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Sports letters Sports arrogance Well, I guess the arrogance of big-time sports has finally found its way to the small-college level. On Nov. 11, my family and I attended the opening night of the Southern Oregon women's basketball team at McNeal Pavilion. We arrived early to get seats at midcourt and close to the action. We paid $12. During the warm-ups, a local TV sports reporter was filming standing up and blocking the view at one end of the court, but I was certain that come game time he would either move or sit down. Wrong! He continued to stand up. After some grumbling by the paying fans and being politely asked to move, he turned and said, "That was where I was told to shoot from." Please note that this was on the crowded bleacher side of the court. The opposite reserved side was nearly empty. He could have shot from that side or at the ends of the court and not blocked anyone. After a few minutes of this, the paying fans started to move (including my wife and daughter). I walked over and politely asked a door attendant to have the reporter moved. Nothing happened. I walked back over to the door and was asked by two SOU personnel to step outside and "talk" about the problem. After a few platitudes, I was asked, "Are you a fan of SOU" because, if I was, I ``should know how important media coverage is to us." I told them in no uncertain terms that my $12 was important to me and that I expected to be able to watch the game with my family. Finally, the SOU drones asked the reporter to move and the paying fans returned to their original seats to enjoy the game. It's unfortunate to think that the "damn-the-fans" arrogance of big-time sports has now pervaded our small-college athletics. -- Bill Greenstein, Ashland Today's Sports Index Mail Tribune Copyright� The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, OR U.S.A.