Seventh Inning Stretch
It’s a new year with a new Oregon Duck football team. That team has one word in mind: consistency.
I like to be optimistic and hope past trends will be broken.
I know there will be no quarterback controversy. Kellen Clemens is the man this year. Period.
His confidence and play should skyrocket now that he doesn’t have to look over his shoulder and see a Jason Fife standing there waiting for him to make a mistake and get pulled. And especially after his coming-out party against California last season, when he drove the Ducks down the field twice in the fourth quarter for touchdowns to defeat the Golden Bears.
The secondary is once again a question for the Ducks, as they ranked 105th in pass defense last season. And that was with All-Pacific-10 Conference safety Keith Lewis, who has now gone to the NFL.
Will Oregon fans once again watch the pass-happy Pac-10 conference throw over and through our defense? Maybe the secondary will gel this year, avoid injury and slow some teams down.
But what about another mid-season breakdown? Is that in the forecast? During the last two seasons Oregon fans have grown with excitement as the Ducks race to impressive starts just to see the air get let out of their tires and their hopes left on the side of the road.
Who can forget last year’s triumphant victory over then No. 3 Michigan and a 3-0 start? And who remembers it going by the wayside after the Ducks tumbled and lost four of their next five games by a combined score of 173-53? Or two years ago when Oregon looked as though the loss of a certain No. 3 named Joey wasn’t affecting them, and they started the year 6-0? The Ducks had just defeated UCLA and hopes were high. But Duck fans were brought back down to earth as Oregon was handed back-to-back home losses leading to a 1-6 slide to finish the season.
The elements are all there for déjà vu as the Ducks play national powerhouse Oklahoma in Norman, Okla., after their game against Indiana (yes, they don’t just play basketball).
If Oregon pulls off this upset, it will be HUGE! The Sooners are among the football elite and this is their year to win it all with Heisman Trophy winner Jason White and 17 of 22 starters returning. Think of the Michigan win and multiply it by 10, and that’s what kind of upset this would be.
If it did happen, the potential downfall would also be 10 times larger and I don’t think Duck fans and their “All Ducked Out” lifestyle can handle another disappointment.
Could you imagine if Oregon pulled off one of the biggest upsets in school history and lost to Idaho at home? Duck fans might just spontaneously combust, and shreds of bright yellow would litter Autzen Stadium.
I’m sure everyone has heard
Oregon is going for a school-record 11 straight winning seasons, but fans want more than just a winning season from their Ducks — they want consistency. They have a legitimate chance to win the Pac-10 championship and go to the Rose Bowl, as they drew the golden ticket this year and don’t have to face a juggernaut USC team looking to defend their
national championship.
But maybe we’re all getting greedy and don’t appreciate the teams Oregon has put on the field year in and year out. After 10 straight winning seasons, including Rose Bowl and Fiesta Bowl appearances, maybe the fair-weather Duck fan has a jaded point of view.
But what is wrong with expecting excellence?
It could be worse, Duck fans. Your team could be beating the defending national champions in their stadium by eight with a minute and a half left and lose in overtime because your kicker decided he wanted to miss his third extra point of the game.
Sorry, orange-and-black neighbor to the north.
