Oregon Daily Emerald
Thesday, October 5, 2004
“1 was thinking of bringing
in a masseuse.”
Mike Bellcttti | Oregon head coach on loosening up quarterback Kellen Clemens
■ In my opinion
•-•jflWiiii
BRIAN SMITH
LEFTY SPECIALIST
Cliches
always pull
through in
the clutch
For this column, I’m going to take it one
word at a time. I’m going to give 110 per
cent. I’m going to take a page out of
the old playbook and give some great
individual effort.
I feel like a warrior, and my competitive
juices are really flowing today...all over
my keyboard, desk, shirt, etc.
My grammar and spelling know their
place on the team, have to stick to their
fundamentals, and cannot — I repeat —
cannot be intimated.
So watch out; this could be the turning
point of the column.
Gut-check time.
Crunch time.
Yes, the dreaded sports cliche. One of
the sportswriter’s biggest nightmares.
So I thought I would take some time
and produce some random thoughts
about cliches.
If I had the heart of a champion, could I
then have lightning-quick reflexes, a nose
for the ball and a rifle for an arm?
Memo to fans: The best players that
you’ve never heard of will stay that way
until mentioned, and thus, their title will
be removed.
I love the fact that the ball game you
were watching can become a whole new
ball game, even though it’s still the same
ball game.
I’m always proud of an official making a
good call because they were right on top of
it...from 15 yards away.
Damn that clock for being both an ally
and an enemy.
Hold on, I’m really feeling it now. I’m
running like a well-oiled machine, en route
to blowing the game wide open.
Am I putting on a clinic yet?
How exactly does a team not play to
win, but also not play to lose?
I think I know a reason why.
They must not have their heads in
the same.
Yep, that must be it.
It certainly looks like the nail in the cof
fin, and I think I hear the bus warming up
with some giant, fat lady on it.
But, seriously, sports need cliches — no
matter how stupid they sound, or how
much fun they are to play with.
One of the reasons is that no matter how
much the games change over the years,
structurally they remain the same.
Repetitive plays and actions beget repettive
responses.
Would anyone disagree that Babe Ruth
was on top of his game when he hit 60
home runs in 1927? So when Barry Bonds
hit 73 in 2001, the fact that he was at the
top of his game had been reduced to an
other tired cliche.
But how else would you describe it?
How hard would it be to come up with
a new phrase for the same action
every time?
Let’s see...
CLICHES, page 10
Martey Tucker
was removed
from the field
with a
dislocated right
elbow during
Oregon’s 28-13
loss to Arizona
State Saturday.
He is expected
to miss six
weeks of the
season.
Danielle Hickey
Photo editor
Incognito ousted, Tucker injured
Richie Incognito doesn't meet standards for Oregon while rover
Marley Tucker will he out six weeks with a dislocated right elbow
BY JON ROETMAN & CLAYTON JONES
SENIOR SPORTS REPORTER AND SPORTS EDITOR
Richie Incognito was released from the Oregon
football program for failing to meet conditions for
admission on the team, head coach Mike Bellotti
said at practice Monday.
Bellotti said the decision was made last Thurs
day to give the former Nebraska center a blanket
release, which allows him to transfer to any
school in the country. Bellotti wouldn’t elaborate
on what conditions were violated, but said Incog
nito will keep his scholarship for the rest of the
term and can remain enrolled in classes at the
University if he chooses.
Incognito had yet to practice with the team at
the time of his release.
“He’s not a member of the team, he never ac
tually has been, and I wish him well,”
Bellotti said.
While his on-field talent was never questioned,
Incognito’s off-field baggage caused some to
question Bellotti’s decision to give the 6-foot-3,
300-pound junior a chance to join the program.
In February, Incognito was charged with three
counts of assault stemming from a fight at a par
ty. He was found guilty of one misdemeanor as
sault charge after a three-day trial in June and
paid a $500 fine.
Another charge was dismissed, and he was
found innocent on the third.
He was suspended indefinitely from the Ne
braska football team by head coach Bill Callahan
for repeated violation of team rules.
However, Bellotti defended his decision by say
ing the former All-Big-12 tackle needed to pass
several tests before becoming an active partici
pant on the football team.
“I set things up to protect everyone involved,”
Bellotti said. “I felt very comfortable with it.
That’s why (the media) made such a big deal out
of it, and I said I was not concerned. I would not
do it any differently.”
Injuries hamper Oregon
The pain of the loss to Arizona State continues
past Saturday night as Oregon lost two starters to
injury. Also, many other players will be missing
practice time this week.
The most serious injury occurred during the
third quarter, when rover Marley Hicker went
down in the west end zone and dislocated his
right elbow.
Tlicker is expected to miss six weeks,
FOOTBALL, page 10
■ Duck golf
Golf teams successful in tournaments
A second-place finish for the men in Corvallis and a third-place
standing for the women after one round bode well for Ducks
BY SCOTTI. ADAMS
FREELANCE REPORTER
After tying for second in the Northwest Col
legiate Classic last month, the Oregon men’s
golf team is preparing for the Alister Macken
zie Intercollegiate tournament next week in
Fairfax, Calif.
As of late, the Ducks have received strong
performances from redshirt sophomore Matt
Ma and junior Justin St. Clair, who both fared
well at the Northwest tournament. Ma, a na
tive of Aiea, Hawaii, achieved a career-best
second-place finish after carding a team-best,
8-under 208.
“I felt really good out there,” Ma said. “I
struggled in the second round but kept myself
together and finished strong. It was a big con
fidence booster for me.”
In the first round of the tournament, Ma
shot the fifth 65 in school history. His 65 also
tied for the third-lowest score ever achieved by
an Oregon golfer.
St. Clair also tallied his best score as a Duck
after shooting a final round 70 and finishing
tied for fourth at 5-under 211. Junior Gregg
LaVoie tied for 21st overall after finishing 1
over 217.
Oregon head coach Steve Nosier said he
was proud of his squad for its performance at
the tournament.
“These guys deserve a pat on the back for
their effort today,” Nosier said. “I’m proud of
the way our guys played. ”
Oregon State cruised to a team title at the
tournament thanks to Jonathan Green, whose
13-under 203 finish made for a new tourna
ment record.
The Ducks will finish the month of October
with the Big Ten/Pac Ten Challenge in Bandon
Dunes, Ore., Oct. 25 and 26.
Women to play in Washington
The Oregon women’s golf team continues
its season today at the Edean Ihlanfeldt Invi
tational in Sammamish, Wash. The tourna
ment is scheduled to be three rounds and will
be held at the Sahalee Golf and Country Club.
The 6,192-yard, par-72 tournament will fea
ture 14 teams, including six ranked in the top
25 by Golfweek Magazine. No. 2 Washington
heads the field, along with No. 8 Oklahoma
State, No. 9 Pepperdine, No. 20 Stanford, No.
21 California and No. 22 BYU. Other
participants include Long Beach State, Oregon
State, San Francisco, UNLV, Washington
State, Southern California and Stirling
(Scotland).
The Ducks last played two weeks ago at
the NCAA Fall Preview at Sunriver, where they
finished 21st overall. This week’s tournament
will be an opportunity for the Ducks to
avenge their 912 total score at Sunriver, which
placed them just behind conference rivals
Washington State and Oregon State. This
week will also be another conference tune-up
for the Pac-10 Conference Championships
in April.
Recently, the Ducks have received clutch
play from sophomore Kim McCready, who led
the Ducks at Sunriver by shooting a 3-over 74
in the final round and finished the tournament »
tied for 48th. Junior Erin Andrews also played
well at the tournament, finishing tied for 52nd.
Earlier in the year, Andrews qualified for the
women’s U.S. Amateur Championship, held in
Erie, Pa.
October will be a busy month for the Ducks,
who will play in the Stanford-Pepsi Invitation
al at Stanford, Calif., Oct. 15-17, and the
Hawaii Fall Classic at Oahu Oct. 26-27.
Scott J. Adams is a freelance reporter for
the Daily Emerald