Oregon’s season was full of joy and excitement, and littered with late-season heartbreak at the hands of the Huskies. However, the 2023 Ducks were special and proved it once more with a 45-6 dissection of the Liberty Flames in the 2024 VRBO Fiesta Bowl.
Attending a New Year’s Six bowl game has been an item on my bucket list for several years. Living in Denver, a quick trip to Arizona to watch Oregon in the Fiesta Bowl was too good to pass up.
My parents and I flew to Arizona, attended both the Oregon Alumni Association tailgate and Fiesta Bowl and flew back in the same day. Our flight left Denver at 5:15 in the morning. Our travel day began at 3 a.m, just hours after a New Year’s Eve celebration. It was early. We were drained.
At the airport, we ran into several fans of other teams rushing to catch flights for their teams’ bowl games. Shreds of crimson, maize and even some purple could be found as one of the most iconic days in college sports began.
After landing, we went to a tailgate at a local Mexican restaurant hosted by the Oregon Alumni Association. A breakfast buffet with Oregon fans from across the country was an exciting atmosphere to be a part of. University of Oregon president John Karl Scholz and athletic director Rob Mullens even made appearances. Both “Shout!” and “Coming Home” were played as the green and yellow celebrated in anticipation for what would surely be a New Year’s Six blowout.
There’s not much to say about the game itself that hasn’t already been said. Oregon recovered from a sloppy first quarter to prove that it was better than Liberty in every aspect of the sport. Bo Nix broke several records as the Ducks capped off their sixth 12-win season in program history.
And it all happened in front of a passionate but scarce fanbase. The Fiesta Bowl was empty. All the fans and bands combined would have maybe filled the lower bowl. Maybe.
Perhaps college football fans knew Liberty would be no match for Oregon and didn’t want to spend the money. Perhaps the Flames just have a smaller fanbase (although there was more red in the stands than I expected). Perhaps Oregon fans were participating in some odd protest, thinking that the Ducks deserved a better bowl game matchup for their 11-2 season.
Whatever the reason, State Farm Stadium was far from full. But those lucky enough to be in attendance got to witness an Oregon win that resembled several from the regular season.
The public address announcer did his very best to remain unbiased, but with Oregon scoring touchdown after touchdown, it seemed Duck-heavy in the highlights and praise.
The breaks consisted of highlights of the community work the teams had done in the week prior to the game. The promotionals highlighted teachers and military personnel, and some scholarships were awarded to high school students in the area.
Shortly into the fourth quarter, key members of the Oregon offense took the field as Ducks for the final time. With the game already well out of reach, head coach Dan Lanning gave Nix and Bucky Irving an incredible moment. After the first few plays of the drive (the first was a holding call, and a curtain call didn’t seem fitting on a penalty), freshman quarterback Austin Novosad jogged onto the field, replacing Nix for the final time. Nix took a moment to hug his teammates and jog toward the sideline to a standing ovation from the Oregon faithful in attendance. On the next play, Jordan James came in to replace Irving and he got a similar ovation. Nix was the first to embrace Irving as his career with the Ducks came to a close in the resounding win.
It was a beautiful moment to be a part of. Nix and Irving gave so much to Lanning’s “progrum” and helped shape the current upward-trajectory the team seems to be on. It would have been too easy to not give them a chance to publicly exit the game. Lanning gave his guys a moment they — and the Oregon fans in attendance — will never forget.
It’s bittersweet to see a guy like Nix exit the game. I have tremendous pride for what he did for the team and incredible hope for what his NFL career can look like. Getting a chance to cover an offense led by the quarterback who finished with the highest completion percentage in college football history was special, and while there’s hope for next year with Dillon Gabriel, it’s hard to see Nix ride off into the Arizona sunset.
The flight back was late and quiet. It was a long day for us, but a longer one for the Flames defense.
