As Penn State gets ready to play Oregon this weekend for the Big Ten title, it is an opponent and a school that is new to Penn Staters and the conference. I made the trek out to Eugene to see the Ducks play Ohio State in October and came back with a new understanding of this new Big Ten school.
One misperception that should be cleared up first is the idea that Oregon has simply used money from one prominent alum to spend their way to football success. That is disrespectful to Athletic Director Rob Mullens and Coach Dan Lanning. Actually, their football budget is significantly less (roughly 33% less) than schools like Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State. And all the money in the world doesn’t help you make the right decisions and calls on game days.
It’s been nearly 30 years since Penn State met Oregon on the gridiron in the Rose Bowl. Before that, these two teams met three times in the early 1960s.
So here are some things that Penn Staters should know about Oregon…
The most important thing to know is that the movie “Animal House” was filmed on Oregon’s campus as the cinematic stand-in for Faber College, where “Knowledge is Good.” The school still embraces that history. Between the third and fourth quarter they sing the song “Shout” by Otis Day and the Knights and re-shot that Animal House scene in a Nike video featuring several prominent former Oregon athletes.
Of note: The Dexter Lake Club is still standing. That was the roadhouse where the Deltas took their dates when they road-tripped to see Fawn Liebowitz, who’d died tragically in a kiln accident. On our visit we did make the drive there.
The second thing to know is that Oregon is a university investing heavily to grab the research benefits that will come from its new affiliation with the Big Ten. Unlike the SEC and other conferences, the Big Ten has a collaborative research and academic component. That elevated Penn State when we joined the Big Ten and will do so for our newest schools. In the Big Ten, which is an academic and athletic conference, “It Just Means More” in everything that we do.
Walking across campus on a beautiful October afternoon, it had the feel of a long-time Big Ten school. The leaves were changing, the sun was out and there was an early fall warmth from the sun. Students were hustling to and from class, and there was palpable Friday electricity before a big football game. The wide Willamette River runs through campus on its way to meet the Columbia River in Portland.
Now on to the athletics and the big game this weekend. Everyone knows that Nike co-founder Phil Knight went to Oregon and has maintained strong ties to the school. But there was another Nike co-founder, Oregon track coach Bill Bowerman. He won multiple national titles and his legacy cemented Eugene as TrackTown USA. They host the national championships and the U.S. Olympic Trials at Hayward Field which is a stunningly beautiful track facility.
Bowerman was always pushing his athletes as students and as people. His motto was “Do right and fear no man” — a motto that the men he coached carried with them forever. Bowerman was also one of the U.S. Olympic track coaches in Mexico City in 1968 and watched as Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their fists on the podium in protest. In Kenny Moore’s book about Bowerman he wrote of him, “He knew he was seeing not an act of self-promotion but an act of conscience. It was so powerful that he shivered at what it might cost them.”
Four years later, Bowerman was the Olympic coach in Munich. Before 5 a.m., an Israeli track athlete pounded on Bowerman’s door looking for safety. He called the U.S. consul and asked for security that arrived as U.S. Marines to secure the building housing American athletes. It was not a gesture that was appreciated by German authorities, but he made sure the U.S. athletes were protected.
And as for Phil Knight, grateful Penn Staters will forever remember that forceful speech he made at the Memorial for Joe Paterno. Nike has been a tremendous partner with Penn State for over 40 years. In the 1990s and early 2000s, Penn State football players were field testing and evaluating Nike prototypes. The mature and insightful feedback our players gave was invaluable. In the Orange Bowl following the 2005 season, Penn State quarterback Michael Robinson was testing Michael Vick cleats that Vick himself would not use until the following season.
Michael also delivered a speech at the Memorial for Joe in the middle of his Pro Bowl week in Hawaii. He flew commercially to State College but needed a way back. Phil Knight gave him a ride on his jet.
And speaking of rides, the Oregon Duck arrives in Autzen Stadium on a motorcycle and is an energetic and fantastic mascot.
Fast forward to 2024 and here we are. At Oregon, fans who found out that we were Penn Staters at the game could not have been more gracious. They were clearly excited about the Big Ten and looked forward to coming to Penn State next fall.
But this match-up jumps the gun on that game.
And what a matchup it is. Oregon has a quarterback that will remind you in stature and in the way he moves, runs and throws with the touch and accuracy of Russell Wilson. They have speed at running back, and receivers that jumps off the screen. They have a pass rush unit that is now healthy, led by 6-6/295 defensive end Jordan Burch. He’s healthy after missing the Ohio State matchup and three other games. For all the attention given to the Oregon offense, they are a top-10 defense.
Through a quirk in scheduling, Penn State and Oregon shared seven common Big Ten opponents with the lone difference being Oregon going to UCLA with the Bruins going to Penn State. Oregon went 7-0 in those games while PSU went 6-1. And while Penn State could not get an offensive touchdown against the Buckeyes, the Ducks scored 32 points and eked out a one-point win.
As for coaching, Oregon coach Dan Lanning was hired by the Ducks as a first-time head coach and has racked up a 34-5 record in three seasons. That includes a 3-3 record against top-10 teams (the losses being his first-ever game to No. 3 Georgia and two losses to national finalist Washington last year).
Last January, Dan immediately squelched rumors that he was headed to Alabama, saying that while the grass always seems greener elsewhere “The Grass is Damn Green in Eugene.” He and I talked about that decision when I was there in October.
Dan also should get your attention in how he supported and rallied behind his wife, Sauphia, as she battled her bone cancer into remission. The couple has partnered with Oregon and Nike to raise awareness and money to help families in their community waging their own wars with cancer.
And now we turn to this weekend…
All that we could want, all that we should seek in a big game is a proud university with a tradition and team that will test our limits, will push us to perform at our very best. But above all we should want an opponent that is worthy of our respect on and off the field.
The men and women of Oregon, both now and for decades before, certainly have risen to command that respect. Here’s to a great matchup, a great game and an effort by both teams worthy of the tradition on and off the field of both universities.
We just hope that our best is just a little better than theirs.
