The announcement by Oregon officials on Saturday regarding Howe Field as the site of the new arena came with a piece of vital information.
At one point, officials thanked Phil and Penny Knight for becoming principal donors of the project. This is no surprise and illustrates how vital Phil Knight’s presence is to Oregon athletics.
Uniforms, you might say, show how vital Knight is to the Ducks. After all, the new duds the Ducks sport were created by Nike. Well, more than three years ago, the arena, the new uniforms and the Autzen Stadium expansion itself were all in danger.
Those new uniforms weren’t even on the table then, and the arena was just a figment of imagination. Sure, McArthur Court was more than 70 years old and its replacement was becoming necessary, but it wasn’t realistic.
The Autzen remodeling was planned and ready to go. But Phil Knight, who was also a principal donor for that project, was at odds with the University when Oregon decided to join the Worker Rights Consortium in April 2000.
Less than two years later, the University jumped out of the group — it was even decided later by the state of Oregon that the University couldn’t join anyway.
All the acrimony between Knight and Oregon went away some time later. He has been involved with the program ever since.
The relationship with Knight has been criticized, especially since the Ducks were blessed with a top-of the-line locker room recently — to put it lightly — and sparkling, yet controversial, uniforms.
It is an advantage for Oregon to have Knight at its side. What school in the country would turn away the creator of Nike? They may complain, as Jackie Sherrill of Mississippi State did, but if they were in the Ducks’ situation, could they really say no?
That’s not very likely, and it is why Oregon and Knight are a perfect fit.
Athletic director Bill Moos has embraced change and image since he got to Oregon in 1995, and through the way, aside from that small hiccup, Knight has been there.
Disclaimer: Before you think Knight is all about athletics, remember that the Knight Library and Knight Law Center both bear his last name. Both are state-of-the-art facilities and are revered among universities in the Northwest.
There is no surprise that Knight is at the forefront of the new arena project. He has been a fixture at Oregon sporting events since his rebirth with the University and continues to help with many facets financially.
As Moos said at Saturday’s announcement, Oregon is a member of a select group of universities. The Duck programs are funded fully through the athletic department alone. There is no need to mesh academic money with athletic funds.
With Knight aboard, that distinction won’t have to become blurred.
If the University appreciates what it has in the Nike creator, the sporting program at Oregon will thrive. The students and student athletes will continue to have an education that is continually ranked as a best buy.
And most of all, fans, coaches, players and recruits alike will have first-class facilities in which to play and watch.

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