Marketplace Roundup

Owens' New Cereal, "TO's," Expected In High Demand

Bills WR Terrell Owens' new cereal, "TO's," was officially unveiled Thursday, and PLB Sports President Ty Ballou said, "We have the right athlete and the right marketplace." Ballou: "T.O. certainly does a very good job of marketing himself, and it was a good fit." New York-based grocery store chain Tops Markets CEO Frank Curci added, "We expect to see very high demand for TO's. And in fact, we've sold over 11,000 boxes so far, and he hasn't caught his first touchdown pass." In Buffalo, Mark Gaughan notes PLB Sports "produces numerous other athlete-related regional products," like Ben Roethlisberger beef jerky in Pittsburgh for the Steelers QB, Ed McCaffrey mustard in Denver for the former Broncos WR, and Dustin Pedroia salsa in Boston for the Red Sox 2B (BUFFALO NEWS, 7/31).

WHAT'S YOUR SHOE SIZE? In Tennessee, Mike Griffith reports while it is "not a lock that a high schooler playing for a Nike AAU-sponsored team will choose a Nike school, the influence shoe companies play in recruiting has been called into question more than once." Univ. of Tennessee men's basketball coach Bruce Pearl "admits the shoes a high-profile prospect wears could be foretelling." Pearl: "When we look at that, unfortunately, it has become a part of the equation, no question. adidas, Nike and Reebok, those three shoe companies dominate the basketball shoe industry and invest in AAU basketball" (Knoxville NEWS SENTINEL, 7/31).

CAN'T FIGHT LEFEVOUR: ESPN.com's Graham Watson reported a new 30-by-60-foot billboard of Central Michigan Univ. QB Dan LeFevour has replaced an "old one on the back of Comerica Park in Detroit and faces the entrance to Ford Field." The school first constructed the billboard prior to the '08 football season as a way to promote LeFevour for the Heisman Trophy (ESPN.com, 7/30).

BLADES & BOARDS: In Montreal, Pat Hickey reported Devils G Martin Brodeur has signed a multi-year endorsement deal with Sher-Wood and has "lent his name and his expertise to a new line of ... goaltending equipment" (Montreal GAZETTE, 7/30)....Reebok Hockey will be the presenting sponsor for the '10 ECHL All-Star Game and Skills Competition (ECHL).