AGENT ORANGE AND UNCLE PHIL
Phil Knight’s right-hand man is mysterious but powerful
ike co-founder Phil Knight often gets the credit,
or the blame, for being the guiding force behind
construction projects at the University of Or-
egon such as Matthew Knight Arena, The Jaqua
Center for Student Athletes (aka the Jock Box),
or, more recently, the plan to demolish Hayward Field’s
historic East Grandstand in order to make way for a new
stadium.
But Knight isn’t necessarily the man who pushes the
projects through to the end. He has a fixer for that.
Throughout the years, Knight has had the same “right-
hand man” (or “confidant,” “adviser” or “troubleshooter,”
names given by various media reports) by his side: Howard
Sidney Slusher, who has had a hand in managing all of
those projects and more — and has been getting paid mil-
lions of dollars from Nike for his work.
The projects Slusher has worked on have been full of
controversy and criticized for lacking transparency as well
as for their large price tags.
For a man who is so integral to decision-making with
N
8
June 7, 2018 • eugeneweekly.com
Knight and Nike, not much is known about him these days
— but as the discussion over Hayward field grows even
more heated, Slusher’s name is coming up in news stories.
EW reached out to Nike multiple times for more informa-
tion on Slusher and an interview but received no response.
EW also reached out to a phone number thought to be as-
sociated with Slusher and received no response.
As for the Eugene residents EW contacted who know
Slusher, none of them would speak about him on the re-
cord.
A former Los Angeles attorney, Slusher became known
by the nickname “Agent Orange” through his unyielding
tactics of defending athletes in order to negotiate better pay
from sports-franchise holders, and his red hair, according
to a 1985 People Magazine article.
Now in his 80s, Slusher grew up in Brooklyn, according
to that article, and has a Ph.D. in physical education from
Ohio State University and a law degree from the Univer-
sity of Southern California.
Most recently, Slusher has had a hand in the plans for
PHOTO COURTESY OF NIKE.COM
BY MEERAH POWELL
a new Hayward Field, according to the University of Or-
egon’s senior director of public affairs, Tobin Klinger.
“Howard Slusher is an important part of the Hayward
Field construction team, which also includes SRG Ar-
chitects, Hoffman Construction and project manager Jim
Petsche,” Klinger says. “He and the entire team bring great
experience and an amazing track record of building world
class facilities, including iconic and amazing buildings for
both Nike and at the UO.”
He adds. “We are grateful for Howard’s work on our
campus and fortunate to have him as part of the team on
another UO project.”
There is no public information available on how much
Slusher is getting paid for the Hayward Field project, but
Nike has paid him millions over the years.
Slusher is a key part of Nike World Headquarters reno-
vations. He received $2,024,592 from Nike in the 2017
fiscal year from managing the “planning, design and con-
struction of new buildings, and improvements to, Nike’s
World Headquarters” in Beaverton, according to Nike’s
proxy statement from its annual meeting of shareholders.
He was also paid an extra $71,970 for life insurance
premiums last year, according to that report.
Slusher was selected to work on this most recent Nike
World Headquarters expansion “due to his deep history
and experience with the Company, as he managed several
significant construction projects for the Company, includ-
ing the original World Headquarters construction and later
expansions,” the statement says.
In 2014-2016, Slusher was paid more than $7.5 million,
plus health and life insurance premiums, for the same thing
— management of design and construction of buildings, or
improvements, at Nike’s World Headquarters, according to
Nike.
Slusher has known the Knight family at least since
1992, when he and another person were granted joint
power of attorney for both Phil and Penelope Knight for
the purchase of a Manhattan apartment unit, according to
court documents from the New York City Department of
Finance.
In the 2008 fiscal year, Slusher paid $2,790,650 to buy
Nike stock for about $27 a share, the price its stock was go-
ing for in 2000, according to another Nike proxy statement.
From then on, according to Nike, Slusher’s life and
health insurance premiums have been paid for by the com-
pany.
According to reporting by Willamette Week in 2010,
Slusher has a house in Lake Oswego built by Hoffman
Construction, the same company that built Matthew Knight
Arena and is a part of the Hayward Field project.
Slusher’s family also has professional ties to Nike. His
son John Slusher is currently the executive vice president
of global sports marketing, according to the company. But
the senior Slusher is not listed as a Nike executive.
Not only is it difficult to see exactly who Slusher is in
the Nike organization these days — or in the Knight-fund-
ed UO construction projects that Slusher has helped over-
see and advise Knight on — there have also been transpar-
ency issues.
Most recently the lack of public input during the plan-
ning of the Hayward Field construction project and East
Grandstand teardown has left community members in the
dark.
The Jaqua Center for Student Athletes, opened in 2010,
was controversial due to its exclusivity — it’s mostly used
by student athletes for tutoring and advising services while
other students and the public are not allowed in most parts
of the building. The Jaqua also had transparency issues sur-
rounding its construction price. The Knight-funded project
cost $41.7 million dollars, but that was not revealed until
documents were released to The Oregonian.
Concern from the community arose around Matthew
Knight Arena as well. The more than $200 million build-