Suddenly, it’s open season on the Ducks.
After suffering their second-straight loss to Southern California on Saturday, the Oregon football players had to suffer through the comments of Trojan quarterback Carson Palmer, who beat the Ducks for the first time in his four-year career.
Among other things, Palmer said the Ducks have a “lack of class,” and that there was “nothing better” than winning in Eugene.
“I don’t know anything we ever did to show little class,” Oregon linebacker Kevin Mitchell said at practice Tuesday. “I don’t know where that’s coming from. That’s (Palmer’s) deal.”
Oregon tight end George Wrighster explained that the Ducks expected this, sort of.
“That’s what happens when you’re the winningest program in the Pac-10 over the last nine years; everybody wants a chance to beat you,” Wrighster said. “Carson Palmer said this was the best victory of his five-year career, I mean, one victory? That’s a testament to our program.”

The Ducks will run into a little more bad blood when they face the Stanford Cardinal on Saturday. Stanford was the only team to beat Oregon last year, and the Ducks felt that the Cardinal celebrated excessively after the game, as many of the players and band members danced at midfield at Autzen Stadium.

How good is Howry?
Oregon wide receiver Keenan Howry set the Pacific-10 Conference record for consecutive games with a catch Saturday, and now he’s eying a record that hits closer to home.
With two more touchdown catches, six more overall catches and 394 more yards, Howry will hold Oregon record in all three categories, and will then, officially, hold the mantle of the most productive receiver in Duck history.
“To have him be the leading receiver in our history is a tremendous compliment to him and the type of person he is,” Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti said. “He was, by most people’s admission, too small, too slow out of high school, yet I think he is a tremendous receiver who we truly covet.”
Howry has averaged 54.6 yards per game this year, and if he keeps up that pace he will not break the total yards record. He would need to average 78.8 yards per game, assuming the Ducks head to a bowl, in order to break that record.
But Howry, who has notched four touchdowns and averages three catches per game, seems likely to achieve the records in those categories.
“He did come on a little slower than a lot of people expected, slower than even he wanted to, but he has once again developed into that primary guy on offense,” quarterback Jason Fife said.

Don’t Duck
When the Oregon Athletic Department carted a massive “egg” to midfield before Saturday’s loss to USC, it may have hatched more than a new mascot.
Because it certainly hatched a controversy.
Many Oregon students have reacted negatively to the new mascot, despite the Athletic Department’s clear statement that the new Duck is not intended to replace the beloved Donald mascot. The Athletic Department is currently negotiating an agreement with The Walt Disney Company to continue using Donald’s image.

Insulting injury
Fife came down with a cold Sunday, adding “insult to injury,” according to the junior quarterback.
Perhaps he meant it added injury to insult.
Fife wasn’t the only Oregon player to come out of the weekend with an injury. Onterrio Smith woke up with a sore left knee Sunday morning and sat out of practice on Monday and Tuesday. Smith, who said he is “about 75 percent,” is still not completely positive he will start Saturday.
But Smith is taking his injury in stride. When asked Tuesday if was receiving any shots to help him through the pain, Smith said “I was in (the training room) screaming like a little baby.
“I don’t like needles,” Smith said, chuckling. “I never have and I never will.”
In other injury situations, backup wide receiver Keith Allen did not practice Monday with an injured knee but could play this weekend, while tackle Michael Delagrange, out with a sprained ankle, is not likely to play.

Bad timing
Stanford officials denied Oregon’s request to move Saturday’s game to an evening start to accommodate a broadcast on the Oregon Sports Network. That means kickoff will happen at its originally scheduled time, 12:30 p.m.