Hartmann
continued from page 11
in his first year as the Ducks’ head
coach, having just completed a 15
year stint at Wisconsin. He left the
head coaching position to his assis
tant coach, who had also run under
Smith at Wisconsin.
“The Wisconsin coach learned
from Coach Smith, so you might as
well learn from the teacher,” Hart
mann told the Emerald in 1999, his
freshman year.
“(Hartmann)’s someone you
really enjoy coaching in prac
tice,” Smith said Wednesday. “He
really enjoys the process of com
ing to practice every day, and I
receive a lot of energy and posi
tive reinforcement from that atti
tude and attention.”
Through his positive outlook,
Hartmann, a native of Rockford,
Mich., has been able to handle be
ing far away from home. He has
found family out here through
the team.
“(Smith) is a guardian for me
out here,” Hartmann said. “He
makes me feel like I’m a part of
his family.”
Hartmann also travels with
Holts, who is a junior, to his family
home in Oregon for Thanksgiving,
as well as weekend getaways.
“I sometimes think my family
loves him more than they love me,”
Holts said.
Hartmann’s family has a lot to do
with why he’s in Oregon. He has
only been seriously running since
the 10th grade, when his parents
helped him weigh his options. Hart
mann’s dad told him he probably
had a better future in running. Pre
viously, 6-foot-3-inch Hartmann
had only been running to stay in
shape for basketball.
His career at Oregon started
strong, as Hartmann won the
Pac-10 Newcomer of the Year
award in 1999. He finished 15th
individually in the Pac-10 meet
GeoffThurner Emerald
Hartmann "leads by example," according to his roommate, Brett Holts.
and 16th in the regional champi
onship. The Oregon men finished
sixth in the NCAA meet, with
Hartmann finishing third out of
the Duck squad.
In 2000, the Oregon men fin
ished second in the Pac-10, led by
Hartmann’s runner-up finish. He
also finished second at the regional
meet, while the team finished
fourth and earned an at-large bid
for nationals.
Last year, Hartmann emerged as
a leader, placing first for the team
in all five meets he ran. Individual
ly, he took sixth in the Pac-10
championships and third in the
Western Regional.
Hartmann also runs on the
Smith-led track and field squad in
the winter and spring seasons,
where he has two years of eligibili
ty left. His events include the
1,500-meter, 5,000-meter and
10,000-meter races.
While serious on the course and
on the track, Hartmann is a laid
back guy.
“He’s very unpredictable,” Holts
said. “When you hang out with him
everyday, there’s something new
and there’s something fun.”
Hartmann is a follow-your-oppor
tunities kind of guy. The elemen
tary education major wants to be a
third grade teacher, and also wants
to continue running.
“Third grade is the grade to get
through to (children),” Hartmann
said. “I hope the opportunity (to
continue running) presents itself,
but I can’t just rely on that.”
Hartmann commented on being
a role model in his classroom, and
it wouldn’t be the first time he has
been a role model.
“Jason has become a big brother
to me,” Holts said. “He’s always
positive and willing to help out.”
Mindi Rice is a freelance writer
for the Emerald.
Thoughts on football
from empty Autzen
n was a com Saturday afternoon.
A day when I felt alone, standing
among 57,112 other people.
It isn’t like me to have nothing to
say; my friends were confused with my
solace and the puzzled look on my
face. I couldn’t really describe what I
was seeing.
I could see
the rain pouring
down in slow
motion, and
how for every
yard that Wash
ington gained,
10 people left
the stadium.
Nobody stood
near me, no
body could un
derstand, and
the eight friends that I came to the
game with left to go home.
The last seconds ticked by like
hours, but I stayed until the end. I
turned my head at the sight of having
to watch the Huskies celebrate on my
home field for more than 10 minutes.
Jesse
Thomas
Go the distance
The Ducks have forgotten that the
game of football is 60 minutes long,
not just 30. In the second half, Wash
ington made Oregon look like a 2A
high school football team.
I have yet to become accustomed
to seeing Oregon lose, especially at
Autzen. A 6-0 start against teams like
Portland State, Idaho and Arizona,
with the only mediocre test coming
from UCLA, which the Ducks
squeaked by.
And for the real tests, that’s why
Oregon has lost four of its past five.
But now things are simple. No
more Associated Press Poll, no more
BCS rankings to worry about, and no
more Rose Bowl.
Just raw determination and heart
that the Ducks will have in a little
place 4b miles north or here. And
there will be nothing civil about it.
The records are identical. Both
schools have lost to the same teams,
except for UCLA, which Oregon beat
and Oregon State could not, and
Washington State, which Oregon
State has not played.
So now where does that leave
the Ducks?
Now the team faces another
challenge.
At the beginning of the season, 1
spoke of Oregon State as nothing
more than a workout for the Ducks,
but I take that back.
It’s a question of whether Oregon
can pick itself up from the dark hole
it has dug. Competition from the Big
East or Mountain West in late De
cember is not important right now.
What’s important is the Beavers, and
who wants it the most.
So, you want to know what I think
will happen? Oregon will win. Why?
Because they have to.
It’s not about the fans, or the critics,
or even the rankings. It’s about the
Ducks proving to themselves that they
can rebound from adversity and stare
the orange and black right in the face.
I was told once that “you have to
fail in order to find out what you are
truly made of.”
A true champion, therefore, isn’t
the one who goes undefeated, but the
one who gets back on the horse one
last time and gives it his or her all for
60 long minutes.
And call me hopeful, but have a lit
tle faith in the program that has treat
ed you so well throughout your col
lege career.
And after it’s all over, Oregon
stands alone.
Contact the sports reporter at
jessethomas@dailyemerald.com.
Mark McCambridge Emerald
Sydney Chute will join two other seniors in their last games at Oregon this weekend.
Volleyball
continued from page 11
all the good times and memories.”
Looking ahead to the future,
Chute and Closs both admitted to
have a possible passion for coach
ing. While Closs was less committal
— she said she doesn’t like plan
ning her future too much — Chute
believed coaching is definitely in
her future.
“There’s a possibility I might look
to eoaeh club in Eugene, or wherev
er I end up,” she said. “And from
there, I’m not really sure. But I’ve
definitely enjoyed coaching the
clinics I’ve done in Eugene and my
hometown.
“It’s in my blood.”
Contact the sports reporter at
hankhager@dailyemerald.com.
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Oregon Daily Emerald
Visit Us On Campus For An Interview
To Work During Winter Break
Date: Tuesday, Nov. 26
Time: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Place: EMU Umpqua Room