COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Which way to the Southeastern Conference?
A Texas-based apparel company, Aggieland Outfitters, recalled a handful of
T-shirts on Tuesday after they were ridiculed online for having some geographic
mistakes.
The maroon shirt has an "SEC" logo emblazoned on a mapped section of
US states, ostensibly representing members of the league. But North Carolina,
which does not have a team in the conference, is included and Missouri is not.
Missouri and Texas A&M are leaving the Big 12 for the SEC this year.
Texas is on the back of the shirt, not the front.
The shirt was produced by Aggieland Outfitters, which has three outlets in
College Station. A&M spokesman Jason Cook said the company is a private
business and not affiliated with the school.
Aggieland Outfitters marketing director Dallas Shipp said only "a few
dozen" shirts were printed and they've been taken off the shelves and the
company's website. He said the original shirt design did not include North
Carolina, but when the artist drew the map, it was added by mistake.
"We would like to apologize for a T-shirt that has come under fire for its
inaccuracies," the company said. "Many members of the media,
especially those connected to other schools in Texas, have insinuated that
Texas A&M made these shirts, and that Texas A&M doesn't know geography.
That's simply not true. Aggieland Outfitters designed the shirt and simply made
a mistake."
