As I digress. Greg, you follow with, what I believe is in the footsteps of the very best Oregon AD
I knew, your dad. Though you have hit some bumps. Bill never hesitated to invite me into his office if he saw me on sight. When he knew he was leaving he invited me in I, sadly, wished him well and told him his leaving left us without his wife, a more than competent and special administrator in Eugene School District 4J as I taught in the district. For me personally, athletics at every level goes beyond the department as ADs and university presidents have failed us on many counts.. Since Bill's departure I have never meet an AD at Oregon who even recognized me no matter how many times I have/had been introduced to them. Admittingly, my pockets just aren't deep enough for that. College Athletics just aren't where they should be. Think this deviated from your intent John, but for me the Bill Byrnes of this world, I miss..
The Bible says to judge with kindness, compassion and forgiveness. It does not say do not judge. Jesus admonished us that we will be judged as we judge others. In other words, be careful how you judge others for you will so be judged. But He did not say do not judge at all.
I think Bruce Pearl is in the clear.
BTW--great interview with Greg Byrne. I thought he answered all your questions very directly, no evasion whatsoever. Nice work.
OK, Byrne, here's 'Bama's sins under your watch: Oats kept a guy on his team who carried a gun for a murder. Oats didn't think about booting him. Then there's the NBA player Byrne OKed. Anything to win, right Greg?
I find the "let he who is without sin..." line a bit deflecting. Is he saying (or anyone using that phrase?) since no one is perfect we shouldn't hold anyone accountable? It's basically whataboutism.
It is just a question without a good answer. In this era where the line of college and pros is completely blurred, why shouldn't a kid who goes to the G League come back and play in Div 1 basketball?! Many of the Div 1 players make a lot more money than the G Leaguers.
Over the years, Greg Byrne has never changed. I remember him as a class act when he worked for the duck athletic fund down in Medford, Oregon and I’m glad to see that he has made such a great leader in college athletics.
I have a Bruce Pearl story that may change some minds. I officiated the finals of the Cable Car Classic in...2003 or 2004, right in there. BYU played Santa Clara. U Wisconsin Milwaukee, , coached by Bruce Pearl, was playing the 3rd place game. My wife, who is blind, went to the game. We were doing a few days in the city after. I got her areanged into her into her seat during the 3rd place game. BYU fans harassed my wife the entire game I reffed, until Bruce Pearl sat next to her (refs get two seats). After the finals, we went to our hotel (Marriott Santa Clara). I needed to ice my knees. When my wife and I walked in to the restaurant/bar, BYU group bood us. Bruce Pearl walked over and hugged my wife. The bartender got me my bags of ice, told us to go upstairs and that food/drinks were on the house. I dont know that Bruce Pearl paid or that the bartender was ashamed of BYU fans behavior, but my guess is the former. Bruce Pearl: soft heart, nobody is perfect
It has been so refreshing to see the SEC struggling (in football) after NIL, especially Bama. Saban, a great coach, stacked his teams with multiple stars, including stars at the backup positions (see Hurts/Tua). NIL changed that for the better. Now those backup stars can go to a different team and start. Saban couldn’t coach in The NIL era because he couldn’t stack teams. Same for Kirby, too. NIL and the portal have made CFB more competitive and more entertaining.
Saban could coach in any era. He despises the portal and isn't a fan of NIL, although there are attributes of NIL he supports. Nick Saban is one of the greatest coaches in the history of college football. The "era" doesn't matter--the man could coach yesterday, today and beyond.
I remember when Greg Byrne was a fresh-faced athletics department hire at Oregon State. We find these guys, develop them and then they leave for larger piles of cash.
I love the flashback look of Byrne with the horn-rim glasses and the buzz cut. He looks very 50s. Great look! Why did you interview Byrne, JC? Any ulterior motive? I can't imagine he would jump to Oregon State should Scott Barnes retire. Stranger things have happened.
I was thinking about Byrne as I wrote the Barnes piece the other day. Not because he'd be a candidate but because the job has shifted dramatically in the last decade. Byrne has navigated that shift well at Alabama, but I wonder how many future ADs will be cut from the campus mold. Think we'll get more CEOs.
How many independent reporters can get an individual interview with the athletic director at Alabama for 33 minutes. We need to preserve that ability.
Let's keep this going.
As I digress. Greg, you follow with, what I believe is in the footsteps of the very best Oregon AD
I knew, your dad. Though you have hit some bumps. Bill never hesitated to invite me into his office if he saw me on sight. When he knew he was leaving he invited me in I, sadly, wished him well and told him his leaving left us without his wife, a more than competent and special administrator in Eugene School District 4J as I taught in the district. For me personally, athletics at every level goes beyond the department as ADs and university presidents have failed us on many counts.. Since Bill's departure I have never meet an AD at Oregon who even recognized me no matter how many times I have/had been introduced to them. Admittingly, my pockets just aren't deep enough for that. College Athletics just aren't where they should be. Think this deviated from your intent John, but for me the Bill Byrnes of this world, I miss..
The Bible says to judge with kindness, compassion and forgiveness. It does not say do not judge. Jesus admonished us that we will be judged as we judge others. In other words, be careful how you judge others for you will so be judged. But He did not say do not judge at all.
I think Bruce Pearl is in the clear.
BTW--great interview with Greg Byrne. I thought he answered all your questions very directly, no evasion whatsoever. Nice work.
Your first paragraph is spot on; the is so misapplied.
OK, Byrne, here's 'Bama's sins under your watch: Oats kept a guy on his team who carried a gun for a murder. Oats didn't think about booting him. Then there's the NBA player Byrne OKed. Anything to win, right Greg?
I find the "let he who is without sin..." line a bit deflecting. Is he saying (or anyone using that phrase?) since no one is perfect we shouldn't hold anyone accountable? It's basically whataboutism.
It is deflecting.
We just need to be willing to be judged also.
It is just a question without a good answer. In this era where the line of college and pros is completely blurred, why shouldn't a kid who goes to the G League come back and play in Div 1 basketball?! Many of the Div 1 players make a lot more money than the G Leaguers.
Over the years, Greg Byrne has never changed. I remember him as a class act when he worked for the duck athletic fund down in Medford, Oregon and I’m glad to see that he has made such a great leader in college athletics.
I have a Bruce Pearl story that may change some minds. I officiated the finals of the Cable Car Classic in...2003 or 2004, right in there. BYU played Santa Clara. U Wisconsin Milwaukee, , coached by Bruce Pearl, was playing the 3rd place game. My wife, who is blind, went to the game. We were doing a few days in the city after. I got her areanged into her into her seat during the 3rd place game. BYU fans harassed my wife the entire game I reffed, until Bruce Pearl sat next to her (refs get two seats). After the finals, we went to our hotel (Marriott Santa Clara). I needed to ice my knees. When my wife and I walked in to the restaurant/bar, BYU group bood us. Bruce Pearl walked over and hugged my wife. The bartender got me my bags of ice, told us to go upstairs and that food/drinks were on the house. I dont know that Bruce Pearl paid or that the bartender was ashamed of BYU fans behavior, but my guess is the former. Bruce Pearl: soft heart, nobody is perfect
Great insight!
He's probably a very nice man. But every basketball team he coached was dinged for blatant cheating by the coaching staff.
It has been so refreshing to see the SEC struggling (in football) after NIL, especially Bama. Saban, a great coach, stacked his teams with multiple stars, including stars at the backup positions (see Hurts/Tua). NIL changed that for the better. Now those backup stars can go to a different team and start. Saban couldn’t coach in The NIL era because he couldn’t stack teams. Same for Kirby, too. NIL and the portal have made CFB more competitive and more entertaining.
Saban could coach in any era. He despises the portal and isn't a fan of NIL, although there are attributes of NIL he supports. Nick Saban is one of the greatest coaches in the history of college football. The "era" doesn't matter--the man could coach yesterday, today and beyond.
I remember when Greg Byrne was a fresh-faced athletics department hire at Oregon State. We find these guys, develop them and then they leave for larger piles of cash.
Man the transfer portal is out of control!!!!
I love the flashback look of Byrne with the horn-rim glasses and the buzz cut. He looks very 50s. Great look! Why did you interview Byrne, JC? Any ulterior motive? I can't imagine he would jump to Oregon State should Scott Barnes retire. Stranger things have happened.
I was thinking about Byrne as I wrote the Barnes piece the other day. Not because he'd be a candidate but because the job has shifted dramatically in the last decade. Byrne has navigated that shift well at Alabama, but I wonder how many future ADs will be cut from the campus mold. Think we'll get more CEOs.
He also learned from Mitch Barnhart, one of the best, and who should have been hired as Pac-12 commissioner instead of Larry Scott.
Smart ditching the Buddy Holly glasses. Don’t think Barnes has to worry about Greg horning in on his job as AD.