Nov 4, 2022·edited Nov 4, 2022Liked by John Canzano
The USC / UCLA jump to the Big 10 is a mockery of college athletics. The vast majority of student athletes will never be professional athletes, but ordinary contributors to society. USC / UCLA seem to have forgotten that simple fact, and have abandoned the student moniker to pursue glory for the athletic department administrators. It is a pathetic commentary on the state of collegiate athletics.
My sons competed in the PAC-12, and are not professional athletes. They are like the majority — ordinary contributing members of society. Had they been required to forsake academics for excessive and unnecessary travel, they either would been forced to abandon their sports, take light loads and extra years on campus, or settle for suboptimal careers.
USC / UCLA athletic departments have made in quite clear that their student athletes are merely pawns in their pursuit of glory and dollars. Shame on them.
Points made in this morning‘s column are extremely valid and I believe have escaped the eyes and the ears those in charge of making decisions for UCLA and USC
Spectacular shot of Husky Stadium, by the way. I’ve got three Beaver Nation friends coming over for steaks, brews, and football tonight. Just sent ‘em your pic
I attended UCLA as an undergrad, went to Michigan for my doctorate, then taught at UCLA during the Alcindor (of course later Kareem) years and have been shocked at their moving to the Big 10. But at least they are owning something that has been apparent for a long time: college sports is not for the student-athletes, but for the high-priced coaches and reputations of the colleges. And unless they are among the very few who manage to get to the pros, many end up with debilitating injuries later in life.
Thanks John, the Walton piece was very powerful. Sure hope UCLA reverses course and stays home. Tonight all eyes on how many turnovers this ‘atmospheric river’ causes Dawgs-Beavs!
I am a UCLA grad 3 years before Bill Walton. I traveled weekly for work coast to coast for 28 years. I lived the grind of travel and work, over 4 million miles of flying. I agree with Bill and the UCLA athlete you spoke to. You may be able to do 2 of the 3 but not all 3. Study, travel, sports; you cannot do all three. Something has to give. If UCLA does this, student athletes lose and it will be UCLA's loss. From my point of view the rest of the Pac-12 should be pouncing on this flaw if it manifests itself as a huge recruiting strategy for them.
Thanks John, the Walton piece was very powerful. Sure hope UCLA stays home. Tonight all eyes on how many turnovers this ‘atmospheric river’ causes Dawgs-Beavs!
Before moving down to Brentwood I spent 40 years in Fair Oaks, basically directly above Lake Natoma where the Pac 12 has made it's home for both men's and women's crew championships. It is one of the premier rowing lakes in the country and has also hosted the men's or women's NCAA championships every few years. Even though Cal (me '72) is a power I had never really gotten into it, but since it was a bike ride down the hill I would head down and get the best seat in the house across the lake where I could see farther up to the starting line than the spectators on the other side. I was blessed to see the Cal women beat Brown for the NCAA championship a few years back.
Well I have also ridden into the parking area and spoken to the crews and coaches the few days before the races. I once asked the Michigan coach when the NCAA's were here how they practiced and she said the had rowing machines inside the gym during winter so is it an wonder this is a coastal pursuit. I also asked one of the Pac-12 coaches why Lake Natoma and she said it is perfectly central to every school driving its boats there, a pre requisite to crew, and no matter which school the drive was not more than 500 or so miles....now I ask you folks how in the hell will UCLA and USC manage crew when they are visiting Michigan or Rutgers? What it probably means is that crew for them will die on the vine is my hunch...does anyone at these schools think or care about this?
I believe we have crossed the Rubicon in college athletics, the players are essentially mercenaries used to drive athletic department revenue streams. Why not stop the fiasco and declare the teams semi pro and the players the same.
Enjoy the game John. I am very anxious to see a close monsoon Pac-12 football Friday night game from the purple house. Loved your pic of Husky Stadium. Buy a beer on me; only 12 dollars for a tall cold one that you can take to your seat for first time ever! In the press box you might not freeze or get soaked. I predict a dog fight and would love to see the Beavers show up and not lose as they usually do in Seattle. Since it rains less in Corvallis than Seattle usually, the Beavos should not let heavy showers, crazy wind, and anything else, bother them. Is a big game for both teams, and as you know , home favorites in the pac-12 usually win and cover. OSU on the road is much different than in huge 25,000 seat Reser stadium. Huskies will be pumped to try and save their season, and Beavers too. Do not see a blow-out by either team, unless a typhoon hits Seattle or Mt. St. Helens blows for first time since 1980. Unless they are playing my Ducks, I always root for the Beavers. Probably because of being a native Oregonian. My black mini-panther kitty named Shadow almost died (again) from a severe blockage on Sunday morning., and has been in hospital all. week If I have to swim to pick him up tonight at six, I am prepared! Only a mile away to the vets office and he has been here, running my self-employed circus , for three years. He and I chose each other at a shelter in Sherwood, Or. , and he has been the best friend I have ever had. To add a pet from a shelter, and save them and vice versa, can and will enrich both of you! My primary Kaiser physician only has eight shelter rescue kitties, living with she and her sister. Her sister is a pet sitter, and the Dr. made my cat a certified service animal two years ago. Tonight, God willing, and through my very strong Christian faith of just 60 years (Methodist) I will be watching the Beavs and Huskies with Shadow! God Bless you and yours , and go Ducks!
Great work as usual, John. The glory years of Husky football are decades past, but Husky Stadium stands tall as one of the top stadiums in all of Power 5 football. Good luck to your Beavers tonight.
I bought a 20 ounce ice cold beer in Husky stadium in 2021. It was only $12! The Ducks beat UW; my first in person victory in Seattle in about 10 tries. Alcohol in Husky Stadium! Rain and wind and cold did not affect me. All we Ducks did not sit down all day, , as the seats were soaked long before the afternoon game. You can buy beer and take it to your seat; you cannot do this is Eugene. I am looking forward to tonight and I am sure it will not be rainy, windy, and cold. The purple picture you posted Mr. Canzano was good. Hope to see the Huskies lose for the next two weeks, and slink back to where they belong, in the dog house! Go Ducks!
There are really two types of fans in Collegiate sports. Alumni and peripheral fans (those that live in proximity or just simply chose a team to root for). Great to have both, but the media, conferences and schools are focusing only one of the fan groups, the peripheral fan. While the peripheral fan beings in viewership, it is NOT the lifeblood of the school and sport. Alumni have a different attachment, and in the past the alumni had more pull... they are being all but ignored anymore.
The USC / UCLA jump to the Big 10 is a mockery of college athletics. The vast majority of student athletes will never be professional athletes, but ordinary contributors to society. USC / UCLA seem to have forgotten that simple fact, and have abandoned the student moniker to pursue glory for the athletic department administrators. It is a pathetic commentary on the state of collegiate athletics.
My sons competed in the PAC-12, and are not professional athletes. They are like the majority — ordinary contributing members of society. Had they been required to forsake academics for excessive and unnecessary travel, they either would been forced to abandon their sports, take light loads and extra years on campus, or settle for suboptimal careers.
USC / UCLA athletic departments have made in quite clear that their student athletes are merely pawns in their pursuit of glory and dollars. Shame on them.
It’s the non-football sports that will suffer the most at UCLA with the move. If the UC Regents value students and academics, they will stop the move.
Points made in this morning‘s column are extremely valid and I believe have escaped the eyes and the ears those in charge of making decisions for UCLA and USC
Spectacular shot of Husky Stadium, by the way. I’ve got three Beaver Nation friends coming over for steaks, brews, and football tonight. Just sent ‘em your pic
GO DAWGS
I attended UCLA as an undergrad, went to Michigan for my doctorate, then taught at UCLA during the Alcindor (of course later Kareem) years and have been shocked at their moving to the Big 10. But at least they are owning something that has been apparent for a long time: college sports is not for the student-athletes, but for the high-priced coaches and reputations of the colleges. And unless they are among the very few who manage to get to the pros, many end up with debilitating injuries later in life.
Thanks John, the Walton piece was very powerful. Sure hope UCLA reverses course and stays home. Tonight all eyes on how many turnovers this ‘atmospheric river’ causes Dawgs-Beavs!
I am under the impression that college is mainly about education. Is that not correct?
I am a UCLA grad 3 years before Bill Walton. I traveled weekly for work coast to coast for 28 years. I lived the grind of travel and work, over 4 million miles of flying. I agree with Bill and the UCLA athlete you spoke to. You may be able to do 2 of the 3 but not all 3. Study, travel, sports; you cannot do all three. Something has to give. If UCLA does this, student athletes lose and it will be UCLA's loss. From my point of view the rest of the Pac-12 should be pouncing on this flaw if it manifests itself as a huge recruiting strategy for them.
Thanks John, the Walton piece was very powerful. Sure hope UCLA stays home. Tonight all eyes on how many turnovers this ‘atmospheric river’ causes Dawgs-Beavs!
Before moving down to Brentwood I spent 40 years in Fair Oaks, basically directly above Lake Natoma where the Pac 12 has made it's home for both men's and women's crew championships. It is one of the premier rowing lakes in the country and has also hosted the men's or women's NCAA championships every few years. Even though Cal (me '72) is a power I had never really gotten into it, but since it was a bike ride down the hill I would head down and get the best seat in the house across the lake where I could see farther up to the starting line than the spectators on the other side. I was blessed to see the Cal women beat Brown for the NCAA championship a few years back.
Well I have also ridden into the parking area and spoken to the crews and coaches the few days before the races. I once asked the Michigan coach when the NCAA's were here how they practiced and she said the had rowing machines inside the gym during winter so is it an wonder this is a coastal pursuit. I also asked one of the Pac-12 coaches why Lake Natoma and she said it is perfectly central to every school driving its boats there, a pre requisite to crew, and no matter which school the drive was not more than 500 or so miles....now I ask you folks how in the hell will UCLA and USC manage crew when they are visiting Michigan or Rutgers? What it probably means is that crew for them will die on the vine is my hunch...does anyone at these schools think or care about this?
I believe we have crossed the Rubicon in college athletics, the players are essentially mercenaries used to drive athletic department revenue streams. Why not stop the fiasco and declare the teams semi pro and the players the same.
Enjoy the game John. I am very anxious to see a close monsoon Pac-12 football Friday night game from the purple house. Loved your pic of Husky Stadium. Buy a beer on me; only 12 dollars for a tall cold one that you can take to your seat for first time ever! In the press box you might not freeze or get soaked. I predict a dog fight and would love to see the Beavers show up and not lose as they usually do in Seattle. Since it rains less in Corvallis than Seattle usually, the Beavos should not let heavy showers, crazy wind, and anything else, bother them. Is a big game for both teams, and as you know , home favorites in the pac-12 usually win and cover. OSU on the road is much different than in huge 25,000 seat Reser stadium. Huskies will be pumped to try and save their season, and Beavers too. Do not see a blow-out by either team, unless a typhoon hits Seattle or Mt. St. Helens blows for first time since 1980. Unless they are playing my Ducks, I always root for the Beavers. Probably because of being a native Oregonian. My black mini-panther kitty named Shadow almost died (again) from a severe blockage on Sunday morning., and has been in hospital all. week If I have to swim to pick him up tonight at six, I am prepared! Only a mile away to the vets office and he has been here, running my self-employed circus , for three years. He and I chose each other at a shelter in Sherwood, Or. , and he has been the best friend I have ever had. To add a pet from a shelter, and save them and vice versa, can and will enrich both of you! My primary Kaiser physician only has eight shelter rescue kitties, living with she and her sister. Her sister is a pet sitter, and the Dr. made my cat a certified service animal two years ago. Tonight, God willing, and through my very strong Christian faith of just 60 years (Methodist) I will be watching the Beavs and Huskies with Shadow! God Bless you and yours , and go Ducks!
Great work as usual, John. The glory years of Husky football are decades past, but Husky Stadium stands tall as one of the top stadiums in all of Power 5 football. Good luck to your Beavers tonight.
I bought a 20 ounce ice cold beer in Husky stadium in 2021. It was only $12! The Ducks beat UW; my first in person victory in Seattle in about 10 tries. Alcohol in Husky Stadium! Rain and wind and cold did not affect me. All we Ducks did not sit down all day, , as the seats were soaked long before the afternoon game. You can buy beer and take it to your seat; you cannot do this is Eugene. I am looking forward to tonight and I am sure it will not be rainy, windy, and cold. The purple picture you posted Mr. Canzano was good. Hope to see the Huskies lose for the next two weeks, and slink back to where they belong, in the dog house! Go Ducks!
There are really two types of fans in Collegiate sports. Alumni and peripheral fans (those that live in proximity or just simply chose a team to root for). Great to have both, but the media, conferences and schools are focusing only one of the fan groups, the peripheral fan. While the peripheral fan beings in viewership, it is NOT the lifeblood of the school and sport. Alumni have a different attachment, and in the past the alumni had more pull... they are being all but ignored anymore.
Thanks John.
So long LA; please GK don't miss the chance to add Gonzaga to CBB and SDS to CFB before the B12 again steals your lunch.
What is the proof that UCLA Athletics finances are mismanaged?