Canzano: Oregon Ducks ready for small step… in big leap
UO's first Big Ten Conference game is on Saturday.
In the hours before the University of Oregon decided to jump to the Big Ten Conference, high-level administrators, stakeholders, and consultants huddled in Eugene.
Someone brought up the football struggles of former Big 12 power Texas A&M, which finished 5-7 in 2022 in the SEC.
“They fell off because of poor hires,” one involved person explained.
The wilting of Nebraska also came up. The Huskers had a sterling brand and five national titles. They had three Heisman Trophy winners and a sold-out 85,000-seat stadium on Saturdays. Then, Nebraska joined the Big Ten, cycled through head coaches, and disappeared.
“Everyone else is recruiting nationally now,” a person in the inner circle pointed out. “They became less relevant when they weren’t the only ones recruiting at a national scale.”
On Saturday at the Rose Bowl, Oregon will play UCLA. Kickoff is 8 p.m. on FOX. It’s the first Big Ten Conference game for the Ducks and evidence of how much college athletics has changed.
Before kickoff — some questions: