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EDITOR IN CHIEF
Ryan Frank
EDITORIAL EDITORS
Kameron Cole
Stefanie Knowlton
GoDucks... Qv
and take the new v
uniform with you!
Opinion
Amy
Goldhammer
Functionality aside, the new
football uniforms lose big in the
game of varsity fashion competition
People in Eugene have always had
their own sense of style, but the new
football uniforms don’t fit comfort
ably even in this town.
The new football uniforms were unveiled
in Honolulu before the Ducks played in the
Aloha Bowl on Christmas Day.
What is this awful looking Spandex
mesh contraption?
"The new uniforms are ridiculous-look
ing,” said sophomore Jake Baum. “We’ve
been bamboozled not only by Nike but the
athletic department as well.”
And he is exactly right. The athletic de
partment has sold the soul of the Duck to
corporate monsters to produce what athlet
ic director Bill Moos calls “an example of
innovative leaders in intercollegiate athlet
ics.”
The so-called reflection of the Hayward
Field-Autzen Stadium “O” looks more like
a misplaced Calvin Klein letter. And what’s
with the retro racing stripes?
The interlocking “UO” that formerly
graced the football helmets was fine, as was
being represented by the Disney duck, not
the color scheme of a mallard. Are people
really going to be watching the Ducks play
football and say: “Oh look, their football
helmets look like a mallard’s head, could
you pass me a beer?”
The old uniforms — emerald green and
lemon yellow — represented a sense of self,
pride in Oregon and a uniform in which a
player wouldn’t emerge from the tunnel
fearing ridicule from fans because of his
clothing.
For respecting the desire to want to
change the football uniforms and under
standing the importance of comfort in ath
letic gear, a thumbs up to the athletic de
partment for taking comfort, versa
tility and improvement into con
sideration. The uniforms are actu
ally quite comfortable and
practical, players said.
But in the area of style, this is one
aspect that was lost. Football isn’t a
fashion show, but this new mesh en
semble prides our team on its threads
and not its playing skills.
Nike and CEO Phil Knight receive
thanks from many students for the
library and the new law school,
but they really botched up de
signing the new uniforms.
I think one student actually
gagged when I casually men
tioned the new attire.
However, it is said that
the football players favor
the new uniforms, and if
they can wear these new
things proudly, more
power to them.
Maybe this is a new
dominating and intimidat
ing step into the new millen
nium with new sports tech
nology. But how hard would it have been to
make the uniforms look good?
Unfortunately, there really is nothing sig
nificant that students and fans can do about
the mallard costumes our football team will
be wearing next season — except cringe at
the sight of our Lycra-clad lads.
Amy Goldhammer is a columnist for the Emer
ald. Her views do not necessarily represent those
of the neiespaper.
Gioi'anni Salem ma/Emerald
Readers should make voices heard
Any newspaper worth its weight
in newsprint strives to be a re
flection of its community.
Newspapers are, or at least
should be, sympathetic to complaints and
suggestions from community members re
garding the issues covered and the way
they are covered.
By ignoring those letters, phone calls and
e-mails, newspapers are ignoring their most
important critic: the readers.
Without a newspaper’s community,
which is made up of newspaper readers,
there would be no newspaper.
With that said, the Emerald would like to
improve its role in the community — the
University and the city of Eugene.
To do that, we would like to improve and
increase your voice on the Emerald’s Per
Inside the
Emerald
Ryan
Frank
spectives page, page two of
every issue. All newspapers
want their perspectives page
— otherwise known as an ed
itorial page—to be a bulletin
board of ideas and issues that
are discussed in a local coffee
shop, on the bus or around
the water cooler.
You can help the Emerald
and the discussion in the
community with a letter to
the editor or a guest editorial.
Letters to the editor must
be less than 250 words and
may be edited for length, clarity, grammar,
style and libel. Letters can be dropped off
at our front desk in EMU Suite 300, e
mailed to ode@darkvving. uoregon.edu or
mailed toP.O. Box 3159.
Guest editorials can be up to 750 words
long and are subject to an editorial board re
view before being published. In general,
guest editorials must reflect the thoughts of
an informed reader on an issue important to
the campus community.
The input the Emerald and other readers
receive from letters to the editor and guest
editorials helps al 1 of us formulate more in
formed opinions about the issues that are
important to our lives.
We do strive to reflect our University com
munity, and your increased participation
will put us closer to our goal.
Ryan Frank is the Emerald s editor in chief. He
can Ik reached eia e-mail at
ode@oregon .uoregon edit.
CORRECTION
The Jan. 5 article
"Bike bridge has
unique design”
should have said the
original bridge lay
on the Austrian/
Czech Republic bor
der.
The Jan. 5 article
“ASUO helps stu
dents sell their own
books, choose their
price," should have
said: students offer
ing their books on
consignment should
go to the comptrol
ler’s office Jan. 20
22 to pick up their
money or unsold
books.
The Emerald re
grets these errors
CLARIFICATION
The top story on
page one on Jan. 5
should have read:
“Commission may
include student rep
resentation."