The influence of Nike at the Athletic Department at the University of Oregon reached probably its greatest level last week when the track coach was forced out.
He 'resigned' with a 500k settlement just one day before the outdoor season was to start, two days after being named indoor coach of the year and a week after his indoor team captured a sixth place finish at the NCAA Championships.
There was a great column in today's
Oregonian by Ken Goe about all this.
I've always been a proud supporter of Nike and what the company and Phil Knight have done for my school, but he got too involved in this one and what is even worse is that the leadership inside the Cas Center fell victim to Knight and his checkbook.