Days of Future Passed: What Duck Fans Learned in Two Past Openers

Those who fail to learn from history are condemned to be moody and blue.

Oregon fans have enjoyed openers that were harbingers of youthful promise, and openers that left them shell-shocked and grasping for answers. You don't have to look very far back to find evidence that every football game is winnable, or losable, depending on effort and readiness.

Predictions don't matter. Blocking and tackling and fielding kicks do. We entertain ourselves with outlooks and analysis, but when the whistle blows, one team is ready and the other isn't, and success depends on who moves the pile in the right direction. Mike Bellotti used to say he could tell who was going to win a game just by watching the line play in the early going. Victory is a matter of will, execution, and desire. It's decisively evidenced in the nuetral zone. Whoever claims it claims the scoreboard, and the chance to keep competing for meaningful prizes at the end of the year.

2004: Indiana 30, Oregon 24

In season openers the Ducks have had their days where everything went right. At Autzen, they've won 16 out of 17 in home openers, but the one loss was cautionary: they laid a giant, rotten egg versus Indiana in 2004, fumbling and missing tackles until a four-touchdown underdog looked like a juggernaut. The Ducks lost four fumbles and Kellen Clemens threw three picks.

It was a weird game, a time warp classic. Oregon's four fumbles all came in the first half. On their first possession Clemens fumbled on a sack and the Hoosiers capitalized with an early field goal. Then the next two times Indiana had the ball the Duck defense held, but Aaron Gipson and Terrance Whitehead fumbled punts to give the underdog visitors great field position and an extra possession, which they converted into touchdowns. Whitehead, a tough runner and an Oregon stalwart throughout his career, had another fumble in the second quarter. That led to a third Indiana field goal and a nightmare, surreal halftime score of 23-0, Indiana.

On this day the Hoosiers had all the answers. They returned a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown after Oregon got on the board early in the third quarter with a 35-yard pass from Clemens to Dante Rosario. The Ducks had about a dozen future NFL players on the roster that day and Indiana had, count 'em, none. Indiana's BenJarvus Green-Ellis, not a household name before or since, led all rushers with 29 carries for 91 yards.

Indiana had 71 yards passing (quarterback Matt LoVecchio was 6-18) and 127 rushing but still won 30-24. The Ducks outgained them 495-198, but the seven turnovers were too much to overcome. Two of Clemens' picks came inside the Hoosier twenty-yard line in the final five minutes.

Lesson learned: if you're not ready and don't take care of the football, your preseason hype will sink into the quicksand.

Debacle on the Blue Turf, 2009: Punchless Ducks Fall to Boise State, 19-8

Justin Wilcox, now the defensive coordinator at Tennessee, trotted out a fired-up Bronco defense that held Oregon without a first down until midway through the third quarter.

Boise State dominated the line of scrimmage, and frustrated Duck offensive stars Jeremiah Masoli and LeGarrette Blount. Blount was held to -5 yards on eight carries, and Masoli made the wrong reads repeatedly, running and passing, carrying seven times for just fourteen yards and throwing for a mere 121 yards on 27 attempts, with one interception.

The Ducks looked slow and overrated. Boise State looked focused and inspired. Oregon's offensive line, replacing three starters who graduated and advanced to the NFL, was disorganized and ineffective, overwhelmed by the Broncos' pressure and quickness inside. For the game, Oregon managed just six first downs, compared to 22 for BSU. Bronco quarterback Kellen Moore was an efficient 19-29 for 197 yards and a touchdown, with no interceptions. He had the best of Sports Illustrated cover boy Masoli, and the Oregon defense.

Only three Bronco turnovers, two missed field goals and a botched field goal snap kept the score as close as it was. It was a domination and an embarrassment, made infinitely worse when Blount threw his notorious post-game punch. Rightly or wrongly it became the national identity of the Oregon program until Jeremiah Masoli was implicated in the fraternity theft.

Lesson learned: Oregon has reached the level where they get everyone's best shot, and teams define their season by the result of the Oregon game.

Now the hunted, they have to bring their best effort every week to win. The fastest route to being embarrassed is to come in unfocused. Football demands and rewards preparation and disciplined effort. The Ducks lost their cool during and after this game, and they paid for it.

Oregon fans have to wonder also what challenges Wilcox will present in his new role at Tennessee. The Vols open Saturday with Tennessee-Martin, so chances are Wilcox has been scheming for Oregon's spread since spring practice ended. He'll blitz the house against the Ducks rookie quarterback.

Here's hoping Darron Thomas brushes up on his Oregon football history, or the Ducks will be moody and blue in a sea of orange.