Oregon
Oregon Recovers head Mike Marshall bounced from state alcohol task force over Facebook post
Gov. Tina Kotek has removed a prominent anti-addiction advocate from a task force that will study higher alcohol taxes in the state, following outcry over a December Facebook post about the death of an Oregon brewer.
Mike Marshall, executive director of Oregon Recovers, confirmed Friday that Kotek has removed him from the state’s new Task Force on Alcohol Pricing and Addiction Services, which is likely to have a major say in whether the state increases taxes on beer, cider and wine as advocates like Marshall have called for for years.
Marshall had faced blowback from some critics since December, when he shared an article on Facebook about Wilsonville brewer Don Anderson dying suddenly of a heart attack.
Accompanying the post was a snippet of text Marshall pulled from Johns Hopkins that appeared to blame drinking for Anderson’s death. It read: “Heavy drinking is linked to a number of poor health outcomes, including heart conditions. Excessive alcohol intake can lead to high blood pressure, heart failure or stroke. Excessive drinking can also contribute to cardiomyopathy, a disorder that affects the heart muscle.”
Marshall eventually deleted the post, but not before spurring outcry. Ben Edmunds, president of the Oregon Brewers Guild, wrote that Marshall’s post was “crass” and accused him of dancing on Anderson’s grave.
Not long after, Edmunds sent a letter to Kotek demanding that Marshall be removed from the alcohol task force. The letter contended that Marshall “used social media to publicly denigrate [Anderson], humiliating his family and making false and unsupported assumptions about his death.”
“How can you ask other members of the Task Force on Alcohol Pricing and Addiction Services to serve alongside someone who is lacking a moral compass, baseline compassion, and respect for our fellow Oregonians?” Edmunds wrote in the Dec. 8 letter. “No one deserves this kind of treatment.”
Asked about the governor’s decision, Kotek’s office provided correspondence on the matter between Marshall and Constantin Severe, a public safety adviser to Kotek. It showed that Severe first raised the Facebook post with Marshall in late December in a phone call requesting that Marshall offer a new staff member from Oregon Recovers to serve on the task force.
Severe’s call inspired a lengthy and fiery response from Marshall, who suggested he’d been blindsided by the call. Marshall contended that he was only offering factual information about the health impacts of alcohol, and that the social media post was being cynically weaponized by members of the alcohol industry who shouldn’t have had access to his Facebook page in the first place.
“Don’t be fooled. Their opposition to my inclusion on the Task Force is not about a single Facebook post,” Marshall wrote in a letter to Severe. “This is about five years of effective public education about the harm the alcohol industry is causing Oregon families—advocacy that has forced them to the table for the first time in 50 years. Of course they want me replaced.”
Marshall also included a veiled threat, suggesting removing him from the task force could blow up in Kotek’s face.
“If I were to be replaced there would likely be multiple stories about the composition of the task force, its mission, the role campaign contributions played in its formation, and possibly even the personal life of Mr. Anderson,” Marshall wrote. “None of that is in anyone’s interest. Likewise, the news that I was replaced at the request of the beer industry will create significant backlash within the public health community.”
According to the governor’s office, Marshall did not step down or offer a replacement by Thursday, when Severe sent a letter removing him from the task force.
“We understand that you have chosen not to resign or identify another person from Oregon Recovers to take your place, so I am writing to inform you that you are being removed from the Task Force effective immediately,” Severe wrote. “We will be seeking a replacement from within the recovery community for the position you held.”
Marshall said Friday that Oregon Recovers has recommended the group’s law clerk, Andrew Swanson, to serve on the task force.
Auburn’s quarterback room gained another piece out of the transfer portal on Sunday, and is now up to four scholarship players.
The latest signee is Oregon State transfer Tristan Ti’a, a source confirmed to AL.com. He comes to Auburn after spending one season with the Beavers, and will likely fill the backup quarterback role at Auburn behind Byrum Brown.
Ti’a was a backup during his freshman season at Oregon State, playing in three games. In that time, he completed 37 of his 53 passes for 385 yards with three passing touchdowns and two interceptions.
He’s the third and likely final transfer quarterback to sign with Auburn since the portal opened on Jan. 2, joining Brown and former USF third-string quarterback Locklan Hewlett. Incoming freshman Rhys Brush will also be in the quarterback room next season.
With Ti’a signing, Auburn is now up to 22 incoming transfers. The portal will remain open until Jan. 16. Keep up with all of Auburn’s incoming and outgoing transfers here.
Oregon is losing a second edge defender to transfer.
Blake Purchase will enter the transfer portal, he announced via X. He has two years of eligibility remaining.
“I want to start by thanking God for this journey and everything that has come with it,” Purchase told DenverSportsMedia.com. “Thank you to my family for the continued love and support they have given me. I’m forever grateful for these past three seasons at the University of Oregon. The lessons l’ve learned here will stay with me for a lifetime. Thank you to all the coaches who poured into me and helped me grow as both a person and a player. And to my teammates – the bonds we built are forever. You are my brothers for life.”
The 6-foot-3, 245-pound Purchase had 32 tackles (4.5 for loss) with two sacks, one interception and one pass breakup this season. His 352 snaps on defense ranked 14th for UO this season.
Purchase had two tackles while redshirting last season and five tackles as a true freshman in 2023.
A four-star recruit out of Cherry Creek (Colorado) High School, Purchase was the No. 294 overall prospect and No. 34 edge defender in the class of 2023 in the 247Sports Composite.
Purchase will be the sixteenth scholarship player to transfer from UO this offseason, joining defensive backs Jahlil Florence, Dakoda Fields, Solomon Davis, Sione Laulea, Kingston Lopa and Daylen Austin, receivers Justius Lowe and Kyler Kasper, quarterbacks Austin Novosad and Luke Moga, offensive lineman Lipe Moala and running backs Jay Harris, Makhi Hughes and Jayden Limar. Oregon has 79 projected scholarship players in 2026.
Despite a strong start and competitive effort for much of the night, Oregon State men’s basketball fell apart down the stretch of a 82-76 loss to University of Portland on Saturday night at Chiles Center.
A corner three-pointer by Mikah Ballew buried the Beavers (9-10, 2-4 WCC), putting Portland up 78-70 with just 1:10 remaining.
The Pilots (9-10, 2-4 WCC) had four players in double figures: Cameron Williams with 23, Jermaine Webb Balsinger and Joel Foxwell with 18 apiece, and Ballew with 16.
The Beavers were led by Olavi Suutela with 19 points and Johan Munch with 14. Dez White, Josiah Lake II and Yaak Yaak each had 10, and OSU out-shot the Pilots — 47% to 43% — but untimely turnovers and missed shots hurt them in the second half.
OSU came out hot, taking a 18-8 lead early in the first half including 12 points from Suutela. It got up to 24-15 before the Pilots mounted a response.
Turnovers and miscommunication by the Beavers on offense led to a 8-0 run by Portland. OSU clung to its lead for a while, but Portland took its first at 31-30 late in the first half.
The Pilots carried a 39-38 lead into the break.
Coming out of the half, after some back and forth, the Beavers went on an 11-1 run — fueled by the scoring and defensive effort of Suutela, and inside play of Noah Amenhauser — to take a 54-45 advantage at the 13:11 mark.
Turnovers reared their ugly head once again for the Beavers, though, and a pair of jumpers by Joel Foxwell cut the OSU lead down to 56-53.
Portland retook the lead, 57-56, with 10 minutes remaining. With an increased energy on both ends of the floor and OSU missing open shots, the Pilots led 66-63 with six minutes remaining and never relinquished it.
Portland’s defense smothered OSU in the halfcourt, and Wayne Tinkle’s side couldn’t find an easy basket, settling often for one-on-one opportunities rather than consistent and meaningful ball movement. Portland led, 71-68, with 3:19 to go.
Trailing by nine, Lake II hit a three-pointer to cut it to six with five seconds left. Too little, too late for the Beavers as they slipped back below .500.
Next game: Oregon State (9-10, 2-4 WCC) vs. LMU (11-7, 2-3 WCC)
- When: Wednesday, Jan. 14
- Time: 7:00 pm PT
- Where: Gill Coliseum, Corvallis
- Stream: ESPN+
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