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We've
all heard the rumors, The Kalamazoo Outfit, Technical Knock-Out,
and even The Killer Oranges. But what does TKO really stand
for? If you guessed all of the above, then you are correct.
There was another name, too, that we can't print.
Paul
Wolpert (TKO coach, U13 boys ?93-94 and U19 girls ?94-95) was
11 years old when a group of AYSO players decided to participate
in the Adidas Dominos Pizza Soccer Tournament in Lansing. In
1983, there was no West Michigan Youth Soccer Association (WMYSA)
and no Little Caesars League, but there was a TKO. The acronym
was originally used by Rollin Douma for players in the 6-on-6
tournaments at Western and stood for The Kalamazoo Outfit.
The AYSO group acquired and used the TKO name to register for
the Lansing Tournament in 1983 since they needed a name to
participate. The players had been traveling to tournaments
for some time prior to Lansing, however. They were coached
by Phil Wilson and Dave Hargreave, though the first travel
team was coached by Herb Ramage (about 1980). The team competed
in the Bonanza League, and in 1982 had been called the SCI
Broncos under coach Scott Ferris.
The
WMYSA was later formed to support TKO and allow for tournament
play under state regulations. There were 26 teams, with the
Select teams competing at the state level. At this point, TKO
was then used as an acronym for Technical Knock-Out since WMYSA
included much of the region, not just Kalamazoo.
There
were 14 players on the original TKO team competing in Lansing,
and the team was co-ed. The uniforms for the Lansing Tournament
were from Walter John's T-Shirt Warehouse and were bright orange
with a picture of Walter John on the front. The players called
themselves The Killer Oranges. These uniforms were only used
for the Lansing Tournament and were soon replaced by white
shirts with orange collars and black shorts.
In
1984, the team had its first sponsor, The Limited Edition,
and the players obtained their first set of warm-ups. Later,
Gazelle Sports took over sponsorship. In 2003 the club partnered
with SoccerZone for player/coach development. Back of the Net
Sports became the official uniform and equipment supplier at
that time.
So
how did that first team do? They won the Lansing Tournament
in 1983 and again in 1984 and also made it to the State Cup
regionals. TKO was indeed off to a great start! Today, TKO
features teams in eight age groups (U-11 through U-18)
for both boys and girls. Teams play in the Michigan Premier
Soccer League and tournaments throughout the country.
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