NEW YORK, Aug 23 — The US Patent and Trademark Office denied Tom Brady’s application to trademark "Tom Terrific.”

The New England Patriots quarterback sought to trademark the phrase because he wanted to keep others from marketing that nickname in connection with him.

When news of his application got out in June, however, it caused a furore among fans of Tom Seaver, the Hall of Fame pitcher who got the nickname as a member of the New York Mets from 1967 to 1977.

And that’s just why the patent office rejected the trademark, stating "the applied-for mark consists of or includes matter which may falsely suggest a connection with Tom Seaver.”

The ruling, dated yesterday, continued: "Although Tom Seaver is not connected with the goods provided by applicant under the applied-for mark, Tom Seaver is so well-known that consumers would presume a connection.”

Brady said in June that it never was his intention to encroach on Seaver’s legacy.

"It’s unfortunate,” Brady said. "I was actually trying to do something because I didn’t like the nickname, and I wanted to make sure no one used it, because some people wanted to use it.

"I was trying to keep people from using it, and then it got spun around to something different than what it is. Good lesson learned, and I’ll try to do things a little different in the future.”

Brady has six months to respond to the rejection. If he doesn’t, the application will be closed. — Reuters