Editor's Note: The following editorial, which first appeared in The Post on Jan. 10, 1996, is part of the fourth day in a five-day series looking back at the colorful Ohio-Miami rivalry. Beginning next week, From the Vault
an online-only feature detailing the highs and lows of Ohio's sports history with original stories from The Post, will appear on Fridays.
Miami (of Ohio) sucks. And not just in basketball.
It would be nice if we could offer a top-10 list of our red-skinned foes' shortcomings, for there are many academically, socially and athletically. Too many. But we'll try to hit the important ones in this limited space.
First, let's take the name -Miami (of Ohio). Our rivals constantly have to remind people what state their university is in. Miami (of Ohio), of course, is not to be mistaken for the sun-kissed campus and bronzed bodies in Florida.
People do confuse OU with Ohio State, but at least they know what state we're in.
Miami (of Ohio) is a society. We are a community. We are the Bobcats. Miami (of Ohio) students call themselves the Redskins. Not only is that politically incorrect, but it is inaccurate. We suggest it be changed to the Decimated Indigenous North American Population.
Speaking of the age-old college art of imbibing, we at OU do it much better. Any OU student could dance through the three bars that Miami (of Ohio) tries to pass off as a shuffle.
But Miami (of Ohio) students care more about learning than we do, right? Wrong. Miami (of Ohio) students are merely concerned with out-dressing each other for an 8 a.m. class.
They would never deign to ponder anything as heavy and useless and nonprofitable as, To be or not to be? The more important, life-altering questions: Sport coat on or off? Miami (of Ohio) baseball cap on the head or coyly attached to the belt?
Come on. How can you be a snob? You live in Ohio.
Our Miami (of Ohio) pals like to brag how their university is listed in the top 100 Midwestern colleges and universities by U.S. News & World Report. Big deal. So are we.
OU is a campus of independent thinkers. We're not afraid to adopt ideas or political parties different from our parents. All groups and individuals are free to express themselves at OU. From Greeks, who live in houses (Miami (of Ohio) sorority sisters are committed to life in the dorms), to gays (We have a gay and lesbian politics class) and even Democrats. Gasp!
The dorks at Miami (of Ohio) more closely resemble obedient drones than they do young, open-minded scholars.
Think about this: How many administrators or athletic directors have Miami (of Ohio) newsbrats run off their campus? We're guessing none. We do it all the time. While Miami (of Ohio) conformists make tough fashion decisions, we make our voices heard about what happens on our campus, in our city and in our state (of Ohio).
Would a Miami (of Ohio) student dare question authority by writing a letter to the editor to support tenure for professors such as Calvin James? We doubt it.
Would a Miami (of Ohio) student speak out against administrators illegally delving into student files? Nope.
Oh, but Miami (of Ohio) is just like an Ivy League school, followers say. Haven't we all heard that one?
No thanks. We'll take the Harvard on the Hocking any day.
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A rival is a good thing to have, but only if it's up to the task. We need a better one.
