"So…Big Gulps, Huh?" –Lloyd Christmas
*Yawn*
Is there anything worth discussing? Not really. Maybe the only thing worth discussing is how there is nothing worth discussing. Slow times or something greater?
Can't say I'm intrigued by even the baseball team right now. Maybe that will change by the end of the week, but it looks like the Beavs will be hosting a regional whether they sweep or get swept by Oregon. Well, maybe not if they get swept, but with one win. That means there's nothing too exciting for a couple weeks.
I guess I'll use this down time to mention something that's been bothering me. It has to do with Mike Parker and booze. There, fair warning…if that topic either bores or offends you: stop reading and leave now!
Okay, so basically, I am having a doubly hard time listening to Parker since the napkin incident. Everyone knows I hate his "should have been out of the inning" and "what if" subjunctive mood pontifications. But my latest gripe with Mike isn't due to his mentally draining homerisms. No, it's about the booze and the napkin. It's not that I believe drinking booze and eating napkins are horrible offenses or foibles. My friends drink. Squirrels and pandas gnaw on tree bark, and I love both just fine. It's that in the past, when things didn't go well for the Beavers, I could dismiss the dejection in Parker's voice, but now when I hear that dejection I take notice and have an emotional reaction. I think, "Wow, he is so depressed about that missed bunt, he's probably going to get hammered ex post ballgame because of it." This is not what a listener wants to think or feel during a game. I don't like to imagine a 60 year old man lurching and hurling because teenagers and small-town life have left a cavern in his soul. Listening to such a person makes me depressed.
I just can't stand knowing a guy is a sad sap. It changes everything for me. It's why I don't want pictures or information about anyone who reads this blog. The less information, the better. The less information, the more I can believe you're an upstanding citizen who doesn't lurch and hurl.
And full disclosure: I drink about zero times per month. Essentially quit cold turkey after the football season when I began to feel the buzz just wasn't as good as it used to be. But yeah, during football season, historically I have three cocktails while watching the game, and I write things like "load up on the gin, boys" on the blog. But, I've enjoyed sobriety so much that I might not even do that this year.
Okay, glad I got that off my chest. Talk about anything you want since there's really not much to talk about. (Prediction for the first comment: "WE NEED A POWERFUL BRAND"). Lol…
Well… See you later!
During the USC series, Parker caught himself pontificating “what ifs” and “should haves” and commented on it…said something to the effect that he was aware of it and would try to stop harping and let things go. Sounds like he’s in cognitive behavioral therapy.
It’s somewhat difficult now to listen to MP without thinking about the videotaped incident. However, I appreciate his background knowledge and the interviews he has with people who contribute to OSU sports in whatever manner. I sometimes wish he didn’t seem to need to talk every single moment, i.e., when someone is at bat, he can just tell us that and then report on what follows – he doesn’t always need to rattle on.
Yep.
I like the guy who covered for Parker early in the year. He’d be quite for minutes at a time, and had zero investment. He called a good game when he wasn’t confused.
C’mon, Angry, the guy who covered early?? He was not only quite for minutes at a time but was very often totally confused. Made a number of blatant mistakes. He seemed like a guy with some potential but was only able to do a satisfactory job when Jim Wilson was there to bail him out.
It is regrettable that Parker’s alcohol abuse interferes with your enjoyment of the broadcast; may have something to do with your prior negative feelings about his ability.
I have been pretty successful separating his on air work from his personal (albeit not private) deficiencies. Better able to focus on the game that way, and there is plenty to focus on this weekend.
I can understand the opinion that, “he doesn’t always need to rattle on” but beg to differ.
I rely on the a radio play-by-play guy to give me as much of the experience of being at the game as possible. That comes, in large part, by filling in the spaces between action with comments about the environment, recollections of past game situations, and the like. Heck, I like knowing that some fan made a great catch on a foul ball; it adds to the feeling of being there.
I will admit, however, that the “what ifs” do occasionally become tedious.
GO BEAVS, sweep the Ucks, one at a time!
hey angry, what about the recruiting class for football for the upcoming year. To me it looks like Riley and company are finally picking and choosing which 3 star athletes to go after. By doing that, they can go after mor 4-5 atar recruits. Take a look at scout.com for yourself. I think the administration side of the football program is improving. Changes are a good thing and Riley may have finally caught on to that with hiring young guys for coaches and letting 2 “loyal” staff members go. It’s a start in the right direction.
I agree with all of this…they’re offering higher caliber 3-star recruits, being more selective/smart, and delegating better. They’re also embracing technology for the first time ever.
They offered a guy, Brent Vanderveen, local to where I live. His comments rubbed me the wrong way, though: “I’m looking for a place where I can come in and compete right away,” he said. “I don’t want to sit behind three guys waiting for a chance.”
Big words for a guy in high school.
I like his quick release after a play action fake. I like his fade ball, how he throws the ball in stride, how he isn’t afraid to keep his feet moving after someone tries to tackle him, his ball fake to the running back, and he has some pretty good speed.
What I don’t like about this guy is that he has happy feet and his arm strength doesn’t appear to be all that strong, but his mechanics and ability to play QB are definitely there. I also like his height.
forgot to add the youtube video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndidRN3UDVc
I think Eric Beaver was following up your big gulps quote.
Oh, good point. Haha.
(response deleted)
One note: Alcoholism is not a disease, and the treatment of it as a disease is far less successful than in societies and cultures who recognize addictions as dysfunctions. Lay people call it a disease because private treatment facilities and personnel (and the morally temperate) have a vested interest in it’s legal determination. Studies have shown that compelling addicts to participate in private “treatment” activities (or similarly constructed programs) actually increases recidivism beyond the in-place strict legal sanctions (prison, fines, revoking licenses, etc.).
There are so many factors which contribute to the negative “symptoms” of alcoholism. And while alcohol abuse does cause or contribute to actual diseases, that abuse in and of itself is not a disease.
Knowing your limitations and responsibly adhering to them is the only “cure” for alcoholism. You have to worry about anyone who is compelled to moderate or abstain due to personal conflict or humiliation. Removal of the conflict or humiliation also removes the motive to comply with moderation or abstention. Too often, addicts forget their own personal realities as a result.
But we could go on for years with this discussion. The sad fact is that our society is so far politically and morally from being in the same world as reality that I can find innumerable defenses of the disease model (99.99% from people who do no valid study on the subject).
I pretty much agree. This is how I view alcoholism:
1. Like most behavior, there is a genetic (i.e. temperament) and environmental component. There are people with no genetic predisposition who become alcoholics due to trauma, etc. There are people with genetic predispositions who have great families yet succumb to the bottle. There’s every combination in between, too.
2. By calling it a disease, it deflects responsibility (at least in people without any genetic predisposition) and invokes sympathy.
3. The real victims are people who cross paths with an alcoholic.
4. Alcoholism is, many times, a byproduct of some other genetic predisposition or trauma. For this reason it’s more of a symptom of something larger than a disease itself. It wouldn’t surprise me if Parker had a real disease, like chronic depression or manic depression, and the alcohol is his band aid for the soul.
5. I can feel sympathy for a fat guy who can’t stop eating, but I can’t feel sympathy for an alcoholic. Difference being one if a victimless crime and the other puts society/innocent people at risk. I can feel sympathy for an alcoholic who drinks alone and seeks therapy to retrain their mind. Not those who go out to bars and drive home. I think a potential good question that the media missed (not surprising) was “Mike, who drove you home that night?”…if he had a driver, and his crimes were always victimless, I’d have a lot easier time giving him the sympathy most fans want to lavish upon him. Since he was sitting alone, I can only assume he drove himself.
Of course, there is some hypocrisy in all this. I’ve had liquor in my system and driven a vehicle. I never felt I was putting anyone at risk, and if I did, I waited or had someone else drive. I guess what I am saying is I can understand a young kid doing something like this, but at some point in young adulthood a person should realize it’s selfish/unfair to drive a car just because you want a drink yet don’t want the inconvenience of arranging a ride.
Parker was only ashamed because he was caught. This is common amongst criminals. By talking about his problems on the air, he garnered a lot of apologists and sympathizers. The people who feel that way wouldn’t if they had a family member blindsided by Parker.
Anyway, my main point is that his alcoholism takes the fun out of the broadcast. He’s in great spirits when the game is going well, but as soon as something goes wrong he makes up an excuse or what if scenario, becomes dejected, and then as a listener I picture him hitting the bottle. That’s a pretty depressing image and real distraction when you’re trying, as a fan, to experience the game’s emotions (through your own senses and feelings rather than Parker’s) and just get the facts (and maybe a little color).
I have less sympathy for fat people than alcoholics. Fat people are more often than not poor. Poor people don’t have health insurance. When their dumb fat asses have heart attacks causing them to rack up tens of thousands of dollars in medical expenses that they have no way of paying, guess where that money comes from? You and I pay for it with our tax dollars and bloated medical expenses.
While I’m ranting and even further off topic, I’m tired of explaining to idiots why there is a seatbelt law. It’s not to protect your dumb ass, but rather, it’s to stop the rest of society from having to pay for your dumb ass when you fly through the windshield.
Your argument here is flawed. You forget that most poor people are fat because that is the food they can afford. Also poor people tend to have less education which is associated with obesity. your argument should be an indictment of society at large, largely related to the bifurcation of our society in rich and poor.
Poor people tend to buy cheap food, which equates to carbohydrates/sugars. If they aren’t active, these foods quickly convert to fat.
Also, to say poor people are fatter than rich people is misleading unless you’re using relative comparisons such as percentages. If you’re talking pure numbers, of course there are more poor/fat people–there are more poor people, period. And by a landslide. But think of all the thin people who become rich/successful (as defined by this society) and then become fat. It’s really common. Your point that they have health insurance to cover their indulgences is accurate.
If you hate the poor (by the tone of your post it seems like you do) you should read “Down and Out in Paris and London” by George Orwell.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diathesis%E2%80%93stress_model
:)
How about a Pac-10 baseball title? That’s something to talk about. Hasn’t happened since 2006 right? I think that’s worth mentioning. I appreciate the constructive criticism and love the cynicism, but it’s worth stopping to celebrate the good things now and then.
True about the conference title. That USC series took some wind out of the season’s sail…right now I’m not into it, but probably will be come this weekend.
And back off Mike Parker. He’s a good announcer. If thinking about him having alcohol issues is troublesome, focus on his calls. I’m sure every person posting on this blog has done some stupid shit while intoxicated. Chalk it up to a mistake and move on. Compared to a lot of college level announcers, Parker is elite.
Oh, I do focus on the calls, but this is the problem I am having (pasted from above):
Anyway, my main point is that his alcoholism takes the fun out of the broadcast. He’s in great spirits when the game is going well, but as soon as something goes wrong he makes up an excuse or what if scenario, becomes dejected, and then as a listener I picture him hitting the bottle. That’s a pretty depressing image and real distraction when you’re trying, as a fan, to experience the game’s emotions (through your own senses and feelings rather than Parker’s) and just get the facts (and maybe a little color).
My main interest in OSU athletics remains the football team. But, how about the addition of the track facility? And will it improve OSU Football”s recruiting ability?
What about the priority and schedule of applying the increased television revenue (e.g. debt first, then what?). Related to the increased funding, when do they begin to think about using that to leverage funds to complete Reser? And I know you don’t like this topic, but I think the expansion needs to be considered in the context of a Pac-12 championship game.
While I can’t imagine conservative “we’re just happy to be here, good lord willing we’ll compete” OSU actually planning for a championship game, I think they need to develop that kind of winning mindset – we’re going to host a champsionship game, and we want to do it in an appropriate facility.”
Will it be a while again before they contend for the Pac crown in football? Yes, but I think they should have the confidence to plan for expansion and the idea of holding the game in Reser. I know the increased revenue can’t buy a new west side, or finish the south endzone bowl, but it seems like the money could be used to leverage other funds for these purposes.
Expansion can be summed up easily: OSU doesn’t sell out the current stadium. Any demand issues from a championship game would be made up by the high price of the ticket. A smaller stadium drives that price up. I’d love to expand Reser, but it’s pointless when games aren’t selling out.
Track will definitely help recruiting. The lack of that program is a big hindrance right now.
Regarding Pac-12 wildfall: Bob D said he’s going to pay off debt (10 million) over time. If they pay it off all at once, they’d fall behind other universities. The plan is to pay down as much as possible while also having enough budget to advance each program. It looks like even with this windfall it will take until 2015 or so before we see significant improvements. The first few years will be paying down debt/maintaining and slightly upgrading current programs. Bob said the money could theoretically help with a track program, but is hesitant to verbally commit to that. Hopefully the Pac-12 network generates significant revenue…seems we still need some big donors to step up, too, if we want to see quick improvement.
glad to hear that bobby d is paying debts over time. Also, Reser will cause us to lose money and possible donors who only pay half the donor fees on the west side because they are grandfathered in. Once we tear down the west grand stand, it will take away the press box for a season and it will take away more seating due to buildning the 4 brick pillars to match the east side. Also, the donors will be moved to other sections of the stadium. So could it be possible that the AD decided to use a control in the north endzone with the top 3 rows and moving those fans around the stadium and grandfathering them into other donor seats to see how the general reaction is by said fans being moved?
Its not pointless to be planning for expansion now. OSU will be considered a team that just is satisfied with Kraft Hunger and New Mexico Bowls until we start acting like we want more than just one Pac-12 championship to be played at Reser someday. Oregon right now has the attitude that EVERY Pac-12 championship will be played at Autzen and no doubt they will see atleast a few CCG in the current decade.
We need to have the attitude at minimum that we will be hosting one in the next 5 years. We also need to try to build the program more and try to be more excited about our opportunities. We were over 99% sold out last year so saying we are not on the cusp seems flawed. It is how we respond to keep the momentum going that matters. Some seem more satisfied to be applying the brakes to current growth trends. That is just no way to think of your program. That you want to stall growth and the buzz factor of Oregon St. football. We have accomplished some close efforts in the past few years, last year was not so hot, but we should be confident we can get back there and not let that recent progress fade. It takes hard work and I would like to see Riley and our administration take a more “We can do it” attitude. Nothing in my mind says we have to be second to Oregon. As an Oregon Stater I want other Oregon St. fans who want a Rose Bowl and being aggressive in getting to one soon. If WSU can do it, we certainly can. I just wish more of us would demand more than mediocrity so that there was more obvious hunger that Riley and BDC would make goal #1 to satisfy. Football makes the money and if we build the new west side in the next 5 years we will be in position to getting people believing we have our own strong and confident program in the NW. With all the exposure Oregon St. can take a big step up in people’s minds if we continue to build a strong program and keep OSU in the national rankings and a factor to go through in the national landscape. I believe this is very doable, with just trying harder and voicing and showing to the public your intentions. I look forward to a new west side by 2016 and I am sticking to that because I know that is the best for Oregon St. and we can do it if we all believe in our vision and that we can definitely host CCG in Corvallis. There should be multiple years where if we beat Oregon at home this is a possibility and I can’t wait for when it happens. If we are more excited about our program I believe it will happen sooner. I think if we get men’s track back in the next 4-5 years that will also support this vision and allow speedy recruits so that we always will have top athletes at Oregon St and get more 4 and 5 star talent. Its time to stop thinking regionally at take Oregon St athletics to the national market. A powerful brand will help but so will a holistic approach to growing the program and the prestige of OSU Athletics in general.
You completely bypassed my point entirely. There is an article out there somewhere. Again, don’t have time to find it at the moment. I read from a reliable source that There are serious issues of lost revenue and seating and the length it will take to build the West side completely. Right now, it’s not practical to destroy seating on the west side from I believe close to 9,000 down to 5,000 or less just to build the Pillars on the West side. So, by having destroyed the west side grand stand, they will have to put in a temporary concrete the old East side bleacher set up to accommodate those that still want to sit on that side and move the donors to other parts of the stadium for a season or longer.By doing this, it will force those donors that are currently grandfathered in to pay 50% of donor fees to sit on the current West side, to pay the full donor fee because they will no longer be grandfathered in once the new west side gets constructed.
The other problem with this is that it will be similar to when the Valley Center got built. OSU AD sacraficed about 1,000-2,000 seats just to build the valley center. That’s essentially what they will be doing with the West side. Also, you have to realize that if we tear down the West side, there will be no Press/Sky boxes on the West side for a season. So, will that mean that the East side Sky Boxes be converted into the temporary Press/Sky Boxes? That’s lost revenue there as well. So overall, this is a huuuuuge problem in that We bit off more than we could chew in that we didn’t realize that the West Side would take a full year to a year and a half to complete. We could work something out with Oregon that we use Autzen for a season and we have home games when they have road games and Reser Stadiums staff operates down in Eugene for a season so we still get those profits. Cause that’s the only way I see it, those are our only 2 options if we were to complete the West Side. I recommend that we finish the South endzone, bowl and then the North endzone, and lastly the West side to complete the stadium. Instead of doing the North endzone one season and then the West side and South endzone together at the same time in one year. It will make it easier to deal with. Also, what they could do is build the lower part of the bowl first like they did for the South endzone and then build the brick facade behind that up to a certain point and add the upper deck in the south endzone. They already stated that the students will not be moved or added to the West side once it’s completed. So create donor levels for the lower section temporarily and then once the West side is completed, they move everyone back to the proper donor sections. That’s all I got, but there are serious ramifications of taking out the press/sky boxes because they are necessary and we could make it like a high school press/sky box where it sits on top of the lower sections. I don’t know. I’m rambling.
Sacrilege! I will not stand for talk of us leaving our stadium, named after one of our esteemed alums, for another stadium… um… well… named after one of our esteemed alums….
Never mind.
lol, exactly! Thanks for reading my ramblings JackBeav. As far as I’m concerned, there is no “Dire need” to expand. It won’t increase revenue, it will actually decrease the revenue by a lot. We may lose current donors and that is not a good thing when we want 12,000 by 2012.
beavers4life,
My understanding is that if they were to do both the south endzone upperdeck and the new west side, and not just the new west side, that the scoreboard would move above the Valley Football Center. I don’t see room to do hardly anything else in the North Endzone. What were your thought about what they might or could do in the north endzone?
They would mirror the south endzone design to make it more uniform all the way around the stadium. Also, they would make it so they could add a visitors locker room on the north side and fans would get in from the West side instead off to the side of the Valley Center. See the BeaverBlitz.com “photo” of the completed stadium OS_Beavers posted awhile back on a different post…not sure where that is.
I found the finished Reser rendering OS_Beaver posted before. Here it is.
http://blogs.oregonstate.edu/osuprof/files/2011/02/ReserStadiumIV-Concept.jpg
To me the only thing I see on the North they could do is fill in the northeast corner until the new west side is built. I don’t think they could do the northwest corner or fans could not get to the seats easily. Doesn’t look like much else is to be changed in the North, except the scoreboard probably goes on top of the VFC when the South uppder deck gets built. You don’t think they actually move any of the VFC walls do you?
The structure of the north endzone is terrible. There will be a lower section like the south endzone has now and a smaller upper section that the East side has with seat backs. The lower sections should still have bleachers, but the upper sections will have seat backs. Also, the corner that has the ramp will become a tunnel and should be mirrored on the opposite side for when the new visitors locker room is added to that side of the VFC. They would be stupid not to add the visitors locker room to be connected to the stadium and the North endzone will be connected with a tunnel on the northeast and northwest corner. That was originally supposed to be implemented to the South endzone, but they scrapped it to add more seating. So I wouldn’t be suprised to see the dual tunnel in the Northern corners of the stadium to accommodate the visitors locker room.
With the lull in Baseball, I have a question pertaining to Football. How do they figure the north and south champs in the new pac 12? Do they only take head to head in each division for that champ? Or is it best pac 12 record in each division. Would the loser of the Pac 12 championship get the # 2 Alamo bowl? And would the remaining bowls be by pac 12 record. Seems if it is all pac 12 then some teams have easier schedules than others and have a better chance at better bowls. I have yet to see anything in print on the subject.
Question #1, I’m not positive, but it’s probably the same method every other conference uses.
Regarding the Alamo Bowl…I’m not sure if you remember, but a few years ago they changed the pecking order. Holiday moved down a slot, etc. At that same time, they gave the selection committees the option to choose who they want for a given bowl. Beavs could finish second and get snubbed by the Alamo. They probably would if a “more attractive” (this is the phrase they like to use) team had a comparable record.
Ted Miller of ESPN Pac-12 Blog answered this question either earlier this month, or last month sometime. I tried to find the mailbag of April, but ran out of time(Thanks Bitcholloti for giving us a quote we could use. lol) Anyways, the jist of it in short is that one Team from each division that has either the best overall conference record or the best overall division record will play in the CCG. If there is a tie between let’s say Oregon and Stanford next year in the Northern division, then it will be decided with head-to-head, then the one with the best ranking in the BCS. To determine who has home field advantage is the same exact way. It’s whomever has the best overall conference or overall record that has the home field advantage. If it’s a tie, then it goes to BCS rankings. Also, USC may or may not be exempt from the CCG this year depending if the NCAA deems that the punishment was too harsh for a past offense. Not sure on the latter, but am very sure on the former.
USC loses their appeal.
Larry Scott on Sunday games:
http://espn.go.com/espnradio/player?rd=1#/podcenter/?id=6587988&autoplay=1&callsign=ESPNRADIO
Angry, it would be nice if you could have the scores up for each baseball series. It’s nice to have times and pitchers but the score for each game would be awesome or at least winner. I always look here first to see what’s going on. All sports you write about would be even better.
Thanks!
More money: http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/6270202/29571144
Say what you like about Larry Scott. The dude has his thumb on new tech more than anyone I’ve ever known in his business. Google TV will be the next big wave, and going digital with them is being on the cutting edge. Why rely on cable and satellite fees and access when you can just strike a deal with Google and let anyone who has internet roll on into your entire inventory at once?
I bet Larry Scott gets 2 billion for Pac-12 Media Enterprises and the Pac-12 Network over the life of our 12 year TV deal with ESPN and Fox. Add that to the 3 billion megaTv deal and we may just be a 5 billion dollar league boys!
Hence, why I say we need to start planning for Reser expansion by 2016 at the latest. Get our men’s track team back in the next 3 or 4 years for recruiting, etc. and we should be looking strong. You either keep moving forward or you don’t belong in the Pac-12. This league is going to be great. I am very excited that I will be in Reser when the first conference championship game is played at Oregon St.!
OSU announced that the new track and field facility will break ground Tuesday, June 14.
http://www.osubeavers.com/sports/w-track/spec-rel/052311aab.html
The date’s been known for a couple months, and the time was announced about a week ago. I wish I could take the kids… get them away from the Duck-centric in-laws for an afternoon.
I’ll be at the game tomorrow, rain permitting. I’m hoping I’m a part of a minority in the crowd having fun. Nikegon managed to take the season series from Portland for the first time. It would suck to see them win the Civil War series as well.
looks like the angry beaver logo will be used on the new track as well.
The APR(Academic Progress Rate) has been released. They can be evaluated here:
http://blog.oregonlive.com/pac10/2011/05/states_division_i_schools_impr.html
OSU’s football APR is the second highest behind Stanford in the Conference! That is most excellent. Men’s B-ball(baseball and basketball) and womens bball are all second to last in the conference. Just some food for thought. Pun intended.
Both hoops teams were hit with coaching changes… or what led to them. Frankly, I’m surprised the women’s team wasn’t lower. The men’s team has increased incrementally since the shambles Twitboy left it in. It will likely make a major jump in the next couple years.
Josh Mitchell, from a high school in Washington.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyVUeBKoQTg
He plays Nose Guard and OT. We are recruiting him for OG. I’d say he would make a good OT because he’s quick and he’s got that “Nasty” streak that our OL are lacking. We’re the only ones on his list right now.
Jake Eldrenkamp is an OT who is “Nasty as well and loves to pancake block. That seems to be all he does. If he can’t drive your butt down field on runs, then he’ll turn you and pancake your butt! lol I love the 2 minute mark on this video where him and #23 drive the guy 15 yards down field and finish their guy. lol
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WXwF7At9kE
Re: Parker, He was not representing the university. He was wearing nothing to identify him as a Beaver. It’s his own GD business.
Re: Track facility, Have you been in some of the educational facilities at OSU? The school has no business spending ANY more money on athletic facilities until they upgrade the rest of the campus. Benton Hall has the original bathrooms. There is a difference between charming and run down. A rising tide should raise all boats and until something starts to get better for ALL student facilities, this focus on athletics is just plain wrong.