Did Michael Young Leave the UW Because of the 12?
Michael Young was a prominent Republican attorney long before he came to the UW as President. Now, this eminent attorney and the new President of Texas A&M is preparing for legal action against the Seattle Seahawks when the Seahawks’ right to use the phrase “12th man” expires next year .
Young’s leaving the UW will eliminate the possibility of a conflict of interest with multi billionaire Paul Allen, one of the University of Washington’s biggest donors and the owner of the Seahawks. 
As of September 4, 1990 , the Texas school has owned a trademark for the “12.” Four additional Trademark claims related to the “12th Man” term were also filed by and granted at later dates to Texas A&M University (See U.S. Ser. Nos. 74560726, 76671314, 85977835 and 85851199), the first three of which have achieved Incontestable Status as a result of its section 15 affidavit with the Patent and Trademark Office.
The Chicago Bears and Buffalo Bills , at the request of Texas A&M, no longer use “12th Man” themes. When the Seahawks refused to honor the Texas trademark, Texas A&M filed a trademark infringement lawsuit. In May 2006, the dispute was settled out of court with the Seahawks acknowledging Texas A&M’s ownership rights of the 12th man phrase. In return for allowing Seattle to use the phrase, the Seahawks paid Texas $100,000 and an additional $5,000 fee.[