• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, January 10, 2016

So yeah, there's a thing going on in Oregon right now that has the nation's attention but life, and business, must go on, right? In the college sports marketing world, Oregon State University has decided there's no better professional entity than themselves to market the college's athletic program to the nation and so it has launched its own in-house advertising agency. 

Heading up the new ad agency will be Russell Houghtaling, who comes to Oregon State Athletics after a three-year stint as director of digital media for athletics at the University of Oklahoma. Prior to that he headed Internet services at University of Washington and served as assistant director of athletic media relations at Northern Illinois University.

On joining the new entity, Houghtaling said: "From my perspective, there is no better place to live in America than Corvallis, and no athletic department so poised for ascent as Oregon State. I look forward to presenting to the nation what we already know -- it is a special place and it is a special time to be a Beaver."

You'd think that after all the 80's summer camp and horror movies that involved all sorts of locations named with the heavily innuendo-laden word, beaver, institutions of higher learning might consider a new moniker for their establishments.

Anyway, of Houghtaling joining  what the University has termed an "ideation team," OSU Deputy Athletic Director for External Operations Zack Lassiter said, “I'm elated to have Russ join our team at Oregon State. His thought leadership and creativity in the digital space will enhance our ability to share the many great things our student athletes are accomplishing on and off the field of play. Russ fits the core values of our department and there is no doubt in my mind he will make us better.”