Kaepernicking to get a trademark as San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick cashes in on nickname trend.
Colin Kaepernick took the NFL by storm over the second half of the season and now he is looking to cash in on his popularity.
The action of "Kaepernicking" went viral following the 49ers' win over the Green Bay Packers, during which Kaepernick showed off his move of kissing his flexed bicep. According to Darren Rovell at ESPN.com, the name and action has gotten so popular that the Niners quarterback has filed for a trademark.
According to ESPN.com, the San Francisco Chronicle was first to report the "Kaepernicking" trademark. Kaepernick's marketing agent, Shawn Smith of X-A-M Sports, told ESPN.com that her team intends to file other trademarks on her client's behalf.
From NBC Sports: "Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that Kaepernick filed an application to trademark "Kaepernicking" with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office two days after his huge game against Green Bay."
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office website shows the registration was filed on Jan. 14, and Kaepernick intends to use it on clothing, specifically T-shirts. According to CBSSports.com, a trademark attorney named Erik Pelton said that Kaepernick applied for six trademarks.
According to ESPN, Kaepernick's marketing team has authorized some shirt companies to use the term and his image on their products, but the trademark would help keep away anyone else trying to capitalize on the name.
The report also says that the official "Kaepernicking" shirt is made by a company called Sportiqe, which gives some proceeds to Camp Taylor, which organizes camps for children with congenital heart defects. ESPN writes that "Kaepernick has been involved with the camp; his adoptive parents lost two children to heart complications."
Since Kaepernick has become the starter on the 49ers, his jersey sales have been excellent, including over the past 10 days when his was the No. 1 selling option, according to Fanatics.com, one of the nation's largest online sports retailers.
The trend of "Kaepernicking" follows the same path as "Tebowing" and "Teoing", both of which went viral over the past year. Tebowing is modeled after Tim Tebow, who was seen multiple times last year bending down on one knee with his head in his hands while on the football field. Teoing is newer, linking to the Manti Te'o hoax story in which he had a fake girlfriend. People online started the trend by taking pictures while motioning towards an invisible person.
Against Green Bay two weeks ago, Kaepernick had a coming out party, setting a record with 181 rushing yards to go along with 263 yards and two touchdowns while also adding another two scores on the ground. During the regular season Kaepernick went 6-2 as a starter and had a passer rating of 98.7 with 13.1 yards per rushing attempt. The Ravens will need to contain Kaepnerick for a chance to win in New Orleans, or it could be the Packers game all over again.
San Francisco head coach Jim Harbaugh took a lot of flak from many in the NFL after starting Colin Kaepernick over established veteran Alex Smith, but everyone is calling him a genius now that his team has made it to the Super Bowl.
"He just competes like a maniac all the time," said Harbaugh, whose much-debated decision to bench Alex Smith at midseason now looks like the best move of the year. "It's always the same when I'm looking in through the facemask."
Kaepernick has been one of the primary reasons the 49ers are still alive in the playoffs and was a huge part of Sunday's 28-24 win over the Falcons in the NFC Championship Game, throwing for 233 yards and one touchdown. He had a much different game from the one he played against the Packers, proving he can be a running and throwing quarterback.
