Letters To The Editor

‘91 Huskies not so hot

This is in response to the letter of Shawn L. DesAutel (Letters, Feb. 11, ‘Huskies of 1991 football’s best’).

For 10 years I served as editor of the College Football Researchers Association and in that time sent out 100 newsletters dealing with researching college football and its history. From time to time we would deal with the subject of the greatest teams in college football history. One of the questions that can be asked of any top team in any year is: Was this team considered to be the greatest team in college football history up to this time? Concerning the 1991 Huskies, I don’t recall any comments following that season stating this was the best college football team of all time. But such comments were frequent concerning the recent Nebraska team:

In the 17 years of the New York Times college football computer rankings, no team has been No. 1 by such a wide margin as 1995 Nebraska.

In the all-time list of highest-rated teams by Jeff Sagarin, 1956-1995, Nebraska of 1995 is first and Washington of 1991 is sixth.

In the all-time list of highest-rated teams by Clyde Berryman, 1940-1995, Nebraska of 1995 is first and Washington of 1991 again is sixth.

No team came within a touchdown of 1995 Nebraska, but 1991 Washington defeated California 24-17.

Nebraska ‘95 played four top-10 opponents and won by 38, 23, 24 and 38 points. Washington ‘91 played two top10 opponents and won by 7 and 20 points.

Neither the New York Times nor Associated Press poll had Washington No. 1 in 1991. Nebraska of 1995 is the most unanimous No. 1 team I’ve ever researched.

In my opinion, Nebraska of 1995 is the greatest team I’ve ever seen or researched in all the history of college football. I would certainly expect and predict and bet on 1995 Nebraska to defeat 1991 Washington. Bob Kirlin Spokane

Legislation not only answer

Regarding John Blanchette’s column of Feb. 4 dealing with proposed legislation to protect officials at athletic events: I can tell you there is a way to handle the problem without legislation.

I worked for the University of Washington Police Department for 25 years. I worked security for many basketball, football and soccer games as well as other events. The NCAA and Pac-10 require the home team furnish security for the officials and each coach at all basketball games. I believe our presence was a real deterrent to any violence against the officials or coaches.

In my 25 years, the only real incident occurred when a thin-skinned basketball referee took a swing at a particularly abusive fan. No one was injured because we were there to intervene immediately.

I do not believe every event needs a uniformed police officer. Policeman performing off-duty are very expensive to hire. I do think, however, if an athletic league at any level feels the situation needs this kind of solution, it should adopt it rather than having it mandated. There is nothing to prevent an athletic league from requiring security. It is probable that if a high school conference, for example, should feel the need for security it could find a volunteer force from among local law enforcement.

The people who met with the Spokane County prosecutor are going through a knee-jerk reaction. Let’s try local resources before whimpering to Olympia for help. Mack D. Stanhope Marcus, Wash.

Others rate mention, too

I read the article (Feb. 11), “Lakeside wrestlers second in region tourney.” I was very disappointed in it. There is only mention of Lakeside.

I was at the tournament and am from a small town that only had one wrestler make it to regionals and place fourth.

You mentioned Jason Ogle from Almira/CouleeHartline and it was only two sentences. He placed first over Chris Padayao of Lakeside at 115. I believe you should give Jason Ogle more credit for his final match. He worked hard for that.

You also did not mention the other two Almira/ Coulee-Hartline wrestlers, Jake Winona and Edward Seed. They may have not placed in the top four, but they still deserve credit for making it as far as they did. You also did not mention our wrestler from Wilbur-Creston, Randy Ramos, a junior, who also worked hard to make it to state. The other teams not from Spokane also deserve credit.

There was also not much mention of the other district. And what about Cashmere? Don’t you think it deserves credit for its fight for first place overall?

I hope in future times you will think more about those who deserve credit and those who don’t. Susie Moore Wilbur, Wash.

Get behind Playfair

It’s only poetic justice and what goes around comes around. West Side interests caused Playfair to lose its 1996 season, so losing the Seahawks is their sentence.

I cannot understand why the TV stations and newspapers did not give Playfair the publicity the Seahawks got about moving. Playfair is a local sports facility and uses local people, but it seems the attitude is, “Who cares?”

With me, I am glad the Seahawks are leaving. I will be able to see better football. I missed a lot of good games because the networks would only televise the Seahawks into Spokane.

If the right people got interested this year, Playfair could operate. So, how about a little extra publicity from TV, radio and newspapers? John P. Llewellyn Spokane

Playoffs need top refs

I spent Tuesday (Feb. 13) evening watching the best B basketball game I’ve seen since Liberty High School took the state championship several years ago. I found it sad that poor officiating slowed the pace of the game. If this is the best of the officials, which it should be for playoffs, I understand why tempers flare at the striped shirts. Come on guys, step up to the caliber of the game you’re officiating. Dick Ripley Spokane

Save Seahawks logo

Let me begin by saying I used to be a Seahawks fan. I was born and raised in Bremerton and grew up a local sports fan. I often enjoyed going to the Kingdome to see the Seahawks play. The teams they put on the field then were great with players like Steve Largent, Dave Kreig, Kenny Easley and Joe Nash. But in the past few years I’ve lost my desire to see the Seahawks, even on TV.

The Nordstrom family was a great asset to the Seahawks and it was a tremendous loss for the Northwest when they sold the club. They just owned the club but kept out of all football-related issues. When Ken Behring took over, he stuck his nose in business where it should not have been. He thinks he is Jerry Jones, but in reality he doesn’t have the experience or the pull that Jones has. What Berhing is doing is pulling the Seahawks into a never-ending downward spiral of losing in the NFL. So for this reason I say, “Let the organization go!”

Let the team go. Let Behring go! But please, please, please don’t let the Seahawk go. That mascot, those colors and that logo belong in the Northwest. They just don’t fit in Southern California. Take a hint from the Nordiques of the NHL, who moved to Colorado, the name just doesn’t fit the move. Try the Los Angeles Losers or the Southern California Suckers, I don’t know. Just don’t take the Seahawk moniker! Matt Grahn Pullman

Adieu, Mickey, Hawks

Our 20th anniversary was coming up when Seahawks owners Ken and David Behring took our beloved football team to the arms of Harlot Anaheim; seduced by her Mickey Mouse smile, warm California sun and temple of the Golden California.

It was said that Ken and David were looking for a California minority partner to join their football family. They need look no farther than admitted wife-beater and acquitted murder suspect, O.J. Simpson.

Having worn the number 12 jersey of the Seahawks fan for almost 20 years, my only recourse, with the permission of my 9-year-old granddaughter, is to cancel my Disney Channel; boycott the local Disney store; and say “Adieu, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen” to Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Annette and the Seahawks. Gary Ewing Seattle

Nethercutt hides something

I wish our elected representatives would act in the best interests of the citizens. If they did, they would not have to lie to us, nor hide the truth.

In his Feb. 2 guest column, George Nethercutt hides the truth when he states “the salvage law is designed to clean up the forests of our nation and prevent diseased and dying timber from creating forest fire hazards, threats to life and enormous cost.”

That Nethercutt is lying to promote the trans-national corporations he represents is made clear by the timber sales offered under this so-called salvage law, environmental and economic travesties like the Gaterson Sale, in which hundreds of acres of ancient forest will, for all practical purposes, be clear-cut, or the Upper Swiftwater, which will further fragment diminished old growth.

This is corporate welfare, and forest destruction, at its most egregious. The so-called salvage law Nethercutt defends is designed so that trans-national timber companies can clean up by ignoring environmental protection regulations such as the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act, the National Environmental Protection Act, the Natioal Forest Management Act, and so on. It doesn’t take a cognitive giant to recognize that if this logging were truly beneficial for forests there would be no need to exempt it from environmental protection regulations.

To suggest, as Nethercutt does, the forests of this region, savaged by decades of overcutting, can be “salvaged” by further cutting is ludicrous at best and disengenuous at worst. In either case, someone such as he should not be entrusted to make decisions regarding the fate of the region; it is clear he does not have our best interests at heart. Derrick Jensen Spokane

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