"One Nation Under Orange"
You cannot make this stuff up, folks!
What's next?
"Give us this day our daily Beaver"?
One interesting question raised by the ad: is it showcasing OSU's conservative nature, or in doing so is it actually blasphemous and hence liberal? The ad feels aimless, so I'm probably giving them too much credit by even posing that question.
Oh, and to be fair and positive, they did get one thing right: marketing the throwback uniforms. We should build upon that image. At least it's an identity, one that counterbalances the Ducks very well. As always with OSU, baby steps…
I received this via email on my phone today. As soon as I read it I thought, Angry is going to love this I cant wait to see what he has to say.
Hahah. Usually I’d have a lot more to say, but I’m so puzzled…I don’t know what to make of this!
April 1st has passed, so this is REAL.
My thoughts exactly. I just looked at it and said wow. Really? That’s the best you could do? *scratches head*
You know the last ones were dumb but I could live with them. This one is embarrassing. If I didn’t hate the ducks so, it would make one consider switching sides.
I must say that I like the throwbacks but I am not in love with them, they need some overhauls. Namely, remove the stripe or any other logo from the flat black helmet. Secondly, the pants need to be totally done away with. Finally, shorten the jersey numbers a little bit, they are long to the point of making one’s body dimensions look odd. I think the number height on the regular jersey is perfect.
You’re right on regarding the uniforms. They need some modifications, but it’s a good start. A good idea from a school that has few.
Haha, I think you give them too much credit. I think the uniforms were all Nike’s idea, I imagine we had little to do with it. Our biggest part played was probably to nay say anything that was actually being done.
“Secondly, the pants need to be totally don away with.”
Hmmmm…maybe you’re watching football for totally different reasons than I am, but I think the guys should be required to wear pants.
Blech. Marketing department is still asleep at the wheel. Looking at the staff pages the same people have been there for years. Maybe Bobby D. gave them lifetime contracts.
Yep, it’s the same people all right — and they’ve all recently been promoted! http://tinyurl.com/3onlyce
Don Draper does not approve.
I heard that Columbia Sports jersey’s are in the works via an O-live article…I could have read this wrong meaning that it was raining so people were wearing columbia sports wear jackets and called them jerseys instead. If that’s the case than that makes sense…
Also, I think the jersey’s should look more like ..I’ll make a forum about it.
10 comments already. Must be a pretty solid ad if it is getting people talking. It is a bit too much like the Ducks for me but clearly it is effective.
Don’t love it, but I guess I don’t dislike it nearly as vehemently. I view it as an attempt to at wordplay on the “Beaver Nation” moniker (a moniker which has far outlived its usefulness) rather than some underlying conservative message. I hope that’s the case anyway. It lacks pizzazz, but I kind of like the simplicity.
I’d like to see something more inviting to the casual or undecided fan. This “Beaver Nation, we are orange” thing really only appeals to those already in said nation. I think they need to look at expanding the fan base.
Almost every school does the “nation” thing…this isn’t unique in any way. For some reason Beaver people believe they’re so clever, and the only ones who do it. It reminds me of how we talk about the “Wild Beaver”…like we’re in on the party because we lift someone else’s ideas.
I think they need to look at expanding the fan base.
I think they need to look at firing the marketing department…then expanding the fan base.
I think you are being a bit harsh. They have looked at the marketing department, and people inside have been promoted – so obviously a good job is being done.
Embarrassing.
As bad as this year could be, maybe next year’s logo will be
Orange we going to win a football game??
What are some suggestions. I mean to me it is simple, repeatable, and makes me excited for football. How do we improve this. All I see is bashing. Then again Widen and Kennedy along with Nike are hailed as great advertisers but it seems like the stupider the ad is the more acclaim it receives. Is this ad not dumb enough is that the problem? Maybe I suffer from angry old man syndrome (I am not even old) but I really don’t see how you can differentiate between this ad and so many others. What is it supposed to be. I see no one with anything better. This is such a microcosm of the world right now… everyone on the sidelines talking shit no one stepping up to the plate.
Nike ads fail sometimes (e.g. Tiger Woods post infidelity was horrible)…but in general they are spot on.
I thought that ad was considered by the experts as successful. It has over half a million Youtube hits, that is free advertising right there…. isn’t that the point? How are sales of Tiger products doing though? I guess that is where the proof is.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2004-12/09/content_398845.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqx4-d_4g1U&feature=player_embedded#at=80
Hey! We’re actually not jerks!
Well… then again, maybe we are. But you’re too stupid and lazy to figure it out. So we win.
Sincerely,
Nike
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=57v_v6oSGZI
I mean what the hell was/is “I am Orange”? Is that another wordplay on “I am Robot”?? Is our marketing department’s idea of a great slogan to take something in pop culture and just add a Beaver reference to it?
http://i-am-orange.blogspot.com/
This isn’t very good. First, I just can’t get over those great big white stripeys all over those unis. Second, how many different messages are we sending the world? We have fourteen million fonts, twenty-seven million insignias and now four-hundred million maxims/slogans/catch phrases.
I don’t get “I am Orange”. It’s just blase and boring. But I can live with it… I guess. Besides, the mobile phone firm Orange used the slogan “I am” a couple years back, and it was pretty universally panned.
I rather like “Powered by Orange”. It emotes strength and unity in the way it has been used. The whole world message and OSU’s part in giving power to the world can be used in every context. What’s good about this slogan is that it’s action. The university is giving to the people and the world around it in tangible ways.
“One nation under Orange” just looks like a knock-off of what some Raiders fan would have hung on a sign at the O-A Coliseum. That’s what “Beaver Nation” or “[Anything] Nation” always says to me. Rightly or wrongly, I remember the Oakland Raiders doing the whole “nation” thing first, and I find it lazy and unoriginal whenever someone re-uses it for their own purpose.
I also have a problem with people who use USA emblems/maxims/documents in what they think is a clever way. Someone who hangs a US flag on a wall with the stripes horizontal disrespects the flag. They think they are patriotic when they put flags on clothing or their bumpers or whatever. But there are actual written rules for displaying the flag, and ignoring them is disrespecting the very thing they think makes them patriotic.
I think there are going to be several people out there who look at this as I do on that last part from the other side of the spectrum. Think for a bit. What word was removed to add Orange?
I almost forgot. Try googling all three (I am orange, Powered by Orange, One nation under Orange), and see what comes up. In an age when this is the simplest method for discovery of originality, I wonder why nobody utilizes this three second tool.
Can we do the same for Nikegon?
As I see it, their one successful slogan is “O”. It’s simple and recognizable.
They also have “Be Bold”, the unofficial “I love my Ducks”, ‘This is Sportscenter” and the ever popular “no contest”.
If Syracuse has their way, (which I doubt) we may be lucky enough to force change upon the marketing department.
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2011/03/23/clemson_university_and_others_negotiate_with_syracuse_over_orange_trademark
Maybe OSU can resolve its identity crisis (I am orange) passively, by losing use of the term to Syracuse.
BTW, I was in seattle last week with a co-worker who had his OS logos on. One guy asked “Who’s OS?” then “Where’s Corvallis?” Another asked “Is that Oklahoma State?” there was one other similar remark….they were not sarcastic husky fans, these were people who simply did not know who the logo represented.
Some fundamental problems with the ad:
1) The “nation” is apparently the “rabid” OSU beaver fans – there are none in the image. The team is apparently in the covered practice center. Alone. The image should have the new side of reser in the background at least, with some texture applied to it, or some transparency, in a manner that allows for the players in the foreground to not be lost in the image.
2) I suppose that’s Halahuni and Catchings in the foreground? Halhuni is fine, but why feature the number of a player who can’t get on the field? Put in prominent players numbers.
I suggest the ad campaign could be improved by the following:
1) Fan base expansion ad campaign. I’ve said this before many times, but it should be “O! S! You!” with interspiced video of plays and fans and the favorite Reser chant superimposed over the video. It could even show potential reser expansion shots to show possible growth that could come with an expanding fan base.
2) Season marketing campaign: Rather than the passive language “I am Orange,” or “One Nation Under Orange,’ develop an active language campaign and relate it to the university somehow. I might for example, propose trading on the schools’ engineering aspect, and have a season campaign such as “Engineered for Victory.” Imagine “engineering” drawings” of Stephen Paea, James Roders, etc. that list their specs, weight, speed, tfls, total yards, total tds, etc., then the image morphs into the player on the field in a highlight play. Feature several players on O, D, and ST.
Agreed on the unis – narrow the white stripes, make the numbers smaller and move them up on the torso. The scale/placement IS differentiating from other schools, but it’s also a bit awkward as mentioned earlier.
Another miss by the OSU marketing staff/contractors…they remind me of some family that has a new computer with desktop publishing, so they unfortunately produce family newsletters with too many fonts, no cohesion, and no audience. They have the tech, they don’t have the ideas, aesthetics, or message….
What I can’t figure is this: One nation. Under Orange.
Why is the text that is actually colored orange under the black? Shouldn’t non-orange elements be under, orange rather than over it? Then again, I probably don’t get it. Like when OSU rolled out “Powered By Orange” after athletics had been running “I Am Orange” for almost a year. Seemed to me at the time that the logic implied OSU was powered by Athletics, since Athletics=Orange; and the campus was under a radical new campus-wide integrate marketing and communications mandate (from a V.P. now gone…), it had to be well-thought out and intentional.
I’ll probably be in the Chat at 3pm for the baseball game if anyone’s interested…no sense in doing a write up for a mid-week non-con game that will likely be rained out.
I think that the slogan or phrase should be something to the effect of
“Fill the Dam, Hear the Band, be part of the trend!”
“The flood is coming…Are you ready to be part of the Dam?!”
“the flood is coming… let’s dam it!
That sounds like a tampon commercial.
I just realized something really ridiculously stupid!
The slogan ISN’T, “ONE NATION, UNDER ORANGE.”
It’s actually, “ONE NATION. UNDER ORANGE”
It’s 2 separate sentences! That’s really bad/lame. If they’re so set on using the color “orange” than I guess we could use something like this, “WE SHINE ORANGE. LIKE THE SUN.”
EDIT!!!
“WE WEAR ORANGE. LIKE THE SUN.”
lol awesome! I can get the chat function to work on my palm! I’ll be in chat around 3:30ish. keep me updated on the score after 4pm though cause I have class from 4-7. :(
Missing a game for class? C’mon man.
it’s the Pilots and this teacher won’t allow us to miss very many classes…plus I’m trying to get Adobe flash player on my phone, but it’s becoming less and less likely that I’ll be able to do it.
No sign of the cartoon beaver.
How about:
Join Agent Orange. Help kill green things.
?
yes, now that is a slogan!
p.s. I like the black basic helmet but with an orange stripe maybe with a little white, so i’m happy with these unis. either that or numbers on the sides. all black is too plain
Orange you glad I didn’t say banana?
To me, this is the perfect ad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bV65Z7p2Xy8
It’s my favorite ad all-time…easily.
Great music (granted, not applicable in OSU ads), makes me want to buy the product (not that I’d ever buy a Hummer), can’t stop watching it/think about it after I’ve seen it, appeals to some human emotion (in this case, childhood/free spirit), etc. This is just an amazing ad.
Do I expect OSU to come up with something like this? No, it’s a once in a lifetime ad, but I’d accept the light edition.
Come on man. This is what we need.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-RLqLx1iYI
Holy crap…that is amazing
I’d like an ad that tells fans the school has turned a page and EXPECTS rather than HOPES to win games…forget talking about colors and rodents…talk about mindset.
That’s why I think we need to abandon all others and go with Powered by Orange. It’s original, and it has worked thus far. I think the secondary slogan behind it needs to be brought forward as well. Power Up! can be used across many different platforms and contexts. And all of them are good.
Imagine “One Nation. Under Orange.” being replaced with the already used “Powered by Orange. Power Up!”
It’s simple. It’s direct. It motivates the reader by just telling them what to do instead of implying some obscure notion of exclusivity that they think nobody else gets.
And best of all, it’s already ours and successfully in use.
If marketed even in a half-assed way, OSU can be synonymous with Power across many different markets. Unfortunately, our marketing department doesn’t quite get things, and I think they only congratulate themselves on the success within the specific markets for which they created this campaign.
Powered by Orange is the best thing we have right now…I’m not sure it’s the best we can do. It definitely makes sense in marketing the engineering program. It doesn’t make as much sense with athletics, but it’s better than one nation, under orange. lol
Here’s something simple done well within this context.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9cqem7Tfq8&feature=player_embedded
Why can’t we do something like this for sports?
If not that, then the football collage pieces for “i am Orange” can simply start with the cool little switch and lamp at the beginning of some Powered by Orange vids.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dugJH2PlMM&feature=relmfu
Follow that with the football/hoops/baseball collages, and instead of “I am [whatever]”/”I am Orange” at the end we could see “I am powered by Orange”/”Power Up!”
The whole Powered by Orange campaign still has work to do within its small target market, but I think it’s the cleanest and most direct marketing effort to date. Increased effort and expanded markets can make it university wide. It may not be the best we can do, but it’s proven. And the word association with “power” can speak for itself.
What would make the Powered By Orange campaign more effective is to turn it inside out – most of the PBO garbage is about getting students and staff and faculty to proclaim how they are PBO. In reality, it is the Orange that is powered by all these folks. In turn, segments of life off campus are PBO, as a way of describing the impact OSU has had on the state and region. But the on-campus PBO junk turned a lot of folks off real quick. Not well thought out and rammed down the collective campus throat.
I agree partially with angry – it’s what we have right now, but not the best. Try http://oregonstate.edu/media/ghfvl for something better. OSU can, and should, do better, on the campus side and the athletics side.
That would explain why the campaign has an incomplete feel to it. There are a bunch of spots where it feels organic and fluid. Then there are a bunch that feel contrived. I would have imagined such a campaign could have continued through grass roots to develop many more of the organic variety with low overhead and quite a bit of fun.
It should be made clear that the people are the engine that makes the university go. Whether it be engineering, earth or pure sciences, humanities, design or sport, the individuals are the power plants who drive a collective community which then contributes to the world around it. But is it really a surprise that an OSU marketing department would lose this focus?
If I remember correctly in talking with Bob D., the Sports Mktg. “dept.” at OSU is completely separate from Univ. mktg. AND is basically Bert Babb’s grandaughter plus students mainly. I don’t think they have paid professionals to conceptualize and execute design ideas.
Sounds about right.
It is a play on Beaver Nation which is still the most universal term for our fanbase.
I am optimistic about the use of the Giant Killer jerseys this year to some extent based on this ad. ASU is doing video ads and it is because they are going to have new unis and probably a new pitchfork logo, with likely more use of black.
The PAC-12 is a new era and I would like to see the Beavs move forward as well and actually use a slightly modified Giant Killer all year. Come up with an away and orange version as well. I wouldn’t mind if we did a secondary white or orange helmet for rare use either.
I think you do lessen the white stripes, slightly compress the numbering and replace the “O” on the pant with “OS” if that is what we are using. Riley and BDC seem intent on keeping the angrybeaver around though. I suppose if it is just on the field and not on our improved Giant Killer unis/helmets that would be OK. One thing though, the AngryBeaver on the football field is positioned too “flat”. The right side needs to be rasied about 15-18 inches because the logo looks better and is meant that way. It lloks more confident. They messed up a little when they put it on the football field or were trying to make a hash more visible and it was a mistake. The old field under Erickson had the Beaver positioned correctly and it looks alot better when not flat which makes it look “weaker” and more limp.
Maybe I am giving marketing too much cred to think we will get some Giant Killer use this year. It would be the smart move like ASU. This could just be a one off use of the ProKombats and that will be disappointing if true.
Go to http://www.osubeavers.com and see how the logo should perk up on the right. It is not that way on the football field. Probably only about 5 inches higher than left side on field and should be atleast 3 times that.
There’s a 15 minute rain delay for the baseball game–started a chat room for the game if anyone’s interested.
Anyone going fishing?
Was out on the McKenzie this past weekend. They were jumping not ten feet from my casts, but I had only one strike from both days combined. I started with a dropper rig, and I got a strike on the nymph on my third cast. Then I got nothing. And I continued to get nothing with a double nymph rig.
The water was high and fast, so I didn’t expect much. But it’s been a while since I’ve been skunked.
Looking at the Giant Killer #’s I think they need to only slightly be shrunk.
Oregon State acknowledges the vast majority of fans want the Giant Killers and markets them but then isn’t smart enough to use them for games this year? We shall see, but if that proves true it is more of a stubborn OSU Ath. Dept. resistant and sometimes scared of change. If we are selling it then lets use it!
When I think of “orange” in college sports, my mind goes to Syracuse not Oregon State.
We are the only orange in the PAC-12. It is actually supposed to be a good solidarity color. Nothing wrong with promoting it. We just need to keep selling out Reser for a couple of years so we can expand the stadium. BDC says Pat Reser would like to see it finished. Beaver Nation just needs to have all sell-outs for a bit and we will be there. Very exciting!
Check out our new Reser stadium expansion we hopefully will be starting in 2014:
http://blogs.oregonstate.edu/osuprof/files/2011/02/ReserStadiumIV-Concept.jpg
Os, sometimes I wonder if you’re a troll. You talk about that stadium expansion ALL THE TIME. It’s not going to happen, mate. We can’t sell out the current stadium, at the program as a whole is at a crossroads. Not exactly the time to be renovating the stadium…
We were 99.2% sold out last year Angry. Now we are starting PAC-12 play with a HUGE TV deal to be announced in the next few months. Trust me..the stadium will be packed full this year. The new west side will DEFINITELY be built in the next 5 years. We would be so far behind otherwise as Cal and the Huskies are about to dig dirt on MEGA stadium projects right now and soon enough the Ducks will expand their bowl as well. It will happen..Beaver Nation is growing and college football is growing in popularity every day. Its big business in case you missed it..
We need to get better more than we need to get bigger. On the field. Off the field.
Ding ding.
“If you build it they will come” is only true in bad movies.
Holes have been selling out for years and they are a maybe on the expansion. We need to sell out over capacity (not 99.2%) for years before we can have an expansion. You can’t add 10K+ seats after one near sellout season.
ASU apparently updating their look:
http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2011/04/arizona_state_university_and_n.php
Tinker Hatfield and Nike pitched an overhaul to BDC with a possibly redesigned beaver and probably going to OSU instead of OS just under two years ago. Because we just started using OS, Bob didn’t want to change again so quickly. However that may have been an ideal time before we have to get too used to something else. Regardless Nike knows how to market so it is 98% of the time best to listen to their opinions. (Sports bra the clear exception, but we got our current unis for free because of that). I would just hand the marketing account over to them, as long as we get a pay raise for using their gear, and let them put Oregon State on the national map. Clearly they can do it and I don’t think they are concerned with us outshining Oregon or anything. Nike is big enough though that they can afford to more aggressively promote Oregon State and make the Oregon/Oregon State combo more of a 1-2 punch and like Florida/FSU or something. Oregon State needs to be ranked in the polls every year and all year even if we do not have to be #1 or #2 in the country. Top 15 and in time Top 10 would be a solid start and is doable with Nike helping the cause. Our fans want to be nationally prominent as well. This is where BDC needs to move to the side and let the experts work their magic.
December of 2009: http://angrybeavs.com/athletics/1263
Ummm… Nike doesn’t actually do anything for marketing. They design, and they design poorly IMO. I have yet to see a revamped uni that I like. I think tOSU’s and Penn State’s unis are about as close as it gets for me liking a Nike uni, and that’s because they barely changed them from unis I used to really like.
Their shoes are total crap. They run narrow (by a bunch) and the quality of workmanship on each shoe within every pair I’ve ever seen is nowhere near the other shoe, let alone a good brand. Orthopedic problems in runners and athletes skyrocketed after shoe designers lost their way and started adding gel or air heel shock crapola and decided to rake in the money by pushing said crapola on an unsuspecting public who trusts that designers making stuff pretty can substitute for orthopedic physicians’ utilitarian input on such matters.
So what makes Nike successful?
Is it image? That’s due to their ad agency, not themselves. And their image is only good where onlookers are stupid.
Is it design? Hardly. Bobby D put them down on the heels of the sports bra unis. He was right to be hesitant to accept anything Nike does after that fiasco. I’m not saying Bobby D is right in being conservative. But, just like infidelity, if it happens once, it’s gonna happen again.
Simply put, Nike is successful because of money. They pay slave labor (not a metaphor) about 1% the cost of production. The slaves’ masters (sub-contractors and corrupt governments) are paid about 6%. And the cost to ship them is less than 1% per unit. You can probably derive the numbers for profit from there.
So I guess the question that remains is:
Are we satisfied with poor quality design and product so long as some rich criminals can convince a bunch of completely stupid people that what is truly ugly and made of blood sweat and tears is simply that way because we don’t really understand design and the 18 year-old mind?
A cautionary tale…
http://hca.gilead.org.il/emperor.html
I’m not sure I’m pro-Nike so much as I am pro-new ideas that Nike happened to offer.
Ideally, I’d like our AD to field ideas from anyone (whether a corporation or a homeless man on the street) who has a good one, but they simply won’t do that, so I’m left hoping they let the one company, Nike, that wants to try have a shot.
The problem is that Nike has yet to bring anything good to the table if what they’ve done to unis across the nation are any indication. I guess we’re starting from a bad enough place with the cartoon muskrat, the toxic avenger beaver mascot (wtf happened to Benny?), the bad 70’s cursive font and the innumerable fonts, slogans and ideas put out by the university.
But why are we jumping out of the frying pan?
I particularly like this part:
One day two swindlers came to this city; they made people believe that they were weavers, and declared they could manufacture the finest cloth to be imagined. Their colours and patterns, they said, were not only exceptionally beautiful, but the clothes made of their material possessed the wonderful quality of being invisible to any man who was unfit for his office or unpardonably stupid.
Ahhh… the prescience of a 150 year gone storyteller.
You know that ASU will be the next Pac 12 school to wear Beavs colors.
Now that I’ve had the whole day to look at it, this poster just sucks.
From a visual standpoint, the spacing is just horrid. There are white wastelands on the left and the top. And the black of the five sizes of the bad 60’s-B-movie-horror-flick font doesn’t fit with the sepia filtered black unis.
Why do we insist on trotting out the unoriginal and lazy reference to “nation”? We’re not the only
school to have a beaver nation. Bemidji State uses it too. Suffice it to say that Caltech and MIT don’t suffer from such a dumbing down.
And why is it set against the backdrop of a drop cloth?
Add to that the two anachronisms pointed out by people above. Why is there a period after Nation? Why is everything orange under everything black in a poster proclaiming everything to be under orange?
More on the identity crisis: http://gazettetimes.com/sports/beavers-sports/article_f79c02e2-5fb3-11e0-a4c6-001cc4c002e0.html
So – OSU’s logo is “OS:’
Cavs new motto “Fight Back.”
Hmmm, as I recall, it went like this. “Ohhhh. Essss. Youuuuu! Oregon State! FIght! Fight! Fight!”
Bring back the “U,” and just fight damnit. Don’t wait to get hit and then fight back…this program needs some agression….
I think the idea was that ll of last season consisted of the offensive line getting hit repeatedly. This entire year, they are to fight back.
You can still do the OSU chant and it’s still as good as it ever was. Personally, I like the OS logo and the idea of separating ourselves from tOSU and Oklahoma State.
‘Hit hard, hit first’ should be the line’s motto.
Everyone see we added a new 4-star LB? How does that happen after practice has started?
http://www.oregonlive.com/beavers/index.ssf/2011/04/oregon_state_adds_4-star_lb_jo.html
Either way I’m stoked if it’s true. Can always use more talent at LB.
Thanks for the link. He’s been on the radar for a long time. Always a question to if he would qualify. Nice to see he’s officially in the mix.
http://rivals.yahoo.com/oregonstate/football/recruiting/player-Josh-Williams-115752
Williams was always a recruit. His commitment and the academic entrance requirements for SMU which gave us Darryl Jackson are the reasons Devon Moreland almost ended up being a Beav. If June Jones hadn’t obtained an exception for Moreland, he would have come here too.
It’s still good news that everyone from last year’s class made it in. Now I wonder if Thomas Molesi and Happy Iona are still on the radar for next year since we loaded up on d-linemen this year.
And what are the odds we bring in Isaac Seumalo? I think the chances are good, but can anyone really blame him if he chooses Stanford instead? I wouldn’t begrudge anyone that choice or even a decision to go Ivy League if they had the opportunity. As much as I believe an education is an individual endeavor which can be gained anywhere (and OSU has better resources than most for this argument), the advantages of alumni business and political connections from the academic elites is hard to pass on.
I hear Molesi is on track and will make it eventually, while Iona is having grade/language issues that will likely prevent him from ever seeing the field.
Seumalo says he is wide open and interested in Stanford. While they offer an obvious academic advantage, it’s going to be hard for him to trust that staff over OSUs (bird in the hand…) so I think we’re in the lead right now. Also, it depends what he wants to major in and where he wants to live, etc. I’ll be looking for more quotes from him that will give us insight.
The thing about Stanford is that it’s harder to get in than it is to graduate. It’s similar to Ivy League schools in that way. The truly elite students will work hard and rise to the top wherever they go. These schools just try to increase the number of elite students as a percentage of the student body by being extremely exclusive in admissions. OSU has a land grant mission which mandates service to all qualified students seeking admission while space allows them. Since Ed Ray is seeking increased enrollment up to about 35K students, I don’t see general admissions standards increasing any time soon. But i do expect programs within departments to become more elite. The model is a pretty standard one put in place by the UC system. It’s pretty much like AP classes in high school. The general student body will go about their business while a small cadre of elite students compete against each other in a more challenging environment.
The advantages of a Stanford or Harvard are more political than they are academic. But a part of those politics is carrying on the pretense that it’s actually academics.
I would liken it to the false level of costs for MD’s salaries due to a constricted med school admissions policy as mandated by med school alumni who pull the purse strings for said med schools. The AMA protects its own by Catholic priesting the 3% of doctors who are responsible for 60% of all malpractice suits just to keep demand low. Since they do this, they can restrict supply at their alma maters by using money as a club.
Nice to hear that about Molesi. Wonder if he’s still taking a mission.
He’s never been ranked 4-stars by anyone. Funny they say he’s a Rivals 4-star…he is if you count the OSU fan poll. lol.
http://rivals.yahoo.com/footballrecruiting/football/recruiting/player-Josh-Williams-115752
If I remember correctly, he had obvious skills, but wasn’t he the one who tackled too high too often?
That, but he has a lot of other issues, too.
1. A lot of his tackles are 10 yards downfield.
2. He has bad form–he throws a shoulder at the RB instead of form tackling him.
3. He’s undisciplined/running around like a lunatic. Teams that run a read/option will have fun with him.
He’s probably a 2-star talent when all things are considered. Athletically, maybe 3-star, but discipline and intelligence need to be part of the grade.
I’d seriously like to know where the Oregonian got that he was ranked 4-stars…because the blind Riley supporters will read that and believe it, when it’s simply not true.
The official press release says he’s a 4-star. lol
http://www.osubeavers.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/040611aaa.html
Our quality Rivals affiliate is probably spreading that around.
Here’s his film…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vF3BRq1vgMM&
You guys can decide for yourselves if you agree with my assessment.
I was excited to read the initial report about OSU landing a 4-star linebacker. Then I watched Williams’ highlight film (early this morning) and found myself wondering how this kid merited 4 stars. Angry — I agree completely with your assessment of Williams. He’s a project, at best.
ASU is smart that they desire to “ensure they are represented as an elite, 21st century brand!”
Oregon State needs the same thing done next. According to the article above about ASU, the makeover process to having a “Winning” look and aura takes just 9 months. We probably don’t need to rush Nike, but if we were just talking some modifications to the Giant Killer ProKombats with an away and orange version then we probably could still have it ready by fall.
ASU is smart to usher in the new PAC-12 era this way. Oregon State has decent unis yes, but it is time to also “ensure OSU is an elite, 21st century program!” and do an intensive Nike design makeover to have that elite and damn cool look we know is possible and that will help to consistently attract more top recruits to Oregon State.
Can you give an example of an elite and damn cool look currently on the field? I’ve seen some mock-ups of ASU unis, and they’re not good. I’m hoping they aren’t going anywhere near the horns on the helmet or dumping Sparky as the school mascot. Even Nikegon knows that Disney designers had and have more skill and lasting impact than a couple Nike hacks with MS Paint.
I still refuse to buy any ugly angry muskrat swag. And i’m ready to throttle whoever dumped Benny for that tumor addled steroid mascot we currently have.
In the end, Nike will just do what they’ve done with every uni they’ve touched and make them some SWAC/Arena League combo with shiny socks and stripey things all over.
Jersey’s cannot be produced within months. Nike says it takes about a year typically before they come in. Orders go out in July, so if we ordered this July we would receive them July 2012. A rush order costs WAY more.
The ASU helmets will have the pitchfork at the end of the one video. Basically a trident on the helmets. Oregon has had alot of recruiting success using their flashy unis. The model can be used elsewhere and would better limit the near monopoly Oregon has on this front now. It is just design. What do you think would look good? I think it is a combination of keeping them from being too complicated and making them striking when design elements are used. I would be down with an art contest. There are alot of talented artists at OSU and they could do a statewide search and narrow it to 5 or 6 options and then they could take their favorite ideas and incorporate them with help from Adidas or Nike. We should be getting more money from Nike though so maybe we need to flirt so Nike steps up and cares about the interests of the other 50% of families in the state with an appropriate contract. We are just another chance for them to showcase their design/marketing abilities and whether they are always pure hits isn’t as important as the fact that recruits gravitate to bolder 21st century designs and programs who want and expect to be elite.
I seriously doubt recruits go to Nikegon for the unis. Once they’re there, they rationalize the unis, but I think it has more to do with video games and plasma TV’s in each locker.
And I don’t know where the 50% of families in Oregon comes into play. The state is much more invested in OSU’s success than it is in Nikegon’s. Many people recognize on-field success, but the constant uni changes and use and abuse of our tax dollars are huge turn-offs to the public at large. Here’s a look at the rankings for college licensing.
http://www.clc.com/clcweb/publishing.nsf/Content/rankings.html
Note how only UCLA and UW barely outpace OSU? I know you don’t see Nikegon on this list, but that’s because they don’t disclose royalty fees to the public… like a public institution should. Apparently they think they’re USCum or something. I will tell you that Nikegon outpaced OSU by about $400K in gross sales in 2009. OSU then shot past Nikegon in gross licensing revenues in the past two years by a large margin. The charts will tell you that OSU had a hiccup in sales in 2007, but they have increased six-fold otherwise over the last seven years.
Combine those charts with football recruiting, and we can probably blame Nike for the poor 2007 and 2008 recruiting classes due to the sports bra prank. I don’t know where some new look would put us in terms of licensing revenues since it seems that the top teams are those who reject the new-fangled USFL looks Nike tries to push for their own classic unis. But i do know that sports bras will kill any team’s on-field success three and four years down the road.
So I’ve gone and looked at ASU’s unis over the years, and it looks like they’ve only had crap unis and a fandom who whines about changing them to something (anything) just to get rid of the design… since Nike took over as their apparel designer. Even all the vids they’re putting out now harken to the past as if the 90’s are the past. Russell supplied a great, clean uni for ASU, then Nike got a hold of them and threw stripeys and piping and armpit horns all over the place in a number of poor choices for design. And the fans have whined about it every step of the way.
Now they are hyping it on message boards as the second coming, and I doubt they return to a strong, classic look. But the roll-out will probably coincide with an announcement for stadium renovations, and I’ve heard rumors that other new construction will take place in a Phoenix effort to gain the Olympics. All this glitz will blind fans from reality and associate the new uni design with something good. In reality, they will revert to what they did for the last decade with the last decade of Nike designs. They will realize that they still have garish unis, and they will whine for change yet again.
Is anyone here a Catholic who finds this ad blasphemous?
I was raised Catholic (no longer practicing that religion), and can definitely envision pious people/groups taking offense to the ad.
(It is very anti-OSU to offend, so I’m assuming the marketing department didn’t make the connection, which shows just how dimwitted they are).
Actually, yes. I have loyalties that can’t be divided and shared with the state, career, alma mater, etc. That said, I enjoy OSU athletics.
I’m a devout Catholic and this actually doesn’t bother me. I have a few reasons why: 1) it’s taking a few things from a pledge and replacing God(which really means the God you worship, but that’s neither here nor there) 2) if they had used the Nicene creed(the creed of what Catholics believe in; then yes, that would offend me. 3) and third of all, can you really pledge to a color or believe in a color? I believe it exists, but it will not inherently save me. That’s another reason why the “slogan” is ridiculously dumb.
Does anyone think Portland U is satisfied with being the second best baseball team in Oregon every year? They can’t feel great about losing to us on a perennial basis, but they do have Nikegon to kick around as a consolation.
I don’t get the backlash about this. Frankly, i think it’s ridiculous.
An item that isn’t silly hand-wringing: Pnbuker Paul Buker
LIVE AT THE VC: Man down, man down. … OL Mau Nomani )(6-4, 327 soph, Tigard) has quit the team, we are told
That’s too bad. I hope he stays in school or that this isn’t school related.
I wonder if he was counting on a scholarship, and Williams making it took that opportunity away?
Brownale, you are one cranky dude.
And that sucks about Nomani…hopefully he’s just dejected about not getting a scholie and decides to give it another go. He has a great frame and natural strength. Maybe his heart just isn’t in it–those missions can probably change perspective.
Both Cliff and Buker made mention of Ward and Marable today. I’m hearing both just have a knack for making people miss. Buker goes on to note d-line shifts. Henry in for Harrah, and Tuivailala is moving up.
Steven Jackson is “helping create the OSU uniform of the future” as a Nike design intern. Could they possibly be ready for the fall? Maybe, but more likely for fall 2012 I think. Sounds great. I trust Tinker Hatfield is back trying to come up with a winning design with some input from some famous OSU alum. Will it just be the unis or will it be a little more involved and maybe include a redesign or elimination of the Beaver. I don’t think you have to rule out having an improved Beaver of some sort but it would be better have a reference to OSU instead of “Beavers” below it since that is redundant. The one thing I like about “OS” over “OSU” is it probably looks better on hats. I think you can still chant “Ohh Ess Uuu” at games even with “OS” if it ends up being better looking.
I am hoping for the best. I actually liked the sail color pants of the Giant Killers and think it also is a nod to the “sailor” hat of Benny and Newport and OSU’s increasing role in NOAA and oceanography.
Some have suggested they could do more of a silhouette of a Beavers eyes and tail or something. I don’t know.
The Giant Killers were pretty tight though. I would be fine with the modifications to those suggested by many of slimming the white and slightly reducing the font of the numbers. With as much as helmets are used on College Football Live I wonder if it is OK to not have a logo on them. Will people outside the PAC-12 know it is the Oregon State Beavers? For that reason Nike may have to come up with a solid logo we will like that is an improvement to the angrybeaver. Not purely necessary but otherwise we have some work to do before a black matte helmet with and orange stripe and thin white trim was iconic.
Glad to see the work is ongoing though on getting OSU its 21st century unis of the future for a new chapter of intense PAC-12 play!
I like the black matte helmets, with a little work on the stripe and putting a good logo (letters or a beaver) on ONE side only I think they could be a winner.
The one side thing like we did in 98 might be a decent option. Tinker Hatfield says he was thinking a “Steeler tough” image for the Beavs and this would allow still the good black matte option but also us to show our logo on the helmet to the camera for TV shows when desirable. Nike just has to make the overall look very attractive for recruits to really want to wear our uniform and be drawn to the Oregon State program. I have faith we can do a good job at making our image that of an “elite” program like it needs to be.
This is a quote from Riley about his hiring of the 2 new coaches on O-live:
http://www.oregonlive.com/beavers/index.ssf/2011/04/oregon_state_rundown_practice.html
“At this point, it seems to me it’s rather seamless,” said Riley of the coaching shuffle. “I waited too long and I put a big burden on these guys to get ready in a short period of time. You kind of have to go day to day with it. But these guys are smart, and they’re hard-working and they’re spending a lot of time at it. In the meantime, they’re trying to get their families settled, too, so they’ve got their hands full.”