As Marshall University prepares for the Friends of Coal Bowl Saturday with West Virginia University, MU officials, in conjunction with The Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC), are preparing to rid the market of potential counterfeit and unlicensed merchandise.

CLC will work closely with local law enforcement officials, along with representatives from Marshall, to patrol the marketplace in search of counterfeiters selling “knock-off” merchandise. All counterfeit merchandise is subject to seizure.

When purchasing Thundering Herd merchandise, consumers should always look for the following characteristics to ensure the merchandise they purchase is officially licensed:

All officially licensed merchandise should display the Officially Licensed Collegiate Product Hologram somewhere on the product or hangtag.
The merchandise should depict Marshall University logos and marks in a tasteful manner, as the University does not approve distasteful designs.

The tag on the garment should be intact. A torn or missing tag is evidence of a second-hand garment, one that probably would not meet the stringent quality standards in place at the University.

All merchandise should bear the name of the manufacturer somewhere on the product, either in the form of a hangtag, a neck label, or screen-printed directly on the garment.

All merchandise should have the appropriate trademark designations (i.e. TM, â) next to a specific name or design.