Former Oregon Players Are NOT on the Fans’ Team

[FishDuck Article]

I have been pretty disappointed recently with the decisions and intentions of former Oregon football players, and their disproportionate impact on the Oregon Athletic program.  I am not just referring to the bizarre letter to AD Rob Mullens, although it is a good example. As far as I’m concerned, the former players are 0-2 with their influence recently, and they ...

 

Read the full article here...

[The Constitutionalist]

Not to be "that guy," but the fans don't have a great track record either, Charles.

 

Here, and elsewhere, there were a lot of calls for Wilcox, Kelly, and even Helfrich.

 

We're a rather hard to please bunch and like fans everywhere else, we get very emotional. No voice is louder in our own heads than the one that tells us that we were right all along, especially if we can't be proven wrong. And I'll be the first to forget, even on purpose, when I am wrong (if I haven't already first spun the argument to make me right). If Lanning doesn't work out, Wilcox et al., will be the best coaches we never had.

 

As far as I'm concerned, without any disrespect implied, former players are the same as the rest of us -- they're fans. They did their part, and for that I'm grateful, but the word former is there for a reason.

 

Personally, I think the letter was taken out of context. I think it was written with good intentions by people without all the information, published at the exact wrong time, and capitalized on and framed by people trying to stir up drama. Had the letter come out a few days earlier, we'd be celebrating it as an even-handed, well written piece with a message we can all agree on, at least philosophically.

[Mike West]

  It is difficult to avoid the political aspect of the name change since the players pulled a political stunt.

 

I'll never understand forgetting the people that support you the most when considering issues that impact them as much as they impact you. 

 

In my opinion, former players are the pillar of support for, but not the active administration of the current program.  

 

Same goes for the fans for the most part.  That is until they're clearly ignored.  Fans get to vote with their feet however.  

 

I believe MC got a taste of what was going to happen if he didn't listen to that booing this season.  Even former players don't have that kind of pull.  

 

[Guest KingT]

On 12/20/2021 at 3:05 AM, FishDuck Article said:

I have been pretty disappointed recently with the decisions and intentions of former Oregon football players, and their disproportionate impact on the Oregon Athletic program.  I am not just referring to the bizarre letter to AD Rob Mullens, although it is a good example. As far as I’m concerned, the former players are 0-2 with their influence recently, and they ...

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Source

Read the full article here...

I think you make a number of compelling points - the fans are kinda last in this program. It seems this is a Board level operation with an executive committee made up of a few boisterous former players. 

[1Ducker1]

The important thing is that this time The former players didnt get their wish.

[geoquack]

On 12/20/2021 at 5:43 AM, 1Ducker1 said:

The important thing is that this time The former players didnt get their wish.

Wasn't the job offered to Wilcox and he said "no"?  If so, then the former players "won" but their guy didn't go along.

[1Ducker1]

He said no, yep and the former players didnt get their wish. I heard that Wilcox wasnt offered a big bunch of money though.

Edited December 20, 2021 by 1Ducker1

[toketeeman]

Actually, I'm excited to see a whole squad of NEXT-GEN 30-somethings running the team next year. They have the latest and most modern views on playing football, being only ONE GENERATION REMOVED from the players. It's the best way to slam the door shut on the past. And that is something to which most fans can more easily relate. 

Edited December 20, 2021 by toketeeman

[HappyToBeADuck]

After listening to Joey Harrington on the John Canzano show explain why the players supported the letter, I came to 2 conclusions ......

 

First, their intentions were good. They meant well and wanted nothing but the best for Oregon. His words, filled with passion and emotion rang true. Don't know if Joey spoke directly to Mullrns about the letter. Either way RM was moved and followed thru. Thank goodness that Wilcox was the only adult in the room.  Geez.......

 

Second, nostalgia for home is a powerful emotion. Those players looked back and longed for those glory days. I felt that emotion as I returned home to Spokane for my 50th plus high school reunion.  Wonderful memories rushed back that weekend. 

 

The players wanted that Oregon family feeling to return. The family program came so close to the Natty. The prize was within reach. Since 2015 the prize was seen on TV earned and given to others. RM and his choices were destroying their deepest memories of Oregon 

 

Thank you Coach Lanning. Build your staff and create a new Oregon family for players, former players and us fans. Let's get that prize.

 

As for the non renaming of the the Civil War.  If I expressed my thoughts, feelings and emotions......

 

Charles would ban me from the forum for life......

 

Go Ducks. Let's get a few more SEC players so the SEC honks can piss, whine and moan some more.

 

Out here in the barren wasteland.

[nw777b]

Trust is very hard to earn and keep.

 

As a fan, I have to trust Mullens. 

 

After thinking about how much emotion and energy goes into the discussions regarding CFB hires, recruits, game management, and play calling, I wondered how many of us even know who is driving our kids and grandkids (who probably are not wearing seatbelts) around in a school bus.  

 

I have to trust the process and the people who administer the process, including the handling of those outsiders that try to manipulate it.

[Annie]

On 12/20/2021 at 6:05 AM, 1Ducker1 said:

He said no, yep and the former players didnt get their wish. I heard that Wilcox wasnt offered a big bunch of money though.

That's why I tend to think it was a token offer, maybe to satisfy former players that an offer had been made, but without much chance that it would be accepted.

[30Duck]

Former players have a place in our hearts, and avatars. Our memories are filled with memories. Build statues in their honor, name fields after them. But look what happened when USC installed former legends, Kike Garrett or Lynn Swann as AD's. It wasn't pretty.  

 

"Jorgy" is great on the radio, Justin is an Oregon Duck through and through who is becoming one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL and will be joined soon by Kavon Thibodeaux.  Those two, the rest of the Ducks on NFL rosters make Oregon fans proud.

 

Based on what we've seen so far, the hiring of Dan Lanning looks like a great one. His enthusiasm and energy are what I want the Oregon Way to be. 

[PittDuck]

On 12/20/2021 at 4:02 AM, The Constitutionalist said:

…No voice is louder in our own heads than the one that tells us that we were right all along, especially if we can't be proven wrong. And I'll be the first to forget, even on purpose, when I am wrong (if I haven't already spun the first argument to make me right). …

Wow Constitutionalist, you absolutely nailed it with that statement!

 

A tip of my hat sir, for so eloquently stating why we humans are such an argumentative bunch!

[shawnski]

Season ticket holder/attendee since the 1996 season.

 

For me, this year was the lowest of lows as far as being treated as a paying fan. I'm not sure we even crack the top 10 anymore.

 

My wife and I are out. Can't keep paying for people who clearly don't value you at all.

 

I'll just watch on TV (unless it gets pre-empted by NACAR dirt track truck racing)

 

Go Ducks I guess 

[Jon Joseph]

Thanks Charles. But I am depressed with CFB in general. Let's face it, NIL is play for pay and is clearly being used a recruiting inducement. Free agency is controlled in the NFL, not in CFB.

 

Not to pick on one team but Brian Kelly quit on Notre Dame when Notre Dame was still in contention for a Final 4 spot. BTW, the best Notre Dame RB and the best Notre Dame player on D, have opted out of the Fiesta Bowl. Back in the day if your brothers were playing in one of the biggest bowl games of the year and you quit on the team? You not only would have been roundly criticized, you would have been ostracized.

 

You could see this coming with the BCS. When the SEC commissioner convinced his fellows that CFB needed 1 unified champion. The game went national. The game was top to bottom monetized. The game became almost completely controlled by a single media cartel. The SEC went form being just a conference to being king. The Rose Bowl went from the IT bowl game to mattering once every three seasons. 

 

Today, Money clearly trumps any idea of loyalty and team brotherhood. There is no 'me' in team? How about there is no such thing as "team.?' It is all about "me." 

 

Fans? The fanatics who show up and pay the bills? If you have a problem, call my agent.

 

As for me? I plead guilty. The team went 11-2 and is playing Oklahoma in a bowl game. And I'm unhappy? 

[Duck 68]

I think Joey's ego needed a boost and leaking the letter helped his cause. It did nothing positive for our Ducks, but we'll move forward.

[Duxster]

Did I like the name change? You decide.  I threw all my duck gear in the garbage can and sent an angry email to the AD

[Charles Fischer]

On 12/20/2021 at 4:02 AM, The Constitutionalist said:

former players are the same as the rest of us -- they're fans.

 

They are fans who have a TON bigger impact than you and I. Again...what they did is NOT in the interest of the majority of Oregon fans. 

 

We will disagree, and that's OK.

[WiseKwacker]

Charles, can't say I agree with you on this one completely. I DO agree with some you your points, however. 

 

For me, it gets down to this: process. In my view, the Duck administration--mainly Mullins, I guess--mishandled the process in each of those two decisions, primarily by not having a  clear (or, at least a transparent) process.

 

In the case of the renaming of the Civil War game, as one of the old coots, I think I'm with most fans of my generation in wondering what all the fuss is about. Frankly, I remember reading that the moniker, "Civil War," was given to the game by a journalist, as I recall, as a play on words. He was using the definition of the word, "civil," which means, "adhering to the norms of polite social intercourse; not deficient in common courtesy." In other words, a heated "battle" that becomes "civil" again once the game is over.  Thus, I don't find the term offensive, even though I understand that casual or new football fans might not know that history about the name's origin.

 

My real issue with the name change, though, has to do with the lack of a process--or, at least, the lack of a transparent process--for making the decision to drop the name. (And, I don't consider this particular name change to be an anomaly in today's climate of social justice.) At any rate, when the perception is that a change was made because a few people--whether they are ex-players or current students--complained that the name made them feel uncomfortable, I think that's an attempt to correct a "wrong" with another "wrong." 

 

Instead of making a quick decision to drop the name--without any idea of what a suitable replacement name might be--just comes off as a knee-jerk decision. I would have advocated for the formation of a committee involving a wide variety of stakeholders (students, ex-players, journalists, alumni, donors, etc.) to explore how the name came to be in the first place, why it's offensive to some, and how--possibly--an education campaign might be put together to educate all viewers of the game as to its true meaning.  And, if the group decides that such a task is just too difficult to accomplish, decide to change the name to a better alternative instead of just dropping the name and leaving the game as a nameless end-of-season clash.

 

Likewise, with the coaching change, Mullins MAY have a small circle of advisors with whom he consults when a coach leaves--or needs to be fired--but, if so, it's a group that apparently doesn't include ex-athletes from the program involved. While I don't think ex-players should have outsized influence on the process, I think they should at least be part of Mullins' inner circle of advisors in such a process. Apparently, they weren't...until they kind of forced their way in.  In that case, as we've seen, Mullins comes off looking reactive instead of proactive. Not a good look.

 

In a nutshell, then, I guess I'm just advocating for a more transparent process in these matters. Obviously, you'll NEVER please everybody--even with the most transparent process imaginable--but I'm confident there would be much less anger and puzzlement over how a decision was reached if the process was more clear to everyone.

[Charles Fischer]

On 12/20/2021 at 8:52 AM, shawnski said:

I'll just watch on TV

 

But the fans on TV bring the great ratings....we ALL matter, as it is us who pay the bills...

[Haywarduck]

Programs are run by fans, players, boosters, and administration they all have a place. At Oregon I think there is a better balance than in most locations. 

 

As was stated, sc had a time where players ran the show and it wasn't pretty. An elite player often has an advantage, speed, quickness, hand eye coordination which we all worship. The problem is they don't understand how that gift came about, or what it takes to create, develop or inspire a team of diverse players. Their system was, for too long, just get the best players and let them play. We saw that product, and it was fun and actually easy to defeat. We actually had that with Cristobal, and it was going to lead us to the same place.

 

The fan driven team is seldom seen, outright. The fan does influence the process, as stated, with ticket sales. They seldom are part of the process of picking a coach, or really running any aspect of the program. There may be lip service to picking an alumni or somebody who is like a successful coach, but that is more driven by the players, and alumni. The fans just get to complain about the process, and outcome on the internet, little else.

 

The alumni driven teams are the OSU's, Nebraska's, Michigan's and almost Oregon's who go with the legend. They have success and it isn't a bad way to go. It is nice to have somebody on the sideline who really cares about the program.

 

An administration driven program is the dawgs, where they pick the perceived best coach, at the best price. We also saw it with SC, seemingly having administration knock on all doors and finally pull away, with alumni support, the next great coach. That was Oregon too, with Kilkenny getting Altman. This is what Oregon's program looked like, but as I have stated, I am not buying the story line Canzano took most fans down, and many still believe. Canzano was clueless when it began, and wove a story which I wasn't buying at the end. 

 

My story is our program is perceived as run by administration which listens to alumni and fans. This administration makes the alumni and fans feel heard. That is the line Canzano fed the fans and alumni. While that whole process was going on the real brain trust came up with answer to the latest quandary we had ourselves in. The answer was the extremely talented coach, who can recruit. This is the new and actually proven method to hire a great coach.

 

Look into Nic Saban, not a great player, certainly not a legend as a player for a school. Nor was Riley at SC, he was a grinder, and is a grinder as a coach, with an ability to recruit. This is exactly what we got with Lanning. He wasn't a great player, but a grinder, who can recruit, pick talent, develop talent, and coach. Mullens didn't pick Lanning, he has no clue on leading on coaching hires, just look at Cristobal, the players led.

 

This choice was made by those who can identify, convince and support a successful coach. This was then fed to the AD who put it together after doing the alumni, fan, player dance. This is why it will work this time. Last time it was the players, and we were in panic mode. It was a mistake we are fortunate we were able to move on from. We are, luckily, led by a group who understands athletics like no other.

 

As far as the name of the game, I think it was a balance of all parties too, not just the players. There are fans who don't like it and that is how all good decisions are made. Try and make everyone happy, and see what misery is all about. I suppose the blame game is part of the process. I don't completely like the name change, but I do respect the process. I will also say this is a politically charged topic and am surprised it is even brought up.

 

I suppose I am left with what was in the best interest of the fans with the name of the game? Best interest seems to be, being able to move on, grow and evolve. That is when I have always been at my best, when I have been made to stretch, question, move from something I may have perceived as the way before. It hasn't ever been an easy process, but that is what humans do, we evolve.

 

[MaiTaiDuck]

On 12/20/2021 at 2:05 AM, FishDuck Article said:

I have been pretty disappointed recently with the decisions and intentions of former Oregon football players, and their disproportionate impact on the Oregon Athletic program.  I am not just referring to the bizarre letter to AD Rob Mullens, although it is a good example. As far as I’m concerned, the former players are 0-2 with their influence recently, and they ...

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Source

Read the full article here...

Yeah I know what your saying and F them because when they said what they said it pissed me off. Wilcox as in are you freaking kidding me. There are two major reasons why he'd never be hired here if I had Knights money. First this is a business and every move these business people have made in the last ten or so years has to do with this down turn in something I appreciated above the NFL. Players got paid and yes they did because when you get a full ride to come play for Oregon that's getting paid no matter what or how you want to say it. They should have never ever allowed players to transfer because it's really no different than FA in the NFL. So if they do transfer then they need to pay the money back for their scholarship.

 

Also how on earth did they give these guys deals now like Thibidueax got and you know he' hasn't played a down in the NFL nor gotten drafted and yet he's already 7 figures richer and he's sitting out the Alamo bowl. So this is not only unethical but " ARROGANT " as well. So as far as I'm concerned I would take Hutchinson with the first pick because the guy never quit playing. Umm we cannot say that about number 5 who lets just say never showed up in either Utah game and got punched in the mouth by Utah not the other way around like the idiot that just kept saying the same words that eventually people just started tuning him out. Lets be honest here Cristabol's a stupid man.

 

So back to your subject Charles is first off what they were asking made absolutely no sense from alleged College graduated students. Wilcox first coached at a school that  move by Mullins whos playing with Phil's money and I;'m sure he read their concerns and then had a real laugh at their request and mumbled under his breath looks like you should have paid attention when you were in class. Yes it's the freaking fans that pay all these corrupt business men's pleasures and Phil Knight is no different and actually he has no respect from me ever. He's a greedy business man and it shows in his business practices. How rich do people have to be to not let American people earn a wage and then move your NIKE down south.

 

He didn't all of a sudden pay them really any better slave wages than he probably would have gotten up here for his money and his way over priced uncomfortable shoe that's made him way more money than he would ever deserve. All's I know is I'm freaking tired of waiting for this Championship to come. Lanning is the right hire and we are going to get on his staff way better recruiters than even Mario had and I believe this guy has the ability to make these 4 and 5 star recruits better players unlike Mario who sucked at coaching these players up. Sorry as to be so bold but I tell it like I see it and don't care if I'm offending anybody when speaking the " TRUTH " something the Media or 90% of them do not do.

 

Also all these words for sooo long about can't recruit to Oregon and then what really pisses me off is we were led to believe Oregon a state run College couldn't pay the types of monies that the BAMAS SCs of the world could. Yet we have one of the richest boosters on the planet and he could have paid for all this a long time ago. So he better hope this works out because the man doesn't have to much time left to see this happen as he's already 3 quarters of the way in the GOLD Coffin he probably already has made up. If people on here think this is a righteous man boy you are being blinded by the darkness. So I just said the truth and nothing but the truth and go ahead and ban me because this is just pure madness.

 

The entertainment is no longer really that because like you said Charles and yes it's all the truth they don't care about yes me the average Man with an equally average bank account yet I've spent thousands of dollars supporting this rich Mans team and don't fool yourself this is Knights team not ours the average fan that bleeds Green and Yellow only to have your heart torn out like this years BS caused by Cristabol who you know he already planned in that first loss to Utah already new he was going to Miami yet the fool will be fired just like Slick Willie was because the guy gets out coached. Now he's gonna get out recruited by Lanning's staff. Anybody who is thanking that turd for what he just did is not a true Duck period.

 

Honestly about Mario's mother he had to make it back there and they made it sound as if she wasn't going live much longer I'm sure was a lie and that's when he went back to Miami not to make sure his mommy was ok but to hob knob with the Miami idiots who like FSU seem to be blinded to the actual facts and they can just throw money away as if it's nothing yet we have people living on the streets with their children and yet lying corrupt people like this wanna think about themselves not bettering the game but mucking it up with their 'GREED' so kiss my Green ARSS because if you don't like it then you don't like telling the truth anyways and shame on you.

[Charles Fischer]

On 12/20/2021 at 9:02 AM, Jon Joseph said:

The team went 11-2 and is playing Oklahoma in a bowl game. And I'm unhappy? 

 

Jon...the topic was about the influence of the former players on the Oregon athletic program.  We will get into your topic on Wednesday.

 

And like you...I like to forget bad losses as soon as I can, but the team went 10-3 and not 11-2.  I have those moments too!

[Charles Fischer]

On 12/20/2021 at 10:52 AM, WiseKwacker said:

In the case of the renaming of the Civil War game, as one of the old coots, I think I'm with most fans of my generation in wondering what all the fuss is about. Frankly, I remember reading that the moniker, "Civil War," was given to the game by a journalist, as I recall, as a play on words. He was using the definition of the word, "civil," which means, "adhering to the norms of polite social intercourse; not deficient in common courtesy." In other words, a heated "battle" that becomes "civil" again once the game is over.  Thus, I don't find the term offensive, even though I understand that casual or new football fans might not know that history about the name's origin.

 

I have deleted three or four posts this morning because people went ahead and began discussing the name change in spite of what I wrote in my article.  You would think that with the way we quickly enforce rules around here unlike anywhere else, that people would know I mean business when I write/say something.

 

You address precisely what Beavers fans were telling me on the phone; that the game is "uncivil."  This is as far as I want to go with this sub-topic because again....this is not the topic.  The influence of the former players on the AD is the topic, and the only reason I am leaving your post up is because of what you wrote below.

 

On 12/20/2021 at 10:52 AM, WiseKwacker said:

Instead of making a quick decision to drop the name--without any idea of what a suitable replacement name might be--just comes off as a knee-jerk decision. I would have advocated for the formation of a committee involving a wide variety of stakeholders (students, ex-players, journalists, alumni, donors, etc.) to explore how the name came to be in the first place, why it's offensive to some, and how--possibly--an education campaign might be put together to educate all viewers of the game as to its true meaning.  And, if the group decides that such a task is just too difficult to accomplish, decide to change the name to a better alternative instead of just dropping the name and leaving the game as a nameless end-of-season clash.

 

This is precisely what I would advocate...is get the people who pay the bills involved in decisions that affect us all.  You could take a poll of six different Oregon websites to determine how people feel about a name change or a particular coach.  Real easy to do and does not have to come from the ADs office...but it would give feedback to the AD in how the unwashed masses that pay for everything feel.

 

Instead they are listening to people who do NOT represent us fans, and have led the ADs office astray.

[The Constitutionalist]

On 12/20/2021 at 1:41 PM, Charles Fischer said:

 

They are fans who have a TON bigger impact than you and I. Again...what they did is NOT in the interest of the majority of Oregon fans. 

 

We will disagree, and that's OK.

 

Oh no, we're on the same page and we agree. I suppose I was a little vague on what I meant. What I meant was that they should just be fans, no different than any of us. 

[Haywarduck]

On 12/20/2021 at 10:56 AM, Charles Fischer said:

 

But the fans on TV bring the great ratings....we ALL matter, as it is us who pay the bills...

Charles, we may pay some bills, but we don't pay them all. We are the worker bees, and are not as organized as the bees. Administration and the big alumni listen to the fans enough to keep the money coming, and it is still coming, so that communication line is dead.

[Charles Fischer]

On 12/20/2021 at 11:00 AM, MaiTaiDuck said:

like you said Charles and yes it's all the truth they don't care about yes me the average Man with an equally average bank account yet I've spent thousands of dollars supporting this rich Mans team

 

MaiTaiDuck....you have the unique ability to truly create a "rant" from within writing, and it is quite believable.   As I read it...I can hear your voice!  You went to a ton of work and you put in reading spaces for me, so I am leaving it up.  Thanks for posting...

[Charles Fischer]

On 12/20/2021 at 11:22 AM, Haywarduck said:

Administration and the big alumni listen to the fans enough to keep the money coming, and it is still coming, so that communication line is dead.

 

And that was the point of my article; former players influence the ADs department into bad decisions while the majority of the money DOES come from the worker bees.  It would not be hard to take the pulse of the fans, and ignore the former players, IMHO.

[Haywarduck]

On 12/20/2021 at 11:26 AM, Charles Fischer said:

 

And that was the point of my article; former players influence the ADs department into bad decisions while the majority of the money DOES come from the worker bees.  It would not be hard to take the pulse of the fans, and ignore the former players, IMHO.

The money comes from the fans, and the show comes from the players. The money just keeps coming if the show continues. The show continues if the players keep coming. The show and players is where the focus rightly is, if the show is to continue. Who cares about the fans, they just want a show, and can't even agree on the show they want to see.

 

I will also say the fans are the voters, the players are like the lobbyists, big alumni too. That is where the power is. Even if we had a vote, it wouldn't tip the scale, just make us feel better.

[Charles Fischer]

On 12/20/2021 at 10:59 AM, Haywarduck said:

I don't completely like the name change, but I do respect the process

 

I do not respect it at all; that was the point of the article as it is quite flawed, and made one bad decision despite the majority of the Oregon AND Oregon State fans.  And a second was almost a bad decision that would have affected Oregon football for decades.  This is not trivial stuff...

 

I am looking behind the green curtain, and I'm seeing a bad process, one where former players make absurd suggestions, and where the rest of us who pay the majority of the bills are blocked out of the conversation.

 

That is wrong.

[Haywarduck]

On 12/20/2021 at 12:19 PM, Charles Fischer said:

 

I do not respect it at all; that was the point of the article as it is quite flawed, and made one bad decision despite the majority of the Oregon AND Oregon State fans.  And a second was almost a bad decision that would have affected Oregon football for decades.  This is not trivial stuff...

 

I am looking behind the green curtain, and I'm seeing a bad process, one where former players make absurd suggestions, and where the rest of us who pay the majority of the bills are blocked out of the conversation.

 

That is wrong.

John Joseph actually made me begin to question my whole interest in the college game with a post. 

 

I am actually ok with this process, as most fans don't know what is best, too emotional.

 

For me it goes back to how the beavs use to hire and fire coaches, while Oregon stood behind Brooks. If we listened to the fans back then, and reacted, we would be beavis II.

 

I think history will be on our side again, it just would be nice to see the programs be a little more proactive with the next step.

[WiseKwacker]

On 12/20/2021 at 11:11 AM, Charles Fischer said:

 

I have deleted three or four posts this morning because people went ahead and began discussing the name change in spite of what I wrote in my article.  You would think that with the way we quickly enforce rules around here unlike anywhere else, that people would know I mean business when I write/say something.

 

You address precisely what Beavers fans were telling me on the phone; that the game is "uncivil."  This is as far as I want to go with this sub-topic because again....this is not the topic.  The influence of the former players on the AD is the topic, and the only reason I am leaving your post up is because of what you wrote below.

 

 

 

Thanks, I guess, for leaving up my post. If nothing else, a deletion would have resulted in me harboring resentment for having wasted about 30 minutes of my precious retirement life on a response to your posting.  Frankly, I'm guessing you couldn't delete only part of my response, so you decided to leave the whole thing. Regardless, I'd like to explain why I trod on "dangerous ground" by stating a little background on the Civil War game name change.

 

Basically, I couldn't figure out a smooth way of making the point of the need for the development of a more transparent process for making major decisions without using that bungled process as a clear example. Sorry if I sent your blood pressure up a notch.  I certainly appreciate this forum.

[Charles Fischer]

On 12/20/2021 at 12:47 PM, WiseKwacker said:

I certainly appreciate this forum.

 

The challenge for me is justifying to those who simply had the old name in their post and seeing it deleted--when I kept yours up.  You made two good points that I wanted people to see, thus leaving it up.  Whenever I am very clear about what I'm going to delete, and people decide to confront it anyway--they should not resent me for a half-hour wasted writing when I told them up-front what I was going to do.  Fortunately, that was not the case here.

 

So much of this decision process with posts is not actually what is written, but something that can initiate a bad discussion that turns ugly.  I learned this over the last four years, to nip things immediately and to be pro-active in telling people that although the topic today could be political....I do not want us to go that direction.  Usually that informs enough to stay on topic.

 

I too appreciate this community so much, and the fact that we can go in directions that could be explosive and keep it "civil," is a blessing to us all.

 

I am sorry to those whose posts were deleted and hope you understand.  Those who had their posts deleted were members in good standing and continue to be.

[Guest Axel]

Charles, I strongly agree with your article. I would venture to say that Duck players are 0-3 in areas of judgment, since it was Duck players who urged that Mario Cristobal be hired. I maintain that a much better coach could have and should have been hired. Oregon's football program would be in much better shape today. Maybe that elusive national championship would have already been won. 

[Duckpop22]

On 12/20/2021 at 8:52 AM, shawnski said:

Season ticket holder/attendee since the 1996 season.

 

For me, this year was the lowest of lows as far as being treated as a paying fan. I'm not sure we even crack the top 10 anymore.

 

My wife and I are out. Can't keep paying for people who clearly don't value you at all.

 

I'll just watch on TV (unless it gets pre-empted by NACAR dirt track truck racing)

 

Go Ducks I guess 

. I too have questions about the direction of this team, and would have had REAL questions if the "former player letter" had turned into the hiring of a mediocre coach of a mediocre team. Would we have been surprised if we had ended up being mediocre? But, I can't imagine what it would take for me to add an "I guess" to Go Ducks.