Dirty Love talk

I went up to Oregon this past weekend to see the Oregon/UCLA and Oregon/USC hoops games. I am an admitted UCLA fan, but I also wanted to see my guy Bryce Taylor.

I am generally tolerant when it comes to students cheering and even jeering, but the Oregon fans crossed the line with their taunting of Oregon-native Kevin Love.

I can deal with "bullshit" chants, even if I think it's classless. But...

"Kevin Love is a pussy" crosses the line, right?

One extended round of chants, okay. But the second time someone from Oregon should have stopped the game and made it clear that this was unacceptable. The handmade signs were even more over-the-top and obscene. The "Pit Crew" also put up Love's cell number, which basically rendered his phone useless after he got got hundreds of text messages and voicemails.

Kevin Love handled the whole thing with class, hardly acknowledging the fans and leading his Bruins to victory.

Before the USC game, Ernie Kent did make a pregame announcement, asking fans to behave. In that game, Oregon came back from 9 down with less than a minute to send the game into overtime. The environment was electric. The Pit Crew are the loudest fans in college basketball -- or a close second to the Cameron Crazies.

So what should be done? Oregon AD Pat Kilkenny called UCLA to apologize.

Henry Abbott from True Hoop e-mailed me this idea:
"Man oh man. What do with the reality that a lot of people are tasteless idiots. Here's one idea: videotape the worst offenders with those signs. Slow-motion it. And then add their names, majors, GPAs etc. and send it to their parents, professors, advisers etc."

I like it.

--Marc Isenberg

Comments

[Stan]

Tell it like it is!! Way to go Marc. Coaches are involved, but
Ernie Kent should have stopped it.

[Sam]

The Pit Crew definitely crossed the line during the UCLA game. It's sad that they felt like a jilted lover and behaved so immaturely. I thought Kevin showed great composure and maturity in handling the situation appropriately.

[Emmett Jones]

Man...that whole situation was definitely out of hand. I didn't even know that Ernie Kent had tried to do anything before the game started, but whatever he did, obviously it was not enough. Oregon clearly needed to be more proactive with this situation; its not like anyone was surprised that this happened (maybe the degree to which it happened, but they knew it was coming)

Kudos to Love for taking the high road.

[Matt Y]

This isn't the first nor will it be the last time the Oregon fans cross the line.

Last year it was them "celebrating" Aaron Brooks' assault on Washington's Ryan Applby in the previous year's Pac 10 tourney.

Oregon is classless...Earnie Kent is classless...and I can promise that Lorenzo Romar (as well as many of the Pac-10 coaches and AD departments) would have stopped the game right then and talked to the fans.

Great to see Love take them apart....

[Marc Isenberg]

Emmett...Coach Kent did not make any announcement prior to the UCLA game...he spoke up before the USC game.

[Emmett Jones]

Ah...oops. I misread USC/UCLA. In any case though, the rest of my comment still stands. It is very nice to see an athlete take the high road, especially when it doesn't happen very often.

[Todd Campbell]

Wow Emmett, the only reason you are saying any of that is because you are a husky fan. Do you remember when you guys wore sombreros to make fun of Ernie's affair. His family was in the stands, way to bring up a bad event after the fact. Tearing apart families is worse than just calling someone a name. You guys are just as classless as the ducks if not more. Remember when your footy team danced on the O after they beat Oregon in Autzen, real classy. By the way learn how to spell, His name is Ernie, not Earnie. Wow I hate Husky Fans, who do they think they are. Atleast Duck Fans dont walk around thinking they are better than the man next to them unlike every husky I have ever met!

[RW]

Matt Y,

I agree that what happeneed at the UCLA game may have been "classless". However, you as a Husky fan, ought to think before calling the kettle black.
Was the behavior as classless as Jeramy Stevens "interaction" with that girls at the Kappa Sig house? Or was it as classless as Pharms shooting a drug dealer, then stealing his drugs, then having it all covered up just in time to play in your faux national championship season?
I find it hard to believe that you expect UO to control their entire student body, when your athletic department cannot even control two football players.

[Matt Y]

Todd...Ernie (not my fault his parents can't spell) did it to himself..cheating on his wife wasn't something that "happened" to him. Love and Appleby did nothing wrong. As for dancing on the O...that happened quite a while ago...under a different coach.
RW...reference that last comment...different coach...8 years ago. I'm positive Oregon has guys that are just as bad..ON THEIR CURRENT ROSTER....

[designer costume jewelry]

Kevin handled it has best as he could. I can't believe that people feel they still have to tear someone down to make themselves feel better. That's really cowardly.