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[SPORTS] On The Court Or In Court 7/1/08
For young people in cities, getting into trouble can be easy, but
getting out of trouble... not so much. Rob Moore has created Team
Crossover Elite, a collection of AAU basketball teams in the city of
Wilmington for both young males and females. Not only do those teams
help youngins' stay out of trouble and get out of the city limits, they
also WIN! Rob's teams have racked up recent defeats over teams from
Baltimore and Virginia! Read this interview with Rob to hear more about
how he pulls this non-profit venture off while overcoming challenges
like financing the team, dealing with gossip, and showing his kids
things outside of the state - all done with the love & strength of his
family & supporters. Rob's story is a story with a GREAT beginning and
sure to be a page-turner
Interviewer: Bros 2.0 presents the Sports Page. Bullseye! - the e-zine
where you yuppies get informed and on point.
Today's guest on the Bullseye! Sports Page is the owner and purveyor of
Team CrossOver Elite, Rob Moore.
Welcome, Rob.
Rob Moore: Thanks for having me.
Interviewer: It's good to have you.
Team CrossOver Elite is a basketball league you started and are
currently enterprising. Can you tell us a little bit about it?
Rob Moore: Team Crossover Elite, that's something that's like my
passion, something that I enjoy doing. I started Team Crossover which is
an AAU basketball program, compiled of three basketball teams: I have an
all-girls team 11 and under, and 2 boys teams 12 and under and 14 and
under. And both teams are doing very well.
Interviewer: Great.
Rob Moore: It's a youth organization that I'm definitely just trying to
put on the map; to bring Delaware a positive team and positive programs
by positive people that I have around me throughout the organization.
Interviewer: Outstanding. What inspired you to start a league?
Rob Moore: Ah, Man, playing basketball myself; going to (the University
of Maryland Eastern Shore) playing basketball and having the chance to
play on AAU basketball teams as I grew up. I was born in Rock Hill,
South Carolina and I was traveling back and forth up to Philadelphia and
New York at the age of eight years old, playing in AAU. I just want to
give the kids some perspective in being out of the Wilmington area. It’s
something that I love to do and that I know that they (the kids) will
appreciate in the long run, because I know I did.
Interviewer: There are a lot of basketball leagues in Delaware, but none
obviously targeted at youth. What makes Team CrossOver Elite's league
different?
Rob Moore: Team Crossover Elite is an organization that has positive
people behind it, for one, the owner. I started this; it's a passion I
have for kids. I'm doing this for the kids. I don't make any money from
this program. I've financially supported this program in every way with
some help from a few donors and parents. So to me, it's for the kids. I
want the kids to have positive people in their lives. In our time right
now, kids need positive role models, you know, and I try to surround
myself with such people, such as my coaches. I have five positive
coaches that do everything for the kids - Lamar Cooper, Naim Ali, Mark
Tobin, Dale Seemans and John L’Italien they're all awesome people-- they
have my back and they help to make sure the program is ran very well.
Interviewer: You said that you don't get any profit for this. I think
that really needs to be expounded on. Can you say a little more? This is
a nonprofit activity you have?
Rob Moore: Yes, it is a nonprofit program.
Interviewer: Wow.
Rob Moore: Team CrossOver Elite is a nonprofit organization. We've been
trying to get some funding through the City of Wilmington as well as
from various businesses in and out of the City, to support this positive
cause. I mean, it's a stand that we all need. I have 36 kids in my
program right now …
Interviewer: Wow.
Rob Moore: … and that's 36 kids off the streets of Wilmington. So, you
know, just getting some type of help, some type of sponsorship would be
-- would help my program grow and help support the growth and
empowerment we are instilling in our kids. You know, our objective is,
again, the well-being and future of our kids. Basketball is not the only
thing that we are trying to do.
Interviewer: Was it difficult to find participants for the leagues?
Rob Moore: Not too difficult. I made up flyers and put a couple in the
newspaper. This flyer was sent out in January. And the first turnout,
the first tryouts were crazy. The response to it was outstanding,
because like I said there hasn't been this type of program in
Wilmington. We host out of the William "Hick's" Anderson Community
Center. That's basically our home. There are a lot of people from this
area that need to play on AAU basketball teams. So doing it out of the
Hicks Center is such a positive thing; it was a plus-plus.
Interviewer: Is "Hick's" Anderson one of your supporters? Do you have
any other supporters?
Rob Moore: NSS, the company I work for has donated to us. A fencing
company, called Guardian Fence. One of the kids on my female team, their
grandparents, also donated to our organization. So as you can see, we
have had some donations from people who see and understand what we are
bringing to the community but we have no major sponsors at all. We're
trying to get out to the community to some of the local businesses to
pitch the importance of sponsorship, but as of now, you know, we haven't
made that connection yet.
Interviewer: It will probably help businesses decide to become sponsors
to know exactly what the kids and families are getting that participate
in the league. Can you speak a little bit about that?
Rob Moore: Yes. Well the kids for one are being surrounded by
goal-oriented people in enriched environments. Similarly, they are
learning to be more diverse by traveling outside of their city and
state. We just went to Baltimore where we just won the championship.
Interviewer: Oh, congratulations.
Rob Moore: Yes. We also just went to Virginia this past weekend, where
we also brought home championship trophies.
Interviewer: Wow.
Rob Moore: So a chance to travel for one, to get outside of Wilmington.
The kids will see that Wilmington is not the only place that they can
turn to. They have the entire world; that's way bigger than Wilmington.
Broadening their horizons is what I am trying to do.
And for the parents, I have a lot of parents that are participating; I
need more to participate, but we do have a lot that are dedicated. The
parents get to see first hand exactly what I'm doing. The parents love
it, because I'm a coach and an owner, who just like the coaches are
involved with the kids. I don't just own it and have my name on things.
I own it, and I participate with the kids. The kids are with me 90% of
the time; besides being with my coach Lamarr; they are always with me.
So I mean, I try my best, man.
Interviewer: It sounds like a whole lot of hard work. Especially trying
to travel with some kids and families - that could be really “messy”.
What's been the toughest hurdle you've had to overcome to get this whole
thing rolling?
Rob Moore: Toughest hurdle – Having my initial partnership fail. I had a
partner, we started together and basically his vision just wasn’t my
vision. My vision of everything was and is way bigger than what he
visioned. He took on another position on his job, and just couldn’t
support the foundation and growth of the company. So that's been the
toughest hurdle.
One of the other hurdles is not being from Wilmington, Delaware; I'm
from Philadelphia.
Interviewer: Okay.
Rob Moore: So not being from here is hard, because, you don't want to
burn your bridges with people ...
Interviewer: Right, right.
Rob Moore: … people not knowing who you are, you know, anyone can say
anything about you, and then you have a negative reputation along with
no one really knowing you and knowing what you are about.
Interviewer: Right.
Rob Moore: So just that; that's been hard, it's been real hard. But, you
know, we're still moving, and that's the positive thing and, you know,
nothing is ever easy. I know it's going to be more hurdles to come and I
just have to jump over and dodge them. So, this is just one of those
obstacles that I have had to and still am overcoming.
Interviewer: It sounds like you've had to, you know, overcome like I
said a whole lot of things. There has to be a support base for you. I
mean, otherwise, I could see you really getting overwhelmed. Who are
your strongest supporters?
Rob Moore: My fiancée is my strongest supporter.
Interviewer: Oh, okay.
Rob Moore: Shenae Thompson, hey, Man, without her, you know, nothing,
none of this would be. You know what I mean? None of this would be; for
real. She helps me. I throw out so many ideas to her and she grabs them,
and we roll with it.
Another supporter is my coaches.
Interviewer: Yeah.
Rob Moore: Lamarr Cooper, who was my ex-partner's friend. He brought
Lamarr on and through the separation Lamarr has sincerely supported me
my organization, my goals, and my vision.
Interviewer: Okay.
Rob Moore: Him and I, we clash, and we don't agree about certain things.
But he's been there, and he's won two championships back-to-back for us.
He’s a tremendous asset to Team Crossover Elite.
Another supporter is my other Coach Naim. Naim Ali, he's there with me
at night when we are working the kids out at night making them better
and building a better bond with each other. My Fundraising Committee is
a major support system. Jackie and Erica are the best. They help with
the fundraising, coming up with ideas to raise money, because like I
said we are nonprofit; there's no money coming in.
Interviewer: You’ve said that Lamarr and Naim were supporters and also
that you were trying to get the City of Wilmington to support you. Is
there anybody else or any organization that you think could really help
or support you?
Rob Moore: Any youth organizations that are out there, that are trying
to keep kids off the streets. Any nonviolent supporters or organizations
can and would be of great help. I have another program that's starting.
You know, I don't know if I should mention it now; but I will.
Interviewer: Sure.
Rob Moore: The foundation is called "On the Court? Or in Court!”.
Interviewer: Okay!!!
Rob Moore: I did this from going through the court systems myself.
Having first-hand knowledge of what that’s like I'd rather have kids on
the basketball court than in juvenile or adult court systems, period,
you know?
Interviewer: Right.
Rob Moore: That's one of the positive things that I think that, as
African-Americans we need to really focus on, staying out of the court
system. Once you're in the court system, you have a record, and that
presents many limitations of doing the things you may want to do or
accomplish. Not saying you couldn’t flourish in the long run, but it
would just be that much harder than it already is.
Interviewer: Yeah.
Rob Moore: So, yeah, I mean, that's another one of my main focuses right
now; this foundation and getting it started.
Interviewer: Got it! Now, Team Crossover Elite just won tournaments, you
said, in Virginia, and where was the other place that you said?
Rob Moore: In Baltimore.
Interviewer: In Baltimore. Now, did the kids get trophies or anything
else?
Rob Moore: The kids received plaques. They received plaques and
trophies.
Interviewer: How did you find about those tournaments?
Rob Moore: Just looking up tournaments through AAU or ACA Hoops, that's
where I found a lot of my tournaments, we're in the mid-Atlantic region
of AAU. So just going online, looking and researching the tournaments,
making sure that they're legitimate; calling different coaches and
emailing, seeing how the talent-wise was gonna be at those tournaments;
and we just go down there and we do our thing.
Interviewer: Now, how many teams participated in the last two
tournaments you were in?
Rob Moore: In the last one that we played in Virginia, it was probably
about 40 teams.
Interviewer: Wow.
Rob Moore: And in the one that was in Baltimore, it was more; it was
probably about 50 to 55.
Interviewer: And you guys won both of those tournaments?
Rob Moore: Yep, we won both of them.
Interviewer: Congratulations! How many players are on your teams?
Rob Moore: I have 10 players on my 14-year-olds, and I have 12 on the
12s, and I have 12 on the 11 girls.
Interviewer: Oh, okay. Now, do you just compete in tournaments
throughout the East Coast, or do you actually have scheduled games
locally here in the Delaware Valley?
Rob Moore: Well, we're playing here next -- we're playing here June
14th, 15th and 16th, that weekend we're playing in the Regionals; we
made it -- since we won those two championships, we made it to the
Regionals. They're actually called Super-Regionals, and that will be
held at – the Hockessin PAL. Mostly we're a traveling basketball team.
We're a traveling organization.
Like I said, they can be dominant as a basketball player in the City of
Wilmington, but if they go down South or further up North, they could
really not be on that same competitive level that they were in
Wilmington. So actually finding all of the competitions and being
competitive, you have to travel and get outside of your comfort zone,
and that's what I call Wilmington. I really don't want to play in
Wilmington as much. I'd rather them play outside of Wilmington and
travel and get a feel of all … every basketball player, all the talent
that's coming around.
Interviewer: It certainly would broaden their skills. Is the Hockessin
PAL going to be the final tournament for the year?
Rob Moore: Yes, uh-huh.
Interviewer: Does your league’s season have a close?
Rob Moore: No, that's not the final season; The Regional is what you
compete in to say that you want to go or make it to the Nationals. The
Nationals is held in Florida, in Disney World.
Interviewer: Wow!
Rob Moore: The Nationals is August 1st through the 8th. So a whole week,
and you go down there to compete; but the Super-Regionals is where you
go to qualify for the Nationals.
Interviewer: Now is there any team that you kind of, you know, have to
keep your eye on that may give you a little trouble as you go in to
compete?
Rob Moore: Yeah, I think Delaware Defenders has a very, very good team;
a very good team. We played Delaware Defenders before, and they blew us
out by 20.
Interviewer: Okay.
Rob Moore: So competing with them, you know, on that level, I'm not even
talking about just winning; I just wanna be able to compete with them
and have a close game, they would be the team that I would be expecting
to be a tough challenge for us.
Interviewer: Now that's going to be your greatest challenge on the
court. What's your greatest challenge off the court, basketball-wise,
that is?
Rob Moore: My players.
Interviewer: Yeah?
Rob Moore: Some of my players on the team, I want to give every kid a
chance -- on my team a chance, you know, an equal shot. We're on the
same level. I don't put myself above them, you know, and I don't put
them under me. I just look at them as equal. But I know a lot more
basketball and have a lot more basketball skills than they do because
I'm older for one, you know, and just trying to lead them, just trying
to let them know that, I'm looking out for their best interests. There's
nothing I've ever told any of my kids that I haven't came through and
did, you know. But they are all challenges in the sense I want them to
believe in me so just that alone is a challenge. .
Interviewer: Right.
Rob Moore: And that's one of my challenges, and I want them to believe
in me. You know, that's one of my goals after this season. I want the
kids to be able to say, "Coach Rob never lied to us".
Interviewer: Right.
Rob Moore: and have them feel comfortable, like they are right now. They
all come to my house. They’re here with my girl and my family; and, you
know, my lady, she cooks for them and, they come over and they spend the
night and stuff like that; they never want to leave me. I already know
this is why I'm here on Earth, just to be like a father figure to these
kids, and I think I'm doing a good job at it.
Interviewer: Wow, you guys are really all close. Is this the kind of
group that you want to keep together where, you know, if you start your
planning for next season -- does your season ever end so that you guys
may play all year round?
Rob Moore: Yeah, we could play all year round. As long as the money is
there to pay for our expenses, trips and entry fees. I do have a family
so I still have to take care of them. The money is coming just from me
right now.
Interviewer: Yeah.
Rob Moore: We have entry fees that are an average of $400, and then some
are higher.
Interviewer: Wow.
Rob Moore: And that's per team.
Interviewer: Right.
Rob Moore: So I have three teams, and that's $400 per team.
Interviewer: Yeah.
Rob Moore: So this season, it probably will end, say, like in October or
November; but if the funds and everything is there, it will go all year
round.
And as far as growing with my team, like I said, I have a 12U and a 14U.
Next year I will have a 15U and I'll have a 13U, and I'll keep a 12U.
I'll replace the 14U. So I'm trying to have a bigger organization next
year, because I'm getting so many phone calls. I mean, it's ridiculous.
Interviewer: Yeah.
Rob Moore: Players that want to come and that's hearing good things
about the organization, and that's a good thing. Especially being our
first year and winning two championships already.
Interviewer: Yeah.
Rob Moore: So, you know, the kids are getting together a whole lot, and
my goal and mission is to go until they get out of school and all the
way up to college.
Interviewer: You say that you want to grow your number of participants.
In your plans, that's gonna be a little more stressful.
Rob Moore: I wouldn't say "stressful". What I mean, starting the
company, starting the business, it's a lot of things that I’ve learned,
that I will fix in the next year hopefully preventing some of those same
problems. You see what I'm saying?
Interviewer: Right.
Rob Moore: I wanna say it'll be more of a stress. I won't say it will be
as stressful, because I will do things a lot different than I did this
year. This year I started this company November 27, 2007.
Interviewer: Right.
Rob Moore: … you know, out of the blue just said, "I want an AAU
basketball team", and I just went with it and, you know, didn't have any
idea of what it will cost. I just did whatever it took to have a
successful business.
Interviewer: Right.
Rob Moore: But going into it now, I know a lot of things that I have to
change, I have to plan a lot better, and that's what I'm working on. I'm
already starting next year 2008 -- 2009 season. I've already started a
whole lot of groundwork to make sure everything is a much better success
than it is this year; and not saying that this year is bad.
Interviewer: Right.
Rob Moore: You know, I've gotten a lot of kudos from things that I've
done and, you know, just to let you know, Ti, it's just me doing it, and
my girls.
Interviewer: Wow.
Rob Moore: So, I just recently formed this Fundraising Committee to help
me out, just to take a little bit of the stuff off of me, you know?
Interviewer: Yeah.
Rob Moore: So next year I'm going out and looking for some different
people, some people that I know will fit into the club, that'll help me
out a whole lot.
Interviewer: Right. Honestly, it’s outstanding that you've pulled this
whole thing off and it all started really just from your desire to do
it. That really, in and of itself, should kind of let people know
exactly where you're coming from, because there's not a lot of people
who would even attempt anything that large.
It sounds like every facet of the team could be something that honestly
could be not necessarily overwhelming, but a lot for a single person to
handle on their own – even things that may seem simple like getting
everyone uniforms. Do you guys have like uniforms and colors and stuff
like that?
Rob Moore: Yeah, we have actually probably one of the best uniforms out.
We have the best uniforms I've seen in any tournament that we ever been
to.
Interviewer: Wow, okay.
Rob Moore: Yeah, our uniforms are black, red and white made by AGAME. We
have an all-white uniform, and then we have an all-black uniform, and we
have practice uniforms. We have basketball-shooting shirts, long-sleeve
red with the Team Crossover Elite on it stitched in;
Interviewer: Right.
Rob Moore: Yeah. I mean, I think we probably have the best uniforms that
there is out there.
Interviewer: It was a little concerning after hearing that was all
coming our of your pocket and realizing with three teams and, you know,
$400 registration fees, that's not play money; that's real money.
Rob Moore: Hey, Man.
Interviewer: It's just amazing, you know, to hear that you can pull this
whole thing off.
Rob Moore: Hey, I mean, it's a struggle. And that's why I said, Man, it
takes -– they say that behind every good man there's a good woman.
Interviewer: Yeah.
Rob Moore: And I have a very good woman, Man. I mean, and I just … you
know, I have a very good woman and she's a very good supporter to have.
My kids also, they're supporters, because without them I wouldn't be
able to do it, and I do it just for them so, you know, to teach them a
lot of things in life.
Interviewer: Yeah, that's truly outstanding, Man. We're going to wrap up
soon. Is there any way for people to watch the games? Are any of the
games televised?
Rob Moore: No, as of yet none of the games are televised.
Interviewer: But filmed?
Rob Moore: None of them are filmed, either. So the only way that you can
get more information regarding the company is the website.
Interviewer: Okay.
Rob Moore: It's teamcrossoverelite.com.
Interviewer: Okay.
Rob Moore: And I have an email address. Well, it's teamcrossoverelite@yahoo.com.
Interviewer: Okay. And "Team CrossOver Elite" is spelled?
Rob Moore: Team, it's spelled --
Interviewer: T-e-a-m?
Rob Moore: T-e-a-m-C-r-o-s-s-o-v-e-r-E-l-i-t-e.
Interviewer: Okay, just like the words Team, Crossover, Elite.
Rob Moore: Elite, yep.
Interviewer: That's outstanding, Man. Well, look, I wish you all the
best; you know this. I'm very aware of your league and only hope the
best for you, and good luck for you guys' competitions.
Rob Moore: Hey, thanks a lot, Man. Thanks for having me.
Interviewer: That's Rob Moore of Team CrossOver Elite. Those guys are
doing their thing, and we only wish them the best.
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