Mens
Basketball Appalled at Administrative Processes
To
the Editors:
Lately, the sense of disgust in Oberlin athletics has shifted from
the spectators to the athletes themselves. While some athletes have
felt this way for quite some time, the conduct of the athletic department
and college administration over this past semester has finally reached
a level of dishonesty, personal conflict, and stupidity that made
these feelings almost universal.
In order to keep the issues as the focus, and not continue the tradition
of personal politics, we are going to refrain from naming specific
people, other than the obvious. Also, this discussion is not meant
to scare off any of the interviewees for the mens basketball
coaching position. Rather, we want to give them a non-administrative
opinion on the situation of Oberlin athletics.
Point One: we feel that the administration looks with favor on coaches
who maintain the status-quo.
The concern is not on the performance of the coaches and their teams,
but is focused solely on the fact that they dont stand out.
The administration is satisfied with mediocrity, the status-quo
in Oberlin athletics. Win, or not, just dont bring attention
to yourself.
In the past two seasons the Mens Basketball team has won more
games than in decades. Due to our success, we were bound to be under
scrutiny. This led to the discovery of an error. Nancy Dye, in a
meeting with our team, admitted that the administration is strictly
to blame. Due to this error, which was not our own, we had to forfeit
all of our hard-fought victories.
After the NCAA violation appeared, Dye met with the team. She promised
she would show us the results of the report which would contain
what really happened with the NCAA violation as soon as she knew
anything. To this day, not one person on the team, or our coach,
has seen this report. We feel her meeting with us was just an act
of public relations to keep us calm early on, instead of meaning
to inform us. As of yet, the team, who is at the center of this
whole issue, has yet to hear details. Why is this? In order to keep
scandal to a minimum and to once again maintain the status-quo,
the administration has allowed the team to be labeled cheaters and
have the blame rest partly on the shoulders of the coach.
Point Two: we feel the athletic department is controlled by a group
of influential department members who act as puppets for the college
administration. Their politics play such a large part in the athletic
department nothing can ever get done.
A prime example: the search committee for the position of mens
head basketball coach. Though the committee put forward four qualified
suggestions, including Coach Cavey, the Dean of the College arbitrarily
cut that number down to two, not including Coach Cavey. Since the
Dean reserves the right for final decisions, the committees
work is wasted and the idea of non-partisan participation is sacrificed.
Two rising seniors, including the team captain, were allowed access
to the résumés of all applicants. They viewed the
résumés, but were not once asked their opinion. It
took a new AD to realize it is the mens basketball team that
is most affected by this decision, and therefore should have its
opinion heard. Part of his suggestions included lunch with the interviewees.
At these lunches it came to light that the administration is lying
to the interviewees. The administration is making claims about their
support and future plans for the program that none of their actions,
past or present, can support. We feel that this is a time that the
administration has to make a commitment. A commitment to the players
and the coaches that have gotten the job done, regardless of their
personal conflicts and politics.
Point Three: we believe Coach Cavey should have been given stronger
consideration. He has led the team to a fifth place finish and a
conference tournament victory, which is a stronger record than the
team has had in years.
However, the administration had chosen to focus on the fact that
Cavey does not have a masters degree. It has come to light
that some of the other coaches in the department, who have had less
success, also do not have their masters degrees. Despite this,
the administration hired them.
We feel that it is lamentable that none of the prospective coaches
know that the department has become such a mud-slinging, backstabbing
political mess that Coach Cavey said he will not return, even if
offered the job.
Hopefully, with the hiring of a new athletic director, the focus
will shift from politics to the active support of the coaches and
players.
Richard
Pierce
College senior
Justin Perkins
College junior
R. Jon MacDonald
College junior
Ben Alschuler
College sophomore
Julius Hill
College sophomore
Chris Ikpoh
College sophomore
Cameron Leverett
College sophomore
Dewayne Evans
College first-year
Ronnie Goines
College first-year
James Keating
College first-year
Steven Reid
College first-year
Mens basketball team members
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