Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 2, 1994 TAG: 9403020040
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: STATE
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: BALTIMORE LENGTH: Short
Jim Speros, owner of the Canadian Football League's new Baltimore franchise, announced Tuesday that his team would be named the "CFL Colts." He said the nickname would likely please backers of the old Baltimore Colts while enabling him to avoid a legal battle with the NFL.
"I did this for the fans of Baltimore," Speros said. "There has been an issue with NFL Properties over the use of the name, and in our minds this seems to clear up any confusion. Our official name is the Baltimore CFL Colts, so there will no misconception of who we are and what league we're playing in."
Although the official name is the CFL Colts, Speros noted, "I can't control what the media calls us."
"I'm sure we'll be known as the Baltimore Colts," he said.
The NFL's Baltimore Colts left town in March 1984 and became the Indianapolis Colts. When Speros first indicated that he wanted to name his team the Colts, he was warned by the NFL that he could face a lawsuit over the moniker.
CFL commissioner Larry Smith, on hand for the news conference, said Speros' final decision should appease the NFL.
"We think we have a compromise that is very positive for the fans of Baltimore," Smith said. "At the same time, we have to live with other people in the business world - namely the National Football League - and we want to make sure we can coexist in harmony with them."
While the name may be the similar to Baltimore's old NFL team, the logo is not. Speros displayed pictures of four possible helmets, all of them featuring the profile of a horse's head against a silver background.
by CNB