Big 10 sports, especially football, are serious business for the, uh, 14 schools in the conference. Some of the biggest rivalries in sports are within the Big 10, so when a retailer like Target accidentally uses the name of one school and the mascot of a nearby rival for apparel, it’s kind of a big deal.
In this case, Minnesota Golden Gophers fans were puzzled to see a onesie with the school colors and logo, but with “Minnesota Badgers” written on the front. The Badger, of course, is the mascot for the University of Wisconsin, one of Minnesota’s chief rivals.
Here’s the kicker (that’s football joke): The item was spotted at a Target near the University of Minnesota campus. What’s even worse is that Target, the corporation, is headquartered in Minneapolis. So, you’d think it would know a little better.
What is this @Target? @GopherSports 🤨 pic.twitter.com/BxIHcSRjWV
— k i l e i g h (@kilecarp) February 10, 2020
The Twitter sleuth, Minnesota alum Kileigh Carpenter, told Fox 9 that Target didn’t have any answer as to what had happened with the product, but said it would follow up with the manufacturers and remove the item from the racks at the store. Thankfully, only 24 were made, and 22 were removed from the shelves at four different stores.
Wisconsin fans were probably happy about it, though. They probably weren’t happy to see their beloved mascot in the wrong color scheme, but it’s always fun to live rent-free in an rival’s head.
