The Platypus Trophy is the unofficial trophy of the Civil War football game between the Oregon Ducks and the Oregon State Beavers.
 
You might not have heard about the uniquely shaped trophy because it was just in 2007 that it was given the title. Before then, the trophy featuring an odd combination of a duck-billed figure with a beaver tail languished in the shadows for 40 years. Starting in ’07, the trophy was given to the winner’s alumni association.
 
No need to apologize if this is all new to you. Most of the players on the football team don’t know about it either. Redshirt freshman running back LaMichael James didn’t have a clue when asked about what the trophy was by a reporter from a local TV station. And junior linebacker Casey Matthews awkwardly played along with the same reporter when he was asked about it.
 
Point in case, it’s hard to instill a tradition 113 years after the first game of the rivalry has been played. It’s hard for something like that to catch on when the on-field rivalry is what drives this Civil War. No trophies are needed to know Oregon State-Oregon is a big deal to a lot of people in the state.
 
“It will be pretty crazy,” Matthews said of the atmosphere on Thursday. “It would be crazy anyway because it’s the Civil War, but what makes it more so is what’s at stake.”
 
Matthews, of course, is talking about the Rose Bowl and the Pacific-10 Conference championship going to the winner. The team has preached taking the game just like any other; However, they all know that if they lose on Thursday, a lot of high expectations will be lost.
 
“Most definitely. There’s a lot on the line,” James said. “It’s a Pac-10 championship and the Rose Bowl. Really, you just have to treat it like any other game, but it’s not like any other game. We have a lot on the line.”
 
Perhaps because of this, head coach Chip Kelly gave the team a little bit of a break yesterday in what would be a normal Wednesday practice if the game was on Saturday. Instead of letting out at 11 a.m., the team strolled out of the Moshofsky Center at 10:40 a.m.
 
“We got out there a little bit earlier and did pre-practice a little bit longer,” Matthews said. “This week has been pretty good for us. We got a head start because of the bye week and we feel prepared.”
 
And although the bye week seems to have helped the Ducks get healthy — only five Ducks were listed on the injury release on Sunday — Matthews says that he’s just ready for the game because the attention is dragging on a little bit too long.
 
“It feels like it’s dragging on, but it’s definitely worth it,” he said.
 
But one member of the team that won’t be dressing down is senior captain Walter Thurmond III. His preparation for the Civil War has been different, and he said it has been tough to stand on the sidelines. He tore all three ligaments in his right knee on the opening kickoff of the California game on Sept. 26 and hasn’t played since.
 
Thurmond is progressing, however, and he’s confident that he will be able to show NFL scouts that he’s ready to play football professionally.
 
“It’s been a little bit rough,” Thurmond said Monday at practice. “I had really high goals for myself and the things that I wanted to accomplish. The team goals are still there, we’re about to win the Pac-10 championship, it was just unfortunate that I got hurt at the beginning of the season. I guess it’s better to get hurt in the beginning of the season than the end of the season so I can work and recover and have a pro day for the scouts so I can still get drafted. You just have to look on the brighter side of things and stay positive.”
 
Thurmond has still played a big role in the leadership of the team. He’s at every practice and he roves the sidelines, ready to help his teammates.
 
“It’s not the same as last year because I’m on the sideline and not in the game,” Thurmond said. “I’m just there to motivate and prepare the guys on the sideline.”
 
Nevertheless, Thurmond said Thursday will be a special day for him and the rest of the seniors who will say their final farewells to the Autzen Stadium faithful. He says he wouldn’t want to go out at any other place.
 
“It’s one of the greatest places to play,” he said.
 
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