Vernon Adams took the final math test he needs to complete his transfer from Eastern Washington University to Oregon at 12:30 this afternoon. He said he would head straight to practice if he passed.

There was no sign of Adams at the Ducks football complex.

“I’m working with the (quarterbacks) I have on the field right now,” offensive coordinator Scott Frost said. “We’d love to have one more, but that’s kind of out of our hands.”

If Adams doesn’t pass his class, Eastern Washington won’t be taking him back, his former head coach Beau Baldwin said. Oregon would then roll with Jeff Lockie, who has been getting the bulk of the work behind center at quarterback.

“Jeff’s done a good job so far in camp,” Frost said. “He’s just the most comfortable in there, and he’s taken the most reps.”

Lockie threw his first interception during practice, but generally has done well to take care of the football.

“It was an ugly one,” Frost said. “We laughed about it afterwards.”

Frost said Oregon typically gives more reps to back-up quarterbacks than other schools do, and he likes what he’s seen in the four quarterbacks behind Lockie on the depth chart.

“All the quarterbacks have improved from spring,” Frost said. “We’re a long way from having to decide who of those guys are playing, but I’m definitely impressed with their progression.”

Offensive lineman Matt Hegarty, a fifth-year transfer from Notre Dame, has also been picking the offense up quickly.

“He’s seen all the looks,” Frost said. “He just needs to know our adjustments to them and our terminology.”

As for the rest of the offensive line, Frost is trying to get the less experienced linemen as many looks as possible.

“We throw them in the deep end right when they get here,” Frost said. “Some of them are struggling to stay afloat, but you can see some talent with all of them.”

Sophomore running back Royce Freeman said he’s comfortable taking on an increased workload, given the absence of Thomas Tyner due to an unforeseen shoulder surgery. He’s trying to pay more attention to detail in his second year.

“There are a lot of areas I feel I still need to work on,” Freeman said. “I just have to not get complacent. If I get complacent then I’m not going to go anywhere.”

Freeman said if Adams does land a spot on the roster, learning the offense shouldn’t be too difficult. His advice: “Be yourself.”

Wide receiver Bralon Addison’s advice to Adams would be to “let it fly.”

“With the player he is and the players we have, the timing will come,” Addison said. “The biggest thing for him learning the offense is getting speed and repetition down. Initially he might be timid and shy, and that might hold him back.”

Based on their unofficial workouts together, Addison said he does think Adams would fit in well with the offense.

“He has what all the other guys have,” Addison said. “He’s football-smart, he picks things up fast as far as football terminology, he’s got a big, strong arm, and he’s accurate.”

Addison pointed out that Ohio State has three starter-caliber quarterbacks, and it never hurts to have too many.

Follow Kenny Jacoby on Twitter @KennyJacoby

The Eugene Emeralds broke out offensively and swept the Boise Hawks on the road in three games, ending Tuesday. They looked to carry that momentum into the first match-up of their five-game home stand with the Everett AquaSox.

“You get 22 hits and 15 runs the night before and you do everything you can to keep that mojo,” Emeralds manager Gary Van Tol said.

That wasn’t the case.

The Emeralds allowed five runs in the game’s final third and fell 6-1 to Everett at PK Park on Wednesday.

“We’ve got to play better,” Emeralds manager Gary Van Tol said. “We didn’t play clean enough. The three errors we made definitely cost us.”

Shortstop Andrew Ely charged and whiffed on a soft ground ball in the fourth inning, allowing Everett’s Logan Taylor to score the game’s first run from third base.

The Emeralds answered back in the bottom of the fourth when designated hitter Ian Rice drove in Frandy De La Rosa with a base hit up the middle. De La Rosa accounted for two of Eugene’s five hits, a pair of doubles.

Everett took back the lead on Drew Jackson’s two-out triple in the seventh, but this time the Emeralds couldn’t respond. Emeralds first baseman Blake Headley grounded into a 4-6-3 double play with runners on first and third to end the inning.

A defensive lapse cost Eugene two unearned runs in the eighth inning. With runners on first and second, relief pitcher Greyfer Eregua fielded Arturo Nieto’s bunt and threw wide to first base. The ball caromed off Nieto and sailed into right field, allowing both runners to score. Nieto later came home on Connor Hale’s productive ground out.

Everett tacked on another unearned run on a wild pitch after De La Rosa let a double play ball sneak through his legs and into right-center field.

“The bottom line is we’re going to have to step up and play better,” Van Tol said.

With the loss, the Emeralds fall a game back of first place in the Northwest League South. The Salem-Keizer Volcanoes and Hillsboro Hops, who are tied for first, both won tonight. The AquaSox’s win gives them sole possession of first place in the North.

Eugene (8-6, 25-27) will take on Everett (8-6, 30-22) again Thursday, 7:05 p.m. at PK Park.

Follow Kenny Jacoby on Twitter @KennyJacoby

The Eugene Emeralds took down the Boise Hawks in three straight road games, culminating with a 22-hit performance in their 15-8 win Tuesday night.

The series sweep propelled Eugene (8-5) to the top of the Northwest League South and kept Boise (3-10) at the bottom. Having won four straight, the Emeralds sit in a three-way tie for first with the Hillsboro Hops and Salem-Keizer Volcanoes.

Adonis Paula racked up four hits in Tuesday’s victory and five other Emeralds had three. Ian Rice and Andrew Ely drove in four runs each. Ely has amassed a .365/.411/.577 slash line in his 13 games since he was recalled to Eugene from the South Bend Cubs.

The Emeralds scored six runs in the final two innings of Monday night’s 9-0 rout of the Hawks. Preston Morrison earned the win after striking out four batters in three innings of middle relief. Four Emeralds pitchers combined for the shutout and none allowed more than two hits. Donnie Dewees and Andrew Ely scored three runs each; Ely and Blake Headley batted in two. Paula hit safely three times; Dewees and Frandy De La Rosa knocked two hits apiece.

The Emeralds did most of their damage — four runs — in the first inning of their 6-3 win Sunday. Former Arizona pitcher Ryan Kellogg started and lasted three innings, then Adbert Adzolay threw five shutout innings and picked up the win. Brian Mundell tallied three hits and two RBIs.

The Emeralds begin a five-game series with the Everett AquaSox Wednesday, 7:05 p.m. at PK Park.

Follow Kenny Jacoby on Twitter @KennyJacoby

The 2015 Oregon Ducks football season has officially begun.

The Ducks held their first official practice in helmets and shorts Monday at Autzen Stadium. Although they won’t don shoulder pads until Wednesday and full pads until Friday, new and returning Ducks set out to make strong impressions on the coaching staff during walk-throughs.

Head coach Mark Helfrich said the team’s biggest strength is its horizontal leadership. He looked toward a few particular veterans to mentor and “ween in” the newcomers.

“We want Rodney Hardrick, Jeff Lockie and Tyler Johnstone to tutor [the newcomers],” he said. “All those guys have been there recently. They all have a great feel of what it’s like to transition, and all those things you go through as a high school senior to a true freshman in college.”

Lockie said he’s excited to finally own a leadership role as he enters his fourth fall camp. With dual threat-quarterback Vernon Adams’s status still uncertain, Lockie may at quarterback in Oregon’s first game against Eastern Washington on Sept. 5.

Despite Adams’ looming presence, Lockie chose to stay in Eugene and compete for a starting job, for which he said he has “no reason to feel pressure.”

“Today, college football is musical chairs for quarterbacks, but I came here for a reason,” Lockie said. “This is where I wanted to be, at this university with these coaches in this town, so there’s no reason for me to leave. I like where I am.”

His head coach agreed.

“It’s so weird in college football right now,” Helfrich said. “As soon as somebody is named the starter, the first question for the backup is, ‘Where are you transferring?’ It’s just assumed, and that’s weird. It says something about him to be able to sit through it.”

Helfrich said he has no timetable for choosing a starting quarterback, but ideally he’d establish one five to six days before the first game.

The offense will have to proceed without running back Thomas Tyner, who underwent shoulder surgery Friday and will miss the fall season. He was not listed on the team’s roster distributed to the media on Monday.

“His availability after that remains to be seen,” Helfrich said.

When asked why Tyner’s surgery didn’t happen sooner, Helfrich said, “A lot of things go into a situation like this — measurable and immeasurable.”

In Tyner’s absence, Byron Marshall could see more snaps at running back. Marshall rushed 168 times for 1,038 yards as a sophomore when he primarily lined up in the backfield. He moved to wide receiver last year due in part to the emergence of Royce Freeman, and caught 74 passes for 1,003 yards.

“We have guys who, going into fall camp, are ‘x’ percent receiver and ‘y’ percent tailback and you fiddle with those percentages. We’ll just experiment like heck in fall camp,” Helfrich said.

Marshall said that plan is just fine with him.

“I’m embracing my new role as a receiver, but it’s going to be cool going back and forth,” Marshall said.

Charles Nelson may also see an increased workload on offense, but Helfrich said the defense is “still trying to fight for him.”

“He naturally considers himself more of an offensive player,” Helfrich said of Nelson. “He’s just too gifted to not be everywhere, including special teams as a returner and cover guy.”

Helfrich said the first two weeks of camp are really meant for players, especially new ones, to get the mistakes out of their systems.

“The young guys are so concerned about being perfect, they either overthink it or tighten up. Just be fast and free. The first million mistakes are on the coaches,” Helfrich said.

“Just go.”

Notes:

• Tyler Johnstone was carted off from practice on Monday with an unknown injury. The injury was not to his knee, which kept him out for the entire 2014 season, a source told Andrew Greif of the Oregonian/ OregonLive.
• Offensive lineman Stetzon Bair was also left off of the Ducks’ roster. Bair will not return to the program, according to Rob Mosely of GoDucks.com.
• Helfrich said true freshman running back Taj Griffin is “full go” after suffering a knee injury during his senior season of high school. The 247 Sports four-star recruit may also play wide receiver this year, Helfrich said.

Follow Kenny Jacoby on Twitter @kennyjacoby

**Editor’s Note: This story first appeared in the Emerald’s Duck Season magazine, a preview of the Oregon football team’s upcoming season that is currently available for free at all Duck Store locations in Eugene. We will post each story in the days leading up to the first day of fall practice on Aug. 10.

Since announcing his decision to transfer to Oregon in early February after three prolific seasons at Eastern Washington, an FCS school, dual-threat quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. has been considered the favorite by many to succeed Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota.

“Big Play V.A.” turned heads when he threw for 475 yards and seven touchdowns in a 59-52 loss to Washington in 2014. The AP First Team All-American in the FCS will face his stiffest competition from a player who’s thrown just 41 passes in his career as Mariota’s back-up — Jeff Lockie.

Lockie has appeared almost exclusively in garbage time of blowout games, but has built team chemistry for two seasons, and took first-team reps during 2015 spring practices while Adams completed his final courses at EWU.

Also in the mix are Taylor Alie, who’s primarily served as Oregon’s PAT holder, dynamic 2014 redshirt Ty Griffin, and top recruits Morgan Mahalak and Travis Jonsen.

Follow Kenny Jacoby on Twitter @kennyjacoby

The Eugene Emeralds extended their losing streak to four games after a 9-2 loss to the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes Friday night at PK Park.

The Eugene bullpen gave up seven runs in the decisive eighth inning.

“It got out of hand in a hurry,” Emeralds manager Gary Van Tol said.

Van Tol said his pitchers were rusty after the three-day all star break earlier this week.

“Sometimes it can help you, sometimes it can hurt you,” Van Tol said. “Those guys in the bullpen who had that long wait, they’ve got to shake some cobwebs. You’ve got to find a way to stay sharp. No excuses, though, that’s just part of the deal.”

Eugene catcher Ian Rice scored the game’s first run on Alex Bautista’s two-out base hit in the second inning. Rice led off the inning with a single.

Eugene starting pitcher Jose Paulino held the Volcanoes scoreless until the long ball victimized him in the sixth inning. Giants seventh-round draft pick Jose Vizcaino Jr. followed Miguel Gomez’s one-out double with a towering home run to left, putting Salem-Keizer ahead 2-1. Paulino left the game with a no decision after six.

The Emeralds missed a few scoring opportunities while trailing late in the game. Alex Bautista struck out looking in the bottom of the sixth and stranded the bases loaded. The next inning, Frandy De La Rosa walked with two outs but was gunned down attempting to advance to third on Andrew Ely’s flare single to center.

“We’re trying to teach our guys to be aggressive,” Van Tol said. “Frandy felt he could make it to third. That was his decision, but you don’t want to make the first or third out at third base, especially with the middle of the order coming up.”

The Emeralds fell apart in the eighth inning. Tanner Griggs pegged Ronnie Jebavy to start the inning. Jebavy stole second and third, then scored on Jared Cheek’s wild pitch. Cheek conceded a series of bloop singles and a two-run double to John Riley. Trey Masek relieved Cheek and got out of the inning, but not before two more RBI base hits. The seven-run frame ended with the bases loaded on a backhanded 4-3 put out by De La Rosa.

“A few bounces don’t go your way, a couple calls are borderline, a couple balls that weren’t hit real hard fall in,” Van Tol said. “That’s where the wheels come off.”

Blake Headley tacked on a two-out RBI-double in the eighth, but Salem-Keizer held its comfortable lead.

The Emeralds (4-4, 21-25) have struggled against the Volcanoes (6-2, 26-20) this season. Eugene won the first of a three-game series on July 23, then lost the next two. The Volcanoes clinched the series tonight after their gritty 3-2 win last night. They’ll square off again on Saturday at 7:05 p.m..

Although runs have come at a premium lately, Van Tol said his players must trust the routine while others will be key to boosting the offensive production.

“I don’t sense at all that there’s any panic from our standpoint as a staff,” Van Tol said. “All it’s going to take is a guy like Donnie Dewees to spark us, and then we’ll move the chains.”

Follow Kenny Jacoby on Twitter @KennyJacoby

The Eugene Emeralds dropped game one of a three-game series with the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes, 3-2, Thursday night at PK Park.

“It was a playoff type of game,” Emeralds manager Gary Van Tol said. “This is a team we’re going to have to beat to get that playoff spot in the second half.”

Eugene struck first when Kevonte Mitchell tagged a ground-rule double over the fence in right field to lead off the bottom of the third. Mitchell moved to third on Donnie Dewees’s infield single, then scored on Frandy De La Rosa’s 3-6-1 double play ball.

Richard Amion rapped his second hit, a sizzling line drive over second baseman De La Rosa’s outstretched glove, for an RBI single to tie the score 1-1 in the fifth. Amion scored the go-ahead run with two outs when third baseman Adonis Paula mishandled a ground ball off the bat of Miguel Gomez.

After Paula’s error, Mark Malave replaced starting pitcher Carson Sands with bases loaded and induced a pop-up to escape the jam. Sands’ night ended with two runs (one earned) off eight hits, a walk and four strikeouts in 4.2 innings.

Designated hitter Alberto Mineo’s sixth-inning sacrifice fly scored De La Rosa for the tying run, but the Volcanoes fought back in the seventh. Center fielder Dewees laid out for and missed Miguel Gomez’s shallow fly ball, and Jose Vizcaino Jr. scored to put Salem-Keizer ahead 3-2.

Eugene’s rally came up short in the bottom of the ninth. With one out and runners on first and third, Blake Headley laced a line drive toward the 5.5 hole and third baseman Vizcaino Jr. knocked it down with his glove. The ball rolled directly to the second baseman, who picked it up, tagged second and threw it to first for a bang-bang, game-ending double play.

“I thought he was safe,” Van Tol said. “A crazy play to end it, but there were a lot of little things throughout the game we could have been more efficient with.”

Although they faced him two weeks ago, the Emeralds struggled to figure out Salem-Keizer starting pitcher Mike Connolly. Connolly conceded two earned runs on five hits, two walks and three strikeouts in six innings. On July 23, he allowed one hit, struck out six and lasted 6.2 innings, but earned a no-decision after Dewees’s eighth-inning two-run homer catapulted Eugene to a 2-1 victory in the series opener. Salem-Keizer won the second and third games of the series.

The Emeralds’ loss Thursday was their third straight. They lost the final two games of their five-game road series with the Spokane Indians after they won the first three.

Today’s game was the first of 25 Emeralds games in 25 days.

“In a game like that, with a team like that, it’s going to come down to the wire, and I expect the same thing tomorrow night.”

The Emeralds and Volcanoes square off again Friday at 7:05 p.m.

Follow Kenny Jacoby on Twitter @KennyJacoby

University of Oregon President Michael Schill has made it clear he wants the community to move on.

The president released an official statement Tuesday afternoon following the announcement that litigation between the UO and the survivor of an alleged sexual assault involving former UO men’s basketball players had come to an end after 11 months.

The plaintiff — referred to by the pseudonym “Jane Doe” — was awarded $800,000 in the settlement, along with free tuition, housing and fees for the rest of her time as a UO student. Emerald reporter Kenny Jacoby was invited to speak at length with Schill about the aftermath of the legal settlement, Schill’s statement and changes the university will implement to combat and prevent sexual assault under his watch.

Kenny Jacoby: I had a class earlier today, and we had a group discussion about your email. One point you mentioned was that we can no longer afford to debate the incidents. Several students felt very strongly about the issue one way or another, and they interpreted that as an attempt to erase a stain on the university. Is that accurate and is not talking about it the best way to move on?

Michael Schill: I don’t think what I’m suggesting is that we don’t talk about the issue of sexual violence. What we should be talking about as a campus is how we can respect each other, eliminate sexual violence and the need — when sexual violence occurs — to investigate, be fair to both parties and resolve the issue.

Jacoby: What was some of the “swift action” you took when you stepped into office?

Schill: We were already talking about settlement before I came here. There was a significant period of time when we discussed whether we wanted to pursue a settlement. And we did.

What we want to do is make this university the safest university we can and if we’re constantly talking about what happened in the past, we’re taking our eyes off the future. This has been an issue that’s divided the campus. You said it yourself. You were in this class, and people had different viewpoints.

At a certain level, that’s really good. That’s what universities are for, to debate certain issues. When they get to the point where they keep people from acting in a way that is productive, then it’s time to end it and really move forward. We’ve had a long period to discuss what happened, and now is the time to move forward and fix the problem.

Jacoby: You mentioned [in your statement] that you didn’t think any university personnel acted wrongfully. Was the decision to recruit Brandon Austin, who was suspended at a different university for sexual misconduct, a mistake?

Schill: The reason for the settlement was to close the chapter and to move forward. Nothing I say about that matter is going to change anything.

Jacoby: Was the University’s decision to countersue the victim wrong?

Schill: Ditto.

Jacoby: What about accessing Jane Doe’s therapy records?

Schill: Ditto.

Jacoby: Would you have handled the case differently if you were president at the time it happened?

Schill: It’s always easy to second-guess. Ditto.

Jacoby: What are the changes you’re implementing?

Schill: One of the things we’re doing is hiring a vice president who will also be our Title IX coordinator. That person is going to be in charge soup-to-nuts issues of sexual violence. So for example, [sic] that person will oversee prevention in addition to making sure that complaints of sexual violence are investigated and addressed appropriately.

Now, on the ground, we’ve already hired five new employees to deal with issue of sexual violence. We’re going to hire three more. These are people who do prevention, investigation and address the issues in disciplinary proceedings … We’re investing strongly in bystander programs, SWAT [Sexual Wellness Advocacy Team] and trying to get students to — from the day they come here for orientation until the day they leave — understand the importance of the issue. We’re targeting particular audiences such as fraternities and sororities and athletic programs for additional work. This is something that we care deeply about.

Jacoby: One criticism of the way the university handled the issue was its timeliness. It took a long time for the players to be disciplined accordingly. Do any of the new policies address the speed of the investigation?

Schill: These investigations can have tremendous impacts on the people — both the person who’s filing the complaint as well as the people being investigated. So it is important to get the balance correct between vindication of the complainants’ interests and due process rights of the people being accused. I think we’ve got the balance right by adding additional staff. I think it’s important that we proceed as expeditiously as possible, while at the same time protecting the due process rights of the accused.

Follow Kenny Jacoby on Twitter @KennyJacoby

– Head coach Mark Helfrich claimed Oregon was the only College Football Playoff team that received random drug testing from the NCAA leading up to the postseason. Bruce Feldman of FOX Sports reports otherwise. Wide receiver Darren Carrington was suspended for the 2014 national title game after a breakout performance in the Ducks’ Rose Bowl win over Florida State.

– Helfrich further explained the mistakes that led to the Ducks’ loss to Ohio State in the national championship during a group interview at Pac-12 Media Day in Burbank, California. The Oregonian/ Oregon Live has the footage.

– Oregon media relations assistant director Joe Waltasti fired shots at USC football head coach Steve Sarkisian on Twitter Friday morning. Sarkisian prompted the tweets by saying, “We’re not going to take the field this year in 13 different uniforms in 13 games.”

– Nebraska football head coach Mike Riley said he is drawing inspiration from Chip Kelly’s Ducks and Philadelphia Eagles in designing his team’s offense this year. The Oregonian/ OregonLive’s Sean Meagher has the report.

– Four-star prospect Lamar Jackson named Oregon one of five schools that he plans to officially visit. The 6-foot-2, 206-pound safety out of Elk Grove, California also listed Arizona State, Michigan, Notre Dame and Oklahoma.

– Bleacher Report’s Michael Felder gives three reasons why 2016 commit Seth Green is Oregon’s quarterback of the future.

Follow Kenny Jacoby on Twitter @KennyJacoby

The state of University of Oregon student tickets for the 2015-2016 football season is no longer in flux.

The ASUO Athletics and Contracts Finance Committee’s (ACFC) long-awaited agreement with athletic department over student ticket allotment will be finalized within the next week, ASUO Finance Director Shawn Stevenson said.

The end result: Students won’t pay any more for tickets to athletic events, but 300 of their 5,448 seats at Autzen Stadium will be withdrawn from the online lottery and sold as student PAC-12 season ticket packages for $300 each.

The athletic department requested a 10 percent increase in student funds for tickets to sporting events last fall, then threatened to cut tickets if students did not pay at least a 3 percent increase. Stevenson said this is the third time he’s seen the athletic department request this increase.

“It’s just a negotiating tactic,” Stevenson said. “They ask for a 10 percent increase, knowing that will be negotiated down or toward a 3 percent increase. They usually want to have a consistent 3 percent increase.”

Members of the ACFC concluded that any increase in funds was inappropriate if students did not receive additional tickets in return, so they finally defaulted to no increase.

“I don’t really see why they always ask for more money,” Stevenson said. “In my opinion, they were trying to create a small amount of revenue really just on the backs of students.”

Students currently pay around 48 percent of the market value for the tickets. Athletics annually requests an increase, so that students will cover 50 percent, Stevenson said.

Past ACFC members made a tentative agreement with athletics that students would pay half the tickets’ market value, but current members are not bound to past members’ commitments, Stevenson said.

With the recent success of Ducks football, prices for regular season ticket holders have increased significantly more than those for students over the course of the last five or six years, Senior Associate Athletic Director Craig Pintens said. Season tickets this year are priced at $521 on GoDucks.com.

“As far as student tickets, our goal is to get to the value of half what they would be worth for season tickets, and we’re not there,” Pintens said. “That difference has to be made up. So really, we’re falling short of our projections.”

Last year, however, football ticket prices stopped increasing. Economics professor Bill Harbaugh, who runs a blog called UO Matters, speculated that prices won’t be raised anymore because fans would rather watch the game on big screen TVs at home.

“What [the athletic department] would like to do is convert those student seats so it can charge other people more for them,” Harbaugh said. “From [the department’s] point of view, it’s lost revenue. But it’s supposed to be a college sport, so it’d be nice to have some students watch it.”

Students, who face 3.7 to 3.8 percent tuition increases this year, currently spend about $1.7 million out of the $15 million ASUO budget on tickets to all varsity sporting events. Football and men’s basketball tickets — due to their high demand — are then distributed via online lottery on GoDucks.com. The first students that sign on at a designated time are able to claim one ticket for themselves.

According to USA Today’s 2014 annual report of NCAA finances, Oregon athletics generated about $196 million in revenue, the most by any athletic department nationwide, and spent just over $110 million.

But Pintens said there was “no extra cash” because about half of the athletic department’s revenue came in the form of contributions that do not represent a spendable cash flow last year.

Phil and Penny Knight donated $95 million to build the Hatfield-Dowlin Complex, a performance center for football personnel that features hand-woven rugs from Nepal, Ferrari leather chairs and bathroom mirrors with built-in TVs. Large capital gifts show up as revenue in the report. No other athletic department in the country received more than $50 million in contributions.

The Hatfield-Dowlin Complex is equipped with its own theater room called Sanders Hall. The theater room is large enough to host the coaches and the entire Oregon football team and is used for analyzing film. The chairs that line the aisles are constructed from the same leather that Ferrari uses for its car interior. (Andrew Seng/Emerald)

“The Hatfield-Dowlin Complex was a gift, so however the building comes to us is how it comes to us,” Pintens said. “You can’t spend a building — that’s not cash. We didn’t make any money last year.”

With 300 fewer football tickets available via the online lottery this year, only 21 percent of enrolled students will have the chance to claim tickets on GoDucks.com the weekend before home gamedays.

“My freshman year I didn’t get one and the game was on my birthday, so I had to sit in my dorm room while everyone else was at the game,” journalism major Ally Brayton said. “We pay so much money in tuition I feel like we should be able to attend the game for free.”

Incoming freshman Audrey Marlatt said she won’t take her chances with the lottery. She hopes to purchase a $300 student PAC-12 season ticket package, which are first come, first serve, but consistently sell out within 24 hours.

The students’ deal with athletics also includes 1,854 seats at Matthew Knight Arena for men’s basketball games available via lottery. Student tickets usually run out only for games against high-profile opponents like Arizona or UCLA. However, most games students don’t claim all 1,854.

The ACFC last year proposed to remove some basketball tickets allotted to students in order to offset their potential increase in funds. Stevenson said athletics, however, didn’t want to go this direction.

“A lot of the hesitation is really on their part,” Stevenson said. “Athletics doesn’t like to look at their ticket packages [by individual sport]. [Athletics] really wants them to be a package deal.”

While Autzen Stadium sold 106.87 percent of its 54,000-person capacity last year and has sold greater than 100 percent every year since 1997, Matthew Knight Arena only sold an average of 62 percent of its 12,364-person capacity for men’s basketball games last year.

“It’s a huge arena, full of empty seats,” Harbaugh said. “They should be happy to fill it up with students.”

EMU Board Chair Miles Sisk, who served as Senate vice president last year, said the ASUO finds itself in a predicament negotiating with the athletic department year after year.

Miles Sisk, who ran for ASUO president this past spring, thinks that there are solutions to the student ticket dilemma. (Taylor Wilder/Emerald)

“We’re always stuck between a rock and a hard place,” Sisk said. “We either give them tons and tons of money and get even more tickets — which is just a huge burden on the ASUO budget — or give them nothing more and lose tickets, which is what we did this year.”

Sisk said more creative ways for the ASUO to raise money for tickets do exist, but haven’t been fully explored, yet. For example, the NCAA profited from Taco Bell’s sponsorship of the student section at the national championship between Oregon and Ohio State because the game drew so many viewers.

Sisk said the ASUO could make a contract with a company to sponsor the student section as well.

“From the conversations I’ve had, we could probably pull in somewhere around $500,000 — maybe more — that would cut back on the cost of the tickets,” said Sisk.

Such a solution could either fray the cost burden for students or even net them more tickets. Until then, let the 21 percent with the fastest download speeds prevail.

Disclosure: Ally Brayton, who was quoted in this story, was a former reporter for the Emerald.