landscape of popularity. The ownership team learned, also, from the mistakes of the past. An article done by current NFL Network contributer Jason LaCanfora about the new team showed what the Bandits team had learned from what the Skipjacks could not.
The Baltimore Bandits will market extensively and promote the sport. The Skipjacks did little in those areas to boost the team. Bob Leffler, whose ad agency handled the Skipjacks, now works for the Bandits. He said the new ownership is consumed with making hockey work.
"Gertec is putting together a massive marketing campaign," Leffler said. "They are dedicated to spending $1 million to advertising. The last time we had that kind of financial support was with the Blast [of the Major Indoor Soccer League] in the mid-'80s. They were drawing 11,000 fans a game then."
Bandits merchandise has been in stores since mid-July, the team already has begun advertising on Orioles radio broadcasts and it is negotiating with three local radio stations for broadcast rights. It will focus its campaign on television and billboard advertising in the coming months.