No. 1 Auburn 22, No. 2 Oregon 19 (January 10)
Oregon went more than a calendar year between loses before they fell 22-19 to the top-ranked Auburn Tigers in the BCS National Championship Game. A perfect 12-0 season culminated in a showdown in the desert between college football’s two best teams, and on this day, the more physical team took home the prize.
Led by a surefire first-round NFL draft pick in defensive lineman Nick Fairley, the Tigers’ defense disrupted the nation’s most dangerous offense like the dozen teams before it had failed to do. A mere 75 rushing yards were credited to the Ducks, who were forced into a one-dimensional game plan through the air.
Prior to kickoff, we made our way along the sideline getting a feel for the atmosphere, per Oregon Daily Emerald tradition. And while we may have been in Glendale, Ariz., it felt an awful lot like an Auburn home game. Despite being thousands of miles closer to the venue, Oregon fans were outnumbered three to one in the University of Phoenix Stadium.
A sea of orange, highlighted by a touch of green and yellow, played host to Auburn’s 14th win of the season. And, to some surprise, it wasn’t a Cam Newton-powered victory. Frankly, Oregon did a remarkable job containing the Heisman Trophy winner, as the Ducks held him to just 64 yards on the ground and sacked the junior twice.
Newton was accurate in the passing game, and a few blown coverage assignments that found defensive end Kenny Rowe on the losing end of two touchdown passes led Newton to 265 yards in the aerial attack. He certainly took a beating over the 60 minutes, that much was clear by his early departure from the post game press conference for treatment to a supposed back injury.
His counterpart, Oregon sophomore Darron Thomas, was rushed into two interceptions in the first quarter but found a nice rhythm after that. In his first bowl game start, Thomas had a career passing day completing 27 of 40 attempts for 363 yards and two scores.
Thomas’ remarkable season didn’t end with a win, but the taste of a national championship will certainly have this sophomore-heavy Oregon team coming back for more next season.
The loss was head coach Chip Kelly’s second in as many tries while playing in January, but he was quick to praise the work of his team, even in a tough moment of defeat.
“I’m just really proud of my players,” Kelly said. “I love these guys. They’ve competed. They’ve done everything we’ve asked them to do. It is a special group of young men.”
Indeed they are.
This group, this 2010-11 team, will be forever remembered as the first Oregon Ducks to play for a BCS title. They led us through the best regular season in the history of the program, with amazing highs and nail-biting finishes, but at the end of the day came up just short of reaching the ultimate prize.
I will never forget this year in Oregon football, as I’m sure many of you won’t either. We have a lot to be thankful for as Ducks fans and members of the student body, for this, my classmates, is only the beginning of great things to come.
With that said, I think Kelly summed it up best:
“I watched those guys grow from last year, our first team meeting on Jan. 8 to where they are,” he said. “It has been an unbelievable journey, and they should be proud of themselves.”
Today, we should all be proud to call ourselves Ducks.
[email protected]