The end of the Pac-12 brings the death of an elite Oregon vs. Stanford rivalry
The last couple of months have acted as a drawn-out mourning process when it comes to the Pac-12 and what will be the final season of the conference. With the departure of Oregon, Washington, USC, and UCLA to the Big Ten, Arizona, Arizona State, Utah, and Colorado to the Big 12, and California and Stanford to the ACC in 2024, there’s a strange somberness that has accompanied Pac-12 viewing this season.
I’m not sure if the fact that the conference is stronger than we’ve seen in recent memory — 6 teams are in the top 25 rankings, with four teams in the top 10 — helps or hurts the grieving process, but it certainly makes for an interesting year.
I’m sure that I’m not alone in saying that the past couple of months for myself have been filled with memories of great Pac-12 moments, or longing for certain matchups to continue into the future.
One thing that didn’t hit me until this past week, however, is the fact that this could be the end of the Oregon Ducks’ rivalry against the Stanford Cardinal — one of the richest and most impactful rivalries we’ve seen in the conference this century.
While there will be concerted efforts made by universities to schedule games between Oregon and Oregon State, or Washington and Washington State, I’m not so sure that the same effort will be there for a recurring matchup between the Ducks and the Cardinal.
That makes me sad, and frustrated.
This rivalry may not get the respect that others do in the conference, but it undoubtedly has played as big of an impact on the outcome of the league as any other over the years.
As a preview to this week’s matchup between No. 9 Oregon and Stanford, and in a way of paying respects to this elite matchup, I want to go back through the numbers and look at some of the best games in this series over the years.
Behind the Numbers
Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports
In all, Stanford has the upper hand over Oregon in this matchup. The two schools have played 86 times, and the Cardinal have won 50 of those, good for a .581 win percentage. However, many of those wins came in the 20th century, before the Ducks really got a foothold on their football program and started putting things together. Since 2000, there have been 22 meetings between the Ducks and Cardinal, with Oregon winning 14 of those games.
What’s really interesting, however, is what happened after the year 2007. Since then, both squads have really found their groove and continually placed themselves near the top of the national rankings, making it so any meeting between the two was a clash of titans. A total of 16 times since 2007 has this rivalry featured one ranked team, and 5 times has it been between ranked two teams. 9 of those 14 matchups has seen a team ranked in the top 10, and 3 have seen both teams ranked inside the top 10.
A whopping total of 5 times have we seen the lower-ranked team come out with an upset.
With coaches like Jim Harbaugh, Chip Kelly, and David Shaw acting as mainstays in the rivalry, you have a heavyweight fight. Add on top of that players like Andrew Luck, Marcus Mariota, Christian McCaffrey, and Royce Freeman (to name only a few), and you can understand why these games were so entertaining.
Now let’s take a look at some of the most memorable games:
2007: No. 13 Oregon beats Stanford, 55-31
Dennis Dixon accounts for 5 touchdowns, and the Ducks score 34 unanswered points to run away with the victory.
Jonathan Stewart rushes for 160 yards, 1TD
Cameron Colvin adds 136 yards, 1 TD
2009: Stanford beats No. 8 Oregon, 51-42
Toby Gearhart rushes for 223 yards and 3 TDs, while Andrew Luck throws for 2 more to knock off the Ducks.
LaMichael James has 214 total yards and 2 TD in the loss.
Game Recap: Jeremiah Masoli connected with D.J. Davis for a TD with 2:38 left in the game, making it a 48-42 Stanford lead. The Ducks were unable to recover the onside kick, and Stanford hit a 48-yard FG with 10 seconds left to put the game away.
2010: No. 4 Oregon beats No. 9 Stanford, 52-31
Darron Thomas passes for 2 TDs and rushes for 2 TDs.
LaMichael James rushes for 3 TDs, including a 76-yarder in the fourth quarter to provide the dagger.
Andrew Luck throws 2 TDs.
Game Recap: Down 21-3 in the 1st quarter, Oregon came back and scored 28 unanswered in the second half to run away with the victory, holding Stanford scoreless after the break. The Ducks went on to play in the BCS Championship Game at the end of the season.
2011: No. 7 Oregon beats No. 4 Stanford, 53-30
Darron Thomas has 3 total TDs, while LaMichael James adds 3 more.
Andrew Luck throws for 3 TDs, and 2 INTs in the loss.
Game Recap: Oregon scores 17 points in the 4th quarter to pull away and complete upset on the road.
2012: No. 1 Oregon loses to No. 14 Stanford, 17-14 in OT
Game Recap: The Ducks were ahead 14-7 late in the 4th, but with 1:40 left in the game, Stanford TE Zach Ertz caught one of the most controversial touchdowns in the history of this rivalry, seemingly coming down out of bounds. The play was reviewed and called a touchdown.
Stanford would go on to hit a field goal in OT to win the game.
2013: No. 3 Oregon loses to No. 5 Stanford, 26-20
Game Recap: Stanford went up 26-0 in this game at home, but Oregon rallied for 20 points in the 4th quarter to make it a game. Down 26-7 midway through the 4th, Oregon blocked a FG and returned it for a TD to make it a 26-13 game. They then recovered an onside kick with 5 minutes left and drove down and scored to make it a one-score game. The Ducks couldn’t recover the second onside kick, though.
For the second straight year, Stanford ends Oregon’s chance at a national championship appearance.
2014: No. 5 Oregon blows out Stanford, 45-16
Game Recap: After back-to-back heartbreaking losses, Mariota and the Ducks took advantage of an unranked Stanford team and put the screws to them at home. Mariota totaled 4 TDs in his eventual Heisman Trophy-winning season.
2015: Ducks upset No. 7 Stanford, 38-36
Game Recap: An unranked Oregon team led by Vernon Adams went into Palo Alto and ended Stanford’s College Football Playoff hopes. Stanford scored with 10 seconds remaining, but the Ducks stopped their 2-point attempt to tie the game.
2018: No. 7 Stanford beats No. 20 Oregon in OT, 38-31
Game Recap: Oregon led Stanford 31-21 with 4 minutes lef in the 4th quarter, but the Cardinal scored and then recovered an Oregon fumble, allowing a game-tying field goal to send it to OT. In the extra frames, Stanford scored a TD on their first drive, while Justin Herbert threw an interception on 4th and goal.
2021: Stanford upsets No. 3 Ducks 31-24 in OT
(Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire)
Game Recap: Coming off a massive win vs. No. 3 Ohio State two weeks earlier, Oregon’s offense struggled, getting out to a 17-7 halftime deficit. Leading 24-17 with 5 seconds left in the game, a Stanford pass fell incomplete, but a very questionable PI flag gave the Cardinal an untimed down, which they scored on.
Stanford scored on their first possession of OT, but the Ducks couldn’t find a way into the endzone, losing the game 31-24.
Is this really the end?
(AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn)
As you can see, the history in this rivalry is as rich as any in the conference. So are we really entering a future where, with Oregon in the Big Ten, and Stanford in the ACC, we won’t ever get this game again?
It unfortunately feels likely.
Of course, there might be an effort from both of these schools to schedule non-conference games against each other with hopes of continuing this rivalry into the future. I really hope that happens. But it won’t have the same feel that it has over the past couple of decades. Look at that stretch of games from 2010-2015 once again — that is as true of a rivalry as you can get in the sport, with one team upsetting the other and vice versa every season, with real, national championship stakes on the line.
Some Oregon fans may say “great, I’m happy we don’t have to play Stanford anymore. They were nothing but a pain in our butt the whole time.”
I can’t argue with that sentiment, but I would say this: Isn’t that what college football is all about? Isn’t that why we all love this sport so much? The ecstasy-like highs of ruining your rivals perfect season only made more meaningful after the same was done to you a year before?
The rivalry between Stanford and Oregon gave us that over the past couple of decades, and now it appears that we may be losing that going forward. For that, I will mourn this week.
