Student managers fuel and support Duck sports teams from dawn until dusk in Eugene and throughout the country. Oregon athletics are successful because of the student staff. Similarly, the student manager position champions the present and future success of athletes and students alike.
Fletcher Ahl, who followed in his older brother’s footsteps on the first day of his freshman year in 2019, is now the student manager for the Oregon women’s tennis team.
The Tigard, Oregon, native entered this position as a novice to the sport. “I was not a tennis expert or even a player, myself,” he said. Ahl grew up playing football and baseball, but innately he had a passion for all sports, especially UO sports. The manager role offered the former competitor an opportunity to remain actively involved in the sports world without needing a D1 athletic ability.
Unlike the basketball and track and field teams, which have multiple managers, tennis is unique because there is only one. Ahl fulfills the needs of nine athletes and two coaches by himself.
Some of his tasks during practices include setting up drills, bringing out balls and refilling water bottles. During home matches his responsibilities grow, as it’s a full-day event. Four hours before the match, Ahl is at the Student Tennis Center setting up scoreboards, singles sticks and Gatorade sideline coolers. Throughout the match, he is behind the baseline loudly cheering on his teammates – always alert in case anyone needs him. Ahl doesn’t travel with the team to away matches due to the tennis team’s budget, except in the postseason to the Pac-12 and NCAA tournaments.
“I’m on my own,” Ahl said. “If I have questions, sometimes I have to figure them out for myself. This aspect is challenging, but it’s also rewarding because I can look back on my experience and say, ‘Wow, I did this by myself and I figured out how to be successful.’”
Will Hohmann, a rising senior at UO and student manager for the Oregon men’s basketball team, has already taken this advice to heart and to the Matthew Knight Arena court.
“The reward of being surrounded by basketball at such a unique facility, reporting to a hopeful Hall of Fame Coach in Dana Altman and being around a team of fellow managers and great athletes motivates me to put in the hard work,” Hohmann said. He said that the day-to-day grind is worth it for these reasons.

Hohmann is one of 10 student managers, he said, so practice and game day responsibilities are shared among the staff. At practice, Hohmann wipes up sweat with towels, keeps scores of different games and handles the hydration station for athletes. In pregame warmups, he is out on the court passively guarding the players during shootarounds and rebounding free throws in the paint. Come game time, the managers split up on the court. Hohmann is typically stationed behind the bench with four other students; they give players water and towels, and set up stools for media timeouts.
Duck basketball fans — in the stands and online — can observe the playful camaraderie and chemistry among the athletes, managers and staff on game day. One game day tradition for Hohmann is that he gives Lök Wur, the Oregon forward who wears number 15, a Rice Krispie Treat before the start of every second half.

Another tradition is the “Manager Game,” where Hohmann and the UO student staff play their opponent’s manager team the day before the actual game on the team’s home court. The Oregon men’s basketball managers post the game results and additional content on their Instagram account, @theduckmanagers. Their posts highlight the fun and excitement of the job, but there are also aspects of the work that are not easy and light-hearted.

“In-season, the days are long,” Hohmann said. “It’s difficult to balance all of my commitments, but it has become more manageable over the years.”

Over time, he learned how to balance six hours of basketball with his double major in economics and Spanish, and his social activities. He even studied abroad twice during his undergrad — in Segovia in 2022 and London in 2023— once the Ducks finished their season.

Hohmann is an example of what it means to gain professional experience and leadership skills as a student manager while still pursuing and exploring other areas of interest at the UO.