It's all about the marketing

[Marcus]

Just to let you know these guys' heads are really at, and what they realy care about. It ain't about winning. Instead, it's all about money.

Spending the big bucks

One man, season ticket-holder Holly Frost, spent thousands of dollars for a full-page ad in last Sunday's Chronicle to beseech the Texans to select Young with the top pick in Saturday's NFL draft. He admonished them for "not taking calculated risks to get much better" and for taking "the easy way out" with Southern California running back Reggie Bush, whom conventional wisdom considers the best offensive prospect in this year's draft.

Jim McIngvale, owner of Gallery Furniture and one of the Texans' most prominent corporate sponsors, hasn't written in, but he's not a bit bashful about sharing his thoughts. A former Longhorn who was at the Rose Bowl for the BCS championship game, McIngvale said he doesn't know Frost but noted they're kindred spirits. McIngvale is in the process of buying a two-page ad to run in Thursday's Chronicle.

McIngvale speaks as both a fan and a corporate sponsor. Asked if the Texans' choosing Bush will impact his future business relationship with the team, he replied: "It darn sure ain't going to help it. I'm a marketing guy. I think Vince would be over the top for them. I don't want to go through another year like last year when I basically threw my money away.

"I'm obligated for a couple more years, and I'm big on fulfilling my commitment. But ongoing I've got to take a look at it because regardless of the football implications, (drafting Young) would at least double the value of my sponsorship overnight."

[aj.]

I think the only surprise in that article is that Holly is male.

Looks like the Gallery Furniture Gate will be the "Space Available" Gate next year. I really couldn't care less about Mac and his antics. I'm sure McNair is thrilled.

[Marcus]

Originally Posted by aj.

I think the only surprise in that article is that Holly is male.

Looks like the Gallery Furniture Gate will be the "Space Available" Gate next year. I really couldn't care less about Mac and his antics. I'm sure McNair is thrilled.

I'm sure he is. Nothing like giving the man a legitimate excuse to dig in his heels. And yeah, it's about what you'd expect from a dude named "Holly".

[Mike Kerns]

After months of deliberation, decision day is near for the Texans. And in making closing arguments, some fans are willing to spend

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/...t/3820173.html

By DALE ROBERTSON

VINCE Young's provenance, personality and big-game performances have the Texans in a pickle. While they don't seem to think the Houston-born-and-reared quarterback of the national champion Texas Longhorns is the right fit as they attempt to recover from a 2-14 season, there are those in the community who disagree.

Lots of them, apparently.

One man, season ticket-holder Holly Frost, spent thousands of dollars for a full-page ad in last Sunday's Chronicle to beseech the Texans to select Young with the top pick in Saturday's NFL draft. He admonished them for "not taking calculated risks to get much better" and for taking "the easy way out" with Southern California running back Reggie Bush, whom conventional wisdom considers the best offensive prospect in this year's draft.

"I've been looking at players coming out (of college) for 20 years trying to decide which ones are going to make it," said Frost, 61, who founded Texas Memory Systems, a company specializing in computer memory storage, 27 years ago. "As near as I can tell, Vince Young looks like the best player with the biggest potential I've ever seen. From my humble point of view, it's a no-brainer.

"Every time I see Vince or hear him speak, I say to myself, 'Damn, that's a cool dude.' I like what he says and how humbly he carries himself."

In the ad, Frost also asked his fellow fans to contact the Texans through their fan feedback Web site and tell the team they believe the former Madison High School star should start his NFL career in Houston. The Texans say more than
300 Young advocates have responded. A spokesperson said every e-mail or fax has been, or will be, individually answered.

"We respect all our fans' opinions, and we sincerely appreciate that they care enough about the Houston Texans to voice them," said Tony Wyllie, the team's vice president, of communications. "That's why we offer (fanfeedback@ houstontexans.com). We want to know what they're thinking."

Jim McIngvale, owner of Gallery Furniture and one of the Texans' most prominent corporate sponsors, hasn't written in, but he's not a bit bashful about sharing his thoughts. A former Longhorn who was at the Rose Bowl for the BCS championship game, McIngvale said he doesn't know Frost but noted they're kindred spirits. McIngvale is in the process of buying a two-page ad to run in Thursday's Chronicle.

"My point of view on Vince is real simple," said the man known as "Mattress Mack." "I saw what he did against USC, and for me, it's kind of like the gospel at church last Sunday. When Thomas stuck his hand on Jesus' side, he believed. Well, I believe in Vince."

McIngvale and his wife, Linda, also own Westside Tennis Club and were responsible for bringing the ATP Tour back to Houston six years ago. He compared Young to tennis champion Pete Sampras.

"Vince is the Pete Sampras of football," he said. "He steps up in the big moments. And he's a Houston kid on top of that. How do you pass him up?"


The view from I-45
McIngvale was speaking from his customary post at the front desk of his store on Interstate 45, where a replay of Texas' dramatic win over Bush and the Trojans can be seen repeating on the sea of TVs for sale. Young scored the winning touchdown on a fourth-down keeper in the final moments, having led the Longhorns back from 12 points behind with six minutes to play.


"I'm watching No. 10 right now," McIngvale said. "He just keeps getting better. They all tell me Reggie Bush is so great. USC's got 12 guys going to go play in the pros. Texas has five. Tell me who made his team better. Hello?"

Said Frost, whose son attended UT: "As soon as Vince got the ball in the fourth quarter, you felt, 'We've got it made. Vince has the football.' "

A devotee of the Dallas Cowboys who openly disdained the Oilers before the Texans' first game in 2002, Frost was speaking only as a fan when he bought his ad. He concedes he has renewed his season tickets and that if the Texans don't take Young, "I'll just shake my head and have a bad opinion of them. Sure, I'll still go the games."

Frost is adamant that he wasn't seeking publicity. His company wasn't mentioned in the ad, nor did he use his full last name in the letter.

"I've lived in Texas since the 1950s," he said. "I'm an entrepreneur. I've made some money over the years, and I'm just trying to have a positive impact. The one thing I've learned in business is that you try to hire people who make good decisions. Vince Young looks like he makes good decisions. You read that Vince can't do this or he can't do that, and wait until he sees an NFL linebacker. But you can say that about anybody coming out of college."

When he agreed to buy his tickets for next year, Frost sent the same letter to the Texans about Young that later appeared in the ad. After it garnered no response — "They probably just tossed it away," he said — he contacted the Chronicle and put his money where he mouth was.

"The Texans are saying, 'We'll draft Bush no matter what happens. People can't argue with our decision,' " he said. "Well, yes, you can argue, and I did with my ad."


Better return wanted
McIngvale speaks as both a fan and a corporate sponsor. Asked if the Texans' choosing Bush will impact his future business relationship with the team, he replied: "It darn sure ain't going to help it. I'm a marketing guy. I think Vince would be over the top for them. I don't want to go through another year like last year when I basically threw my money away.


"I'm obligated for a couple more years, and I'm big on fulfilling my commitment. But ongoing I've got to take a look at it because regardless of the football implications, (drafting Young) would at least double the value of my sponsorship overnight."

Told how McIngvale felt, Frost said: "Good for him."

[texman8]

bye,bye, Mattress Mac....You've been a good guy for the community....I guess Texans will survive.

[Mike Kerns]

And I remember a year ago calling Mac a "Class Guy" for offering to pay the fine Stern threw at Jeff Van Gundy...

People can still surprise you.

[Kaiser Toro]

So a sponsor makes a business decision given his experience in his vertical and seeing how the market has reacted to VY and we are killing him for it? Sounds good to me.

By the way Sports Illustarted will have VY on its cover for the 3rd time in 5 months. I would venture to guess that SI sees that VY moves copies, that is called demand and that is what this Texan's sponsor and business man see.

Lock him up and throw away the key.

[thunderkyss]

Originally Posted by Frak The Jags

And I remember a year ago calling Mac a "Class Guy" for offering to pay the fine Stern threw at Jeff Van Gundy...

People can still surprise you.

I bet that had nothing to do with Marketing......... he was just trying to do the right thing.

[thunderkyss]

Originally Posted by Kaiser Toro

So a sponsor makes a business decision given his experience in his vertical and seeing how the market has reacted to VY and we are killing him for it? Sounds good to me.

By the way Sports Illustarted will have VY on its cover for the 3rd time in 5 months. I would venture to guess that SI sees that VY moves copies, that is called demand and that is what this Texan's sponsor and business man see.

Lock him up and throw away the key.

those issues are obviously for distribution in a 120 mile radius of Houston and Austin........... surely that is not the issue being distributed in New York or LA.

[Kaiser Toro]

Originally Posted by thunderkyss

those issues are obviously for distribution in a 120 mile radius of Houston and Austin........... surely that is not the issue being distributed in New York or LA.

And why would that be? The US market has decided that they love the Texas brand as of late and that is due to VY. Although Lil' John may have helped a bit as well pushing the brand. Yayahhhhhhhh! Moreover, in my opinion it would be to costly to put out a weekly edition with regional covers.

http://money.cnn.com/2006/01/04/comm...biz/sportsbiz/

And Texas' financial might doesn't even factor in the benefits it gets from being one of the top schools in terms of license merchandise sales, much of which is not specifically football related. The Collegiate Licensing Company, which handles brand management and development for about 200 major colleges, puts Texas as No. 1 in terms of licensed merchandise sales, although the service does not have some top schools including USC, Ohio State and UCLA as clients.

[the wonger need food]

The Texans will lose more fans after this draft, that's almost a given. And if the Cowboys somehow move up to grab Vince they'll lose even more. It's too bad the guy didn't stay for his senior year or he would almost certainly be in a Texan's uniform for 2007.

[Wharton]

Originally Posted by Marcus

I'm sure he is. Nothing like giving the man a legitimate excuse to dig in his heels. And yeah, it's about what you'd expect from a dude named "Holly".

this is what my grandmother would call rude. The whole Bush/Young debate has sunk pretty low in my books. Making fun of a man's name is awfully petty if you ask me.

For the most part, I've been staying out of the debate because, frankly, nothing new was being added. It was the same old, tired, information being written over and over again. But, apparently, the debate has gotten quite personal. Don't we all have better uses for our time?

[TEXANRED]

Ok Jimmy, you wanna pull that kinda bunk I can do the same. You don't want to sponcer the Texans cause they don't draft your golden boy and I will never ever shop at Gallery again, and encourage all Texan fans to do the same. Gallery really isn't all that cheap anymore anyhow. The only reason I even go there is cause they are Houston based.

I will start shopping with the new Mattress Mack. I can't think of his name. He is from La and had the wharehouse that he housed all the Katrina people and has the commercial with the kids, smiles to much and has those crazy glossed over eyes. He is Houston based. I will be more than happy to go somewhere else. I hate getting pressured by the salesmen anyway.

Jim is not all powerfull. He is just a mortal man who has to much money and think people care about what he has to say.

[tex]

[quote=aj.]I think the only surprise in that article is that Holly is male.{quote]

Man you got that right,I was like who is this woman?Oh never mind.

[Chicagotexan1]

Originally Posted by Marcus

I'm sure he is. Nothing like giving the man a legitimate excuse to dig in his heels. And yeah, it's about what you'd expect from a dude named "Holly".

Matress Mac, stick to being the Cal Worthington of furniture. I'm getting sick of people wanting to take the favorite player available over the best player available. What a foolish mentality.

[thunderkyss]

Originally Posted by Kaiser Toro

And why would that be? The US market has decided that they love the Texas brand as of late and that is due to VY. Although Lil' John may have helped a bit as well pushing the brand. Yayahhhhhhhh! Moreover, in my opinion it would be to costly to put out a weekly edition with regional covers.

http://money.cnn.com/2006/01/04/comm...biz/sportsbiz/

And Texas' financial might doesn't even factor in the benefits it gets from being one of the top schools in terms of license merchandise sales, much of which is not specifically football related. The Collegiate Licensing Company, which handles brand management and development for about 200 major colleges, puts Texas as No. 1 in terms of licensed merchandise sales, although the service does not have some top schools including USC, Ohio State and UCLA as clients.

So sorry, I forgot

It just seemed so obvious to me, but........ then again, it should.

[HJam72]

Originally Posted by Wharton

this is what my grandmother would call rude. The whole Bush/Young debate has sunk pretty low in my books. Making fun of a man's name is awfully petty if you ask me.

For the most part, I've been staying out of the debate because, frankly, nothing new was being added. It was the same old, tired, information being written over and over again. But, apparently, the debate has gotten quite personal. Don't we all have better uses for our time?

Wonder how old David Carr feels about Mattress Mack and all his VY hubbub. Too mean that seems very rude. Everybody knows that taking him would mean the evetually end of Carrs career in Houston.

edit: Don't you think Mack is kind of a stupid name?

[infantrycak]

OK folks--this thread was heading astray. Everyone back to their corners, keep it clean--no insults, no circumventing the auto-censor, stay on topic, etc. Thanks.

[Kaiser Toro]

Originally Posted by thunderkyss

So sorry, I forgot

It just seemed so obvious to me, but........ then again, it should.

I would respond in kind but I do not understand the sarcasm nor where its author intended it to start and end.

[dtran04]

From what I hear about Mattress Mac and his dealings with the Westside Tennis Club (which he owns), he isn't highly regarded at all by the people. I'll take the Hilton Furniture guy over him. At least he shows his support to the Rockets by coming to every game.