Yesterday it was noted by many of you that Ernie Davis, despite the fact that he played his entire career before the Nike Swoosh was created, is immortalized in a statue covered in Swooshes. The sculptor, Bruno Lucchesi, claims he used an old photograph of Lucchesi as the basis for the statue, which doesn't explain how multiple Nike emblems showed up on his person. It also doesn't explain why Erine is holding a modern-era helmet and not a version of one from his time. The only logical explanation then is that Syracuse University requested that the Swooshes be added in order to appease their athletics gear partner Nike. Basically, they whored out Ernie Davis.Reader Alex L. took it upon himself to email Supreme Chancellor Nancy Cantor herself to get to the bottom of this. He sent the following email:
Chancellor Cantor, can I ask you why the Ernie Davis statue has not only the wrong helmet, but a Nike Swoosh on the jersey? Nike wasn't created until 10 years after he died. I swear, I googled it. Thanks.This morning, he received a response from Kevin Quinn, VP of Public Affairs:
Chancellor Cantor has asked me to respond to your recent e-mail to her. I want to let you know that the sculptor of the statue realized the discrepancy and will be correcting it. Thanks for contacting us.The school is to be commended for the swift response and for its presumed action...but I don't buy that for a second. This statue has been fretted over and dissected and critiqued for months in preparation for arguably the biggest and most publicized event in the last decade at Syracuse University. There's no way anyone left anything to chance, let alone that they didn't notice Ernie Davis was holding the wrong helmet and was covered in Nike logos.
I'm afraid to ask how they're going to fix the issue. I picture Bruno on the quad with a sandblaster. I don't know if SU was hoping to slip it under the radar unnoticed or what. And you know what, if it was any other player I don't think we would have put up such a stink. If they wanted to erect a statue of Wilmeth Sidat-Singh and cover him in Nike Swooshes, put him in Under Armour and stick a giant Jreck Subs patch on his shoulder, we'd let it slide.
But this is Ernie Davis, you know? And you just spent all week telling us how honorable and humble and passionate and selfless he was as well as how much he meant to the school and how he never asked for anything in return. The least you can do is portray him honestly and not as a billboard.
H/T: Alex L