Willie Taggart refuses to take questions from Oregonian reporter

For writing the story about three Oregon players who were hospitalized after workouts.

Why Willie Taggart is not talking to The Oregonian's lead Ducks beat reporter - Emerald Media

Kudos to The Daily Emerald for getting both sides...

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Taggart and Greif spoke on the phone about the workout before Greif’s story ran in The Oregonian. Taggart told the Emerald he “felt good” after explaining to Greif what had happened at the workout — the players were allowed to tap out, but some overworked themselves and finished the workout to show they’re not “quitters” — and was surprised by what he read in the published piece.

“‘You’ve got to be shitting me,’ was kind of my reaction,” Taggart said. “I explained exactly what happened and he didn’t report it.”

Taggart said he told Greif on the phone that the workouts were not “grueling” or “military-style,” words he felt made the program seem “malicious.” But Greif said Taggart did not say that to him on the phone.

“If the coach had said that, I would have reported it,” Greif said.

Greif and Taggart spoke again shortly after the story ran, and Taggart expressed his disapproval of the way the story was written. The next day, Greif discussed the story on ESPN’s “Outside the Lines,” a television show that examines controversial off-the-field issues in the sports world. Taggart took that as “having some other agenda.”

“The story is out there, and then the next day you go on the ‘Outside the Lines’ and just not only stabbed me but turned the damn knife,” Taggart said. “He wanted his five or 10 minutes of fame and he got it.”

 

(1) Did Sgt. Taggart have the chance to respond on Outside The Lines? If not, why not?

(2) Was there a good reason to use the "grueling" and "military-style" descriptions in the original article?

 

@cicforkoke, multiple sources described the workouts as "military-style" when talking to Greif. In the Emerald's story, the university told Greif it was a fair characterization.

 

I don't see that. It says the UO spokespeople did not question those characterizations, but that is not the same thing as saying, "Yeah, that's accurate."

 

If things hadn't gone sideways and nobody got hurt during workouts, Taggert and his whole staff (or really any football coach anywhere) would have happily described them as grueling and military-style. Yeah man, we're going to have the toughest, most-physical team you've ever seen. No room for softness here.

 

A good coach would have insisted that overtaxed players stop the workout. An overbearing asshole would let them keep going to prove how "tough" they are.

 

Appears they both were wrong.

Taggart, being in a leadership position, needs to call Greif and have a man-to-man conversation, hash it out, and move on. I don't believe Grief's intent was to harm Taggert by using those words to describe the workouts. However, since Grief did not witness the workouts, he could not honestly assess the situation much less accurately describe it. In that regard, Greif sensationalized something he didn't even see.

Still, they both were wrong. Time for both to be professional, admit mistakes, shake hands and be better than the day before.

 

I don't think Grief did much wrong - maybe toot his horn on Outside The Lines.

But the word "grueling" is appropriate for workouts that are apparently so hard that players had the option of tapping out of them.

 

Maybe for college workouts, but I am still not sure the terminology is worth the trouble.

 

If you want to be the college beat guy who slaps all the coaches on the ass and functions as a glorified PR firm, yeah, nothing much ever is.

 

He did enough wrong that he shares in the blame for this mess.

 

He played a little cute. But I wouldn't use the word "wrong." Beat writers play a little cute all the time, and that paper has a celebrated columnist who has before and will again real, real cute to make his points.