How ironic it is, that one day before Barbara Hedges leaves her post as athletics director at Washington, the Huskies came into McArthur Court.
The attention, of course, was not necessarily focused on the Ducks and Huskies. Instead, thoughts went to Oregon athletics director Bill Moos, who, rumor has it, could potentially be a prime choice to replace Hedges.
Moos stopped short of saying he would jump at the chance to lead the Washington programs, but did say “I’m a Northwest kind of guy. I’ve been fortunate to stay in the Northwest.”
Born in Eastern Washington, Moos is an institution in the state. A Pacific-8 all-conference offensive lineman in 1972, Moos came back to the Cougar program in 1982 as an assistant athletics director.
He left for Montana in 1990 to assume the role of the Grizzlies’ athletics director, then came to Oregon in 1995.
Since then, he’s been a Husky and Cougar killer, establishing a program in Eugene that has grown substantially in the past eight years. The program has become the pride of the Pacific-10 Conference and is the benchmark for other schools.
So it comes as no surprise that Washington would have interest in him, even though the point where the Huskies can even hire someone is still far away. The Seattle Times floated the idea of Moos coming to Seattle, but also said a hiring probably wouldn’t even be considered until July, at the earliest. A panel of 12 to 16 members must be put together just to search for and interview candidates.
“My people know that I have great love for my home state,” Moos said, during halftime of Oregon’s game against Washington Thursday. “They know — the ones that are close to me — that when I left the state of Washington in 1990, it was my intent to one day return…. If we don’t return professionally, we’re very happy here.”
Moos will one day return to the state, whether that is on a wheat farm in the eastern part of the state or to Seattle.
It doesn’t come as much of a surprise that he is being mentioned to take over the Washington program, and as much as it could potentially hurt Oregon, it would be a boon to the Huskies.
While Moos has to fight wars seemingly every day with critics who raise concerns over the so-called arms race, Washington would pose less of a threat in that regard. Husky fans tasted a national championship in 1991 and won’t feel complete until they reach that level soon.
That hasn’t happened in Seattle, where Husky football was held out of a bowl. Both of Washington’s basketball teams have struggled this season. It was time for a change, whether or not Hedges was going to be pushed out the door.
After a year like no other for the Huskies, that was a distinct possibility.
What the new athletics director will have is the sense of a fresh start with a program that has been under the gun. Enter Moos, who knows what it feels like to have critics stare over his shoulder on a constant basis.
“That would probably be the only one I would consider,” Moos said. “I want to look at that position and see what that job is and can be.”
If indeed Moos is to leave — whether that comes in six months or five years — he will vacate a position that is starting to have as much prestige in the nation as any other. With a program that is fully funded by itself and donors — no academic money goes into the athletic pot — the athletics director position with the Ducks would be a wise choice for any candidate.
“My coaches are as good as there are in the country,” Moos said. “We’re raising money like crazy, we’re building facilities at a pace to match anybody in the country. I think the Oregon AD job has become a tremendous job that I feel very fortunate to have.”
That’s a considerable statement, but one that is justified when thinking about how far Oregon has come under his guidance. The Ducks have strung together eight straight bowl seasons, and the men’s basketball team has enjoyed two straight NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time since the 1960-61 seasons.
So, if Moos were to jump in the fray in Seattle, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him head the program next year. Yet at the same time, there is a sense that the Ducks would be just fine.