At what point is chasing the dollar going to turn the college football (CFB) fan away? To me, there is a line that when crossed means we lose a large enough percentage of CFB fans to hurt the athletic budgets across the nation. I don’t think we are there yet, but I believe “we can see it from here.” Is that true for you? Where is your line?
Over the last decade of FishDuck, I recall people “quitting” as Oregon fans and as CFB fans as a whole. With some, it was usually during a player or coach scandal, and this was the last straw. I remember one left when one of our coaches got a big raise, as he wanted out of all communications and declared “the money has corrupted college sports.” Buddy, you hadn’t even seen the worst of it!
Another fellow was a FD writer who wrote over 40 player bio articles and former player articles. The amount of hours he put into the articles–between the interviews, the writing, and the photo selection–was enormous. One day, shortly after Mark Helfrich was fired, he was infuriated with how the superb assistants were treated (and he was right). He not only quit as a writer at FishDuck but wanted his name removed from all articles and never wanted to hear from any of us or anything Oregon ever again!
He objected to how good people at Oregon were treated…
He objected to the treatment of the coaches, but made a big point about how the trend of such big money in college sports would ultimately ruin it for everyone. Prescient words.
You know where I’m going with this.
Last summer, when we had player demands for payment and for changes in playing conditions, I had a number of emails declaring that he/she (these are names that post here and that you know) was about to flick it in being a CFB fan. Now when we consider the exorbitant coaches’ salaries, the new player NIL, the destruction of conferences, the loss of rivalries and traditions, watching players bolting from a team to the portal in a heartbeat or rushing to the pros … and we see all of this for the money?
At what point are we all turned off?
Like Colonel William Travis at the Alamo, are you ready to draw your line in the sand? Or will it matter as the forces of greed scale the walls and overwhelm college sports regardless of where you stand?
I fear for the future, for Our Beloved Ducks and the sports we dearly love.
Charles Fischer (Mr. FishDuck)
Eugene, Oregon
Top Photo by Jeff White
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Charles Fischer has been an intense fan of the Ducks, a season ticket holder at Autzen Stadium for 35 years and has written reports on football boards for over 23 years. Known as “FishDuck” on those boards, he is acknowledged for providing intense detail in his scrimmage reports and in his Xs and Os play analyses. He and his wife Lois, have a daughter Christine, reside in Eugene Oregon, where he was a Financial Advisor for 36 years and now focuses full-time on Charitable Planned Giving Workshops for churches and non-profit organizations.
He does not profess to be a coach or analyst, but simply a “hack” that enjoys sharing what he has learned and invites others to correct or add to this body of Oregon Football! See More…
