Former Stanford athletics director Ted Leland, hired by the University of Oregon as an "independent expert" to evaluate the UO athletic department earlier this fall, provided an oral report that was "overall very positive," UO president Dave Frohnmayer said Tuesday....
Leland presented separate oral reports of his evaluation to Frohnmayer and athletics director Bill Moos but ultimately wasn't asked to submit a written report, they said, even though his contract stipulated that he would do so. Which suggests that Frohnmayer and Moos have such good memories that, after paying Leland to conduct what was an admittedly significant evaluation, they didn't need to have him write any of it down.
Or, perhaps, that they were concerned that what Leland would have written would have been far more candid - or informative, disconcerting, disturbing, you pick the word - than Oregon wanted to see in print and subject to the state public records law....
In late November, in his 12th year at Oregon, Moos announced his resignation, effective the end of March. As part of the resignation agreement, he will receive close to $200,000 per year for 10 years, the settlement financed by a group of donors, most prominently San Diego-based Pat Kilkenny.
By then, I would suggest, Frohnmayer had come to believe - with the encouragement of some donors, and probably without much debate from Moos - that Nike co-founder Phil Knight would not help finance a new basketball arena as long as Moos remained AD, thereby rendering Moos an impediment to the progress of his department...
Both Frohnmayer and Moos said Leland's evaluation - "I would never call it an investigation," Frohnmayer said - was not an attempt to provide evidence of whether Oregon had reason to fire Moos for cause, or to help shape the size of his settlement package....
Upon completing his research, Leland was to prepare a written report, "summarizing the consultant's advice and recommendations," by no later than Nov. 30.
For that, Leland was to be paid $2,300 per day of work, not to exceed $30,000....
Frohnmayer said Leland also mentioned the importance of "long-term donor cultivation" and said Leland saw Oregon's relationship with Nike as "good for the University of Oregon, good for the state of Oregon, and he underscored the value of building and maintaining strong long-term relationships."....
As Leland was conducting his examination, Moos said, he thought "this may be my Last Hurrah here anyway, and I hope this comes back positive, because I'd hate to leave thinking I was not held in favor by the people I'd been leading for 12 years, so I felt good about it, at its conclusion."
Nevertheless, the report, "glowing" as it was, clearly didn't convince Frohnmayer that it would be in Oregon's best interests to convince Moos to remain as athletics director.
Nor that it was something that would be prudent to have in writing.
To read Ron Bellamy's entire column click on the title above for a link. Ron Bellemy has the same scepticism I do. If things were so good why not hold Bill Moos to his contract or pay him more to stay. Why pay him twice what he would have received under his contract to leave? The real reason Moos is leaving is Phil Knight will not donate to the new basketball arena until Moos is gone. This may be unspoken by Knight but it's true. I put the blame for this in Moos's court or lack thereof......what a terrible pun!
