I don’t make it a hidden fact that I am an Oregon Duck. So, admitting this won’t be easy for me, but it must be said. Next year will mark the first time in my life that Oregon and Oregon State won’t be in the same conference and not on each other’s schedule for any sport, at least for now. This makes me sad and already feeling nostalgic.
I’ve experienced thirty-six Civil Wars (yes, it’s still the Civil War) games in my life, some I remember more than most. The first Civil War I can remember was in 1994 when I was about seven years old. Oregon needed the win to get to Pasadena for the first time in thirty-plus seasons. Danny O’Neil led the Ducks to a game-winning touchdown, sending Oregon to the Rose Bowl. We won’t talk about what happened when we got there. I remember thinking “This is fun! I hope all of the games are like this!”. All of the games were not like that. But that’s okay!
We had the 2000 Civil War that saw #8 Oregon State (9-1) win 23-13 over #5 Oregon (9-1) and create a three-way tie for the Pac-10 Championship between Oregon State, Oregon, and Washington (yuck). I remember watching the game with my Dad and brothers and cheering for Oregon State in the Fiesta Bowl and drub Notre Dame 41-9 in primetime. My dad, an Oregon alumni, and diehard Oregon Football fan, cheered on Ken Simonton as if he was a Duck. If Oregon no longer had anything to gain in an Oregon State loss, then we were cheering for the state of Oregon. However, our family would still be wearing yellow and green.
Throughout the next twenty years, the games began to be more of a roadblock to Oregon finishing in the top 10 and realizing championship dreams. Oregon would win the vast majority of the games against Oregon State going forward in the 00’s, but it sure never felt easy. Mixed in there would be thrilling finishes, championship celebrations, rose thorn cuts, and Heisman moments. All of the thirty-six years of games came rushing into my head at once yesterday as the clock ticked down to zero last night for what will be the final Civil War in the Pac-10/12 conference.
Last night's victory for Oregon meant so much yesterday, but the ending was bittersweet. Watching the Pac-12 conference disintegrate over the past two summers was heartbreaking. If the conference had broken apart for reasons beyond money, I guess I’d understand. But we watched over one hundred years of tradition and rivalry get canceled by television networks. I’m sad that the next time Oregon faces Oregon State will be in the courtroom to fight over the body that once was the Pac-12 conference.
I hold out hope that the court battles never happen and that agreements can be made outside of the courthouse so that the battle can continue on the fields and (sports) courts moving forward. Oregon needs Oregon State on its schedule. A football season without the Civil War feels like a football video game glitch that would make you restart your dynasty mode and fix it. Oregon and Oregon State need to overcome television executives and make this happen for the state of Oregon and college football as a whole.
However, if this is the end, even temporarily, just know that you have a fan for life, Oregon State. Well, except when you’re facing Oregon.
Until next time… Go Ducks! Go Beavers!