Men’s Basketball Appalled at Administrative Processes

To the Editors:

Lately, the sense of disgust in Oberlin athletics has shifted from the spectators to the athletes themselves. While some athletes have felt this way for quite some time, the conduct of the athletic department and college administration over this past semester has finally reached a level of dishonesty, personal conflict, and stupidity that made these feelings almost universal.
In order to keep the issues as the focus, and not continue the tradition of personal politics, we are going to refrain from naming specific people, other than the obvious. Also, this discussion is not meant to scare off any of the interviewees for the men’s basketball coaching position. Rather, we want to give them a non-administrative opinion on the situation of Oberlin athletics.
Point One: we feel that the administration looks with favor on coaches who maintain the status-quo.
The concern is not on the performance of the coaches and their teams, but is focused solely on the fact that they don’t stand out. The administration is satisfied with mediocrity, the status-quo in Oberlin athletics. Win, or not, just don’t bring attention to yourself.
In the past two seasons the Men’s Basketball team has won more games than in decades. Due to our success, we were bound to be under scrutiny. This led to the discovery of an error. Nancy Dye, in a meeting with our team, admitted that the administration is strictly to blame. Due to this error, which was not our own, we had to forfeit all of our hard-fought victories.
After the NCAA violation appeared, Dye met with the team. She promised she would show us the results of the report which would contain what really happened with the NCAA violation as soon as she knew anything. To this day, not one person on the team, or our coach, has seen this report. We feel her meeting with us was just an act of public relations to keep us calm early on, instead of meaning to inform us. As of yet, the team, who is at the center of this whole issue, has yet to hear details. Why is this? In order to keep scandal to a minimum and to once again maintain the status-quo, the administration has allowed the team to be labeled cheaters and have the blame rest partly on the shoulders of the coach.
Point Two: we feel the athletic department is controlled by a group of influential department members who act as puppets for the college administration. Their politics play such a large part in the athletic department nothing can ever get done.
A prime example: the search committee for the position of men’s head basketball coach. Though the committee put forward four qualified suggestions, including Coach Cavey, the Dean of the College arbitrarily cut that number down to two, not including Coach Cavey. Since the Dean reserves the right for final decisions, the committee’s work is wasted and the idea of non-partisan participation is sacrificed.
Two rising seniors, including the team captain, were allowed access to the résumés of all applicants. They viewed the résumés, but were not once asked their opinion. It took a new AD to realize it is the men’s basketball team that is most affected by this decision, and therefore should have its opinion heard. Part of his suggestions included lunch with the interviewees.
At these lunches it came to light that the administration is lying to the interviewees. The administration is making claims about their support and future plans for the program that none of their actions, past or present, can support. We feel that this is a time that the administration has to make a commitment. A commitment to the players and the coaches that have gotten the job done, regardless of their personal conflicts and politics.
Point Three: we believe Coach Cavey should have been given stronger consideration. He has led the team to a fifth place finish and a conference tournament victory, which is a stronger record than the team has had in years.
However, the administration had chosen to focus on the fact that Cavey does not have a master’s degree. It has come to light that some of the other coaches in the department, who have had less success, also do not have their master’s degrees. Despite this, the administration hired them.
We feel that it is lamentable that none of the prospective coaches know that the department has become such a mud-slinging, backstabbing political mess that Coach Cavey said he will not return, even if offered the job.
Hopefully, with the hiring of a new athletic director, the focus will shift from politics to the active support of the coaches and players.

–Richard Pierce
College senior
–Justin Perkins
College junior
–R. Jon MacDonald
College junior
–Ben Alschuler
College sophomore
–Julius Hill
College sophomore
–Chris Ikpoh
College sophomore
–Cameron Leverett
College sophomore
–Dewayne Evans
College first-year
–Ronnie Goines
College first-year
–James Keating
College first-year
–Steven Reid
College first-year
Men’s basketball team members