The Oregon Ducks are 12-0 and headed to the BCS National Championship to play #1 Auburn, 13-0, which beat South Carolina 56-17 in the SEC Championship. Their sensational junior quarterback shook off a month-long controversy about his eligibility to throw for four touchdowns and run for two more in the win.
For longtime Duck fans, this is the sweetest moment imaginable. We sat through the Toilet Bowl and endured long seasons of ineptitude. We cheered a team through the first signs of progress, the early years of small successes, Bill Musgrave and Chris Miller and Anthony Newman, the glimmers of hope that Rich Brooks began to mold into a successful team. They managed some winning seasons, and earned the right to a couple of minor bowls. Then in '94, the big breakthrough, the first PAC-10 championship and the first Rose Bowl in a generation.
Under Brooks and then Mike Bellotti Oregon became a legitimate top twenty team, then a contender for the top ten. This is the fourth season in a row with nine or more wins, 41 wins in all since Chip Kelly joined the staff.
Now under his leadership, the program has gone to an entirely new level, and this group has the sharpest focus and most thorough preparation in college football.
In five weeks, they'll test that against the best team from the most successful conference in Division I football, SEC champion Auburn.
If they beat the Tigers, there won't be any doubt. The Ducks will be National Champions and the Greatest Team in Oregon History.
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