P.J. Fleck now owns 'Row the Boat' mantra; WMU gets money for scholarships

P.J. Fleck officially will take his "Row the Boat" mantra to Minnesota.

After leaving Western Michigan to take over as the Gophers' coach, it was uncertain who had the intellectual property since WMU had trademarked it. The slogan was adopted after Fleck's infant son died of a heart condition.

After negotiating between Fleck and the school, Western Michigan announced in a press release on Wednesday that the three-word mantra will be Fleck's intellectual property, which means he can use it at Minnesota or wherever he wants.

Western Michigan is permitted to use the slogan, but only for  "recognizing and celebrating Fleck’s tenure at WMU and the teams he coached."

Fleck will give something, too.

According to the release: "As part of the agreement and to honor Bronco football accomplishments and his time with the team, Fleck will make a yearly gift of $10,000 to support a scholarship to be awarded to a Bronco football player. The Fleck Family Football Scholarship will be awarded each year beginning in fall 2017."

The Fleck scholarship gift builds upon an earlier $50,000 gift commitment Fleck made to WMU.