I present you with the ABC’s of Oregon athletics — as I see them — for this past year and the upcoming year.
Aaron Brooks takes charge in his first full year as the starting point guard and becomes the general of an exciting, high-octane offense. Hopefully, though, no more punches to inanimate objects.
Bill Moos fortunately stays as Oregon’s athletic director, having recently and politely declined the Washington job opening.
Colorado’s basketball team witnessed firsthand the impact of the crowd at McArthur Court and Luke Jackson’s 29 straight points in an NIT first round loss in March.
Daria Panova wins her third consecutive Pacific-10 Conference women’s singles title and returns next year as the best tennis player in Oregon history.
Emily Enders, women’s pole vaulter, earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships after besting her teammate, Kirsten Larwin, in a jump-off at the NCAA West Regional.
Foreign-born players play key roles on various Oregon sports teams this year: Australian Ian Crosswhite, Canadian softball pitcher Ani Nyhus and Swedish golfer Therese Wenslow, to name a few.
Gladstone native Adam Jenkins, a senior javelin thrower, is poised to make his first-ever trip to the NCAA Champioinships on June 9.
Haloti Ngata makes his comeback and will be a force on Oregon’s defensive line next season after injuring his left knee in the very first game of the season last year.
The women’s lacrosse team’s inaugural season kicks off next season with two high school All-Americans and a three-time Maryland state champion joining a sport that keeps on growing.
Jordan Kent decides to move away from his storied track and field career to concentrate on basketball.
Kellen Clemens continues Oregon’s lineage of potential NFL quarterbacks. Hey, if Jason Fife can earn a spot, then I’m sure Clemens could.
Luke Jackson.
McArthur Court, Best Damn Sports Arena, Period.
No squirrel fishing as a club sport next year. That is not a sport.
Oklahoma is Oregon’s first opponent on the road next season. The Ducks will need to bring their best to just compete against the national powerhouse Sooners.
Pit Crew continues to show why they are one of the nation’s elite college sports fans, with their support and creativity.
Quinn Dorsey, former Oregon defensive lineman, signs a contract with Super Bowl champion New England and will compete for a spot as linebacker.
Ryan Gilliam, a two-sport athlete in football and track, ran the 100-meter dash in a blistering 10.72 seconds at the Pepsi Team Invitational meet this year.
Sven Swinnen becomes Oregon’s highest ranked men’s tennis player in history at No. 16, and has compiled 60 career wins to move him to third on the all-time list.
Tommy Skipper breaks the Pac-10 record in the pole vault at 18 feet, 10 1/4 inches and also wins the Pac-10’s decathlon in his debut as a decathlete. Oh, and he’s only a freshman.
Uniforms for football and basketball are always something to look
forward to every year. What pigment of yellow and mixture with green will national analysts make fun of next?
Volleyball’s struggles persist with a 3-69 Pac-10 record over the past four seasons. Head coach Carl Ferreira, however, will return for his fifth season.
Wolverines get crushed at Autzen Stadium 31-27, which propels the Ducks to the cover of Sports Illustrated and a No. 10 ranking in the nation. What a sweet day that was for Ducks fans.
X-Factor on the Oregon men’s basketball team will be the play of their big men. If the Ducks can get key contributions on the post on the offensive and defensive ends, it will open up the perimeter for Oregon’s elite wing players.
Youth movement stretches across all of Oregon athletics including basketball, football and track and field.
Zone defense should never be employed against the Oregon men’s basketball team. There are too many great shooters who should not be left open by the zone.