A funny thing happened to me in the student section last week when I cheered in response to the announcement that Notre Dame was up by three against USC. My peers turned and looked at me as if I had just slapped their mothers, or yelled “Go Beavers,” or “Four more years!”
Why are Duck fans cheering for the Trojans? The same team whose children we pledged to eat less than four weeks ago. Look, I know the stakes. We win out, they win out, we all win out. I’m all for rooting for a fellow Pacific-10 Conference team in its quest for a ticket to Pasadena this year, which would theoretically piggy-back Oregon into a better bowl game. But nothing is guaranteed these days in college football; just ask California fans. So what kind of man would dare dig his heels in and hope for the Trojans to lose this late in the season? You’re looking at him.
My readers, if you are so hell-bent on backing a Pac-10 team toward going as far as they can, then I’ve got a team for you to root for – how about Oregon? The Ducks sit alone in third place in the conference standings, with the stiffest part of their schedule waving its fists at them in the rear-view mirror and only Cal, Oregon State and two .500 or worse teams to go before their to-be-determined bowl game. Meanwhile, No. 1 USC faces the Washington schools, the bay-area schools, Fresno State and UCLA. With this in mind, one of the two teams (UCLA or USC) sitting ahead of Oregon is going to fall, leaving second place for Oregon’s taking.
Don’t get me wrong, a second-place finish would be an awesome feat for the Ducks in light of last season and it would be even nicer if Oregon’s lone loss of the year came against the top-ranked Trojans. Still, no matter how many times you look at second place, it doesn’t turn into first. For every Simon, there is a Garfunkel. Sadly enough, Oregon fans aren’t even hoping for first, they’re literally settling for second – it’s like they’re throwing in the towel. If being content as a runner-up could be put into words, I’d call it loser talk.
USC is one conference loss away from moving into a tie for first place with the Ducks and wouldn’t you know it, if the Trojans lost last week to the Fighting Irish and somehow lose an upcoming game to a Pac-10 foe, Oregon is in the driver’s seat.
Let me ask again, why are Duck fans cheering for the Trojans? Perhaps they feel that USC is simply not going to lose a game this season. If you look at their progress though, you’d see that the Trojans are getting closer and closer to being upset. With each game their opponents are getting more film to scout and are becoming less afraid of the Men of Troy.
After their squeaker against Arkansas (70-17), they went scoreless in the first half against Oregon before they ran up the score without class in the fourth quarter. The following week they topped Arizona State in the desert 38-28, thanks to Sam Keller, who threw almost half a dozen interceptions. Even the Wildcats made USC uncomfortable two weeks ago. Then there was last week, when the Trojans were rewarded by Matt Leinart’s clumsiness. Very rarely does a team get a break from their own fumble in the last seconds of a game – it will surely be a highlight at this year’s Heisman Trophy ceremony, brav-o.
So you think USC’s remaining schedule makes them invincible? Not so fast my friend. The magician head coach Tyrone Willingham and his Huskies are jonesin’ for a win, Washington State’s offense is coming to life, Fresno State is not afraid to play anywhere (even the L.A. Coliseum), playing Cal in Berkeley is the team and site where USC was last defeated, UCLA almost topped them in 2004, and Stanford is Stanford – always down for an upset.
I understand why Oregon fans couldn’t bring themselves to root for Notre Dame last week, even if they wanted to. Hardly anyone I know is interested in supporting the faded glory surrounding South Bend, but even I could find a way to do it and the only thing I like about Notre Dame is its green jerseys. Trying to leap-frog from second place to first is a dirty business that subdues fans into gritting their teeth and backing teams that they wouldn’t cheer for on any other Saturday – but it must be done.
Looking around Autzen Stadium, I could see that many couldn’t bring themselves to praise Notre Dame because they want the best for Pac-10 teams, but think on this for a second. If Oregon toted the 2005 Pac-10 Conference trophy into the post-season, would you honestly give a flying fudge where the other Pac-10 teams landed? And would it even matter what bowl the Ducks went to? Remember, the Pac-10 trophy is good for one ticket to a Bowl Championship Series game and would go great with the other hardware in the Casanova Center. Even if we have the same record as USC at the season’s end, we would share the conference crown and both go Bowling at a BCS site. Oregon fans, it’s okay to be selfish.
I have not lost faith yet in seeing the Ducks finish first and I refuse to quit on them. The drive for upsetting the Trojans didn’t end following Sept. 24. It’s still alive as long as Oregon is winning games. Nothing is over yet.
Go ahead and back USC; I honestly don’t blame you. It would be nice to see a Pac-10 team playing in Pasadena this holiday season. But what would Bill Bowerman say, or Prefontaine, or Dan Fouts, or Joey and the Lukes? Or even John Belushi, “Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?”
At least I won’t be the one telling the Ducks that I’m free to shop for bridesmaid’s dresses in December.