Nobody gears up when Oregon plays Division I-AA Portland State, but when Oklahoma is in town it is a different story.
Oklahoma’s visit to Autzen Stadium completes a home-and-home agreement the two universities have, and it marks the eighth time in the past nine seasons that Oregon has played a nonconference game against a Bowl Championship Series conference opponent – a trend that will continue for at least the next decade.
“Football scheduling was one of the priorities when I first started here in 1995,” Oregon director of athletics Bill Moos said. “We successfully scheduled home-and-home series with Wisconsin, Michigan State and Michigan. We played off of our back-to-back Rose Bowl, Cotton Bowl years. We had a credible opponent here that would look good on a home schedule for them and also would provide a great experience for our players and also for our fans. That really started about 10 years ago and we’ve continued with that philosophy that we want to play marquee opponents, BCS opponents. That enables us to showcase our program across the country and to bring those caliber of teams here for our fans to enjoy.”
Oregon will travel to Ann Arbor, Mich., next September to complete a home-and-home agreement with Michigan, which lost to Oregon three years ago in Autzen Stadium. The following two seasons, the Ducks will face Purdue twice – on the road in 2008 and at home the following season.
Oregon also recently signed a home-and-home series with Tennessee, Georgia and Colorado. Oregon is scheduled to travel to Knoxville, Tenn., in 2010, with the Volunteers repaying the visit in 2013. The Ducks will host the Bulldogs in the 2015 and are headed to Athens, Ga., in 2016. Oregon hosts Colorado in 2014 before completing the series in Boulder, Colo., in 2017.
“We’re scheduled out until 2017 now,” Moos said. “Those are all programs that have won national championships in recent years. It doesn’t get much bigger than that.”
Oregon coach Mike Bellotti agrees that in order for the program to become one of the elite, it must beat the best.
“Those are marquee games against nationally ranked and renowned football programs that have competed for national championships,” Bellotti said. “There’s a huge risk-reward. We could pick an easier schedule that would be more advantageous in terms of winning … but this presents an opportunity to showcase our program nationally. To compete against the best. And also to bring the best programs into Autzen Stadium so that our fans get a chance to see the very best teams in the nation.”
In addition, Moos said he has talked to Texas, Maryland, Virginia Tech and Notre Dame to name a few, although the latter is likely out of the question in the foreseeable future.
“Their situation is such that they play out here each year, either USC or Stanford. They’ve had Washington in recent years,” Moos said of hosting Notre Dame. “I’m not giving up hope there, but we don’t really have a slot for them until 10, 12 years down the road.”
Whoever the marquee nonconference opponent is, the game is a great recruiting tool, Moos said.
“When you are talking to prospects that they are not only going to play a full round-robin Pac-10 schedule, which we are playing every school in the conference now, but they’ll also be playing against some of the best traditionally great programs in college football, that’s intriguing,” he said.
Meanwhile current players are using the games against other top-notch teams to send a message.
“It pretty much puts us out there on the map on the East Coast, letting the nation know that the University of Oregon is a powerhouse team and that is what we want to achieve this year,” Oregon running back Jonathan Stewart said.
Stewart said that he and his teammates feel that Oregon is overlooked, which provides energy in the weight room and on the practice field during preparation.
“Definitely it is a boost … to work harder,” he said.
Bellotti noted that the travel is one of the biggest challenges when an East Coast school is involved.
“It’s tough, there’s no question about it. Those type of travel deals are difficult,” Bellotti said. “The nice part generally is that they are before school starts so you have a little more flexibility in your schedule. For me, I’d like to play every game at home. Obviously you don’t get to do that. It’s just the challenge that comes with the job.”
In order for Oregon to solidify itself as one of the nation’s top programs, Moos and Bellotti agreed that it was important not only to schedule upper-tier opponents but to make a statement in the game as well. Oregon has its next chance on Saturday versus a team that has reached a BCS game four times in the past six seasons, including a national championship in 2000.
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Oregon schedule to get harder
Daily Emerald
September 14, 2006
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