Special Aggie plate sets record at auction
A Texas A&M “12TH MAN” specialty auto license plate was awarded Thursday to Houston attorney Tony
Buzbee for a winning bid of $115,000.
The amount broke the previous record for a specialty plate of $25,000 for “HOUSTON.”
The Aggie plate will be presented during the A&M-Alabama game Saturday to Buzbee, who said he will give it to an Iraq War veteran he knows.
“I’m not saying who it is yet, but I see him as a 12th Man to our country,” said Buzbee, who graduated from A&Min 1990 and served as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps.
Buzbee said the man is an A&M graduate and decorated veteran.
“He did a lot more than pay $100,000 for a license plate … (he) deserves it more than I do,” he said.
The 12th Man is a revered tradition at A&M, where students stand throughout football games to show that they’re ready to suit up if needed.
Bidding on the plate stalled at $42,000 Thursday, then rose more than $65,000 in a matter of 15 minutes before the noon deadline, said Kim Miller Drummond, a spokeswoman for Austin-based MyPlates.com, the custom license plate contractor for the state of Texas.
The next highest bidder to Buzbee was Frosty Gilliam Jr. of Odessa, who is a 12TH MAN Foundation board member. Like Buzbee, Gilliam says his intention was to give the plate away.
Proceeds from the auction benefit the Texas general revenue fund and Texas A&MUniversity.