Tag: Joey Harrington

Where Oregon football finished in every Associated Press poll since 2000

Where Duck football began and finished in every Associated Press poll since 2000.

Oregon Ducks football finishing in the Top 10 of the final Associated Press in becoming a regular thing nowadays. Believe it or not, it wasn’t always like that.

The Ducks were a pretty good team in the early part of this century, but it wasn’t until Chip Kelly took over the reins from Mike Bellotti that Oregon started to dominate the Pac-12 and be a force on the national scene.

Now it would be a huge disappointment if the Ducks didn’t finish in the AP Top 10 and win their bowl game. Both were accomplished this season and as the Ducks go into the Big Ten for 2024 and beyond, plus the expansion of the College Football Playoffs, there’s no reason not to expect Oregon not to be a playoff hopeful on a yearly basis.

We decided to look back on the history of Oregon football and see where the Ducks began and finished in each AP poll since 2000.

Can the Ducks win the championship in 2023? Oregon legend Joey Harrington thinks so…

Oregon Ducks legend Joey Harrington believes that Dan Lanning’s team has what it takes to win a national championship in 2023.

It wasn’t until this past week that the nation started to take Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks seriously in 2023. While they had been impressive through the first eight weeks of the season, a slew of non-competitive opponents and a loss to the best team that they had faced left people wanting to see a little bit more, and understandably so.

So when the No. 8 Ducks went on the road to a hostile environment in Salt Lake City, a place where visiting teams rarely win, and completely annihilated the No. 13 Utah Utes, people started to take notice.

Since then, we’ve seen the narrative around the Ducks start to change. No longer are they considered just a flashy team out west that can put up points in bunches, but now are being talked about as one of the most physical and complete teams in the nation, capable of squaring off with the Georgias, Ohio States, Michigans, and Alabamas of the world in College Football.

Their national championship odds improved drastically, and the Ducks now have the fifth-best number in the nation to win the whole thing.

This past week, I had Oregon legend Joey Harrington on the Sco-ing Long Podcast, and I asked him about those championship dreams. I posed a hypothetical for him: given $1,000 to keep for something useful around the house, or bet on the Ducks (+1400) to win the national championship, what would he do?

That’s a strong statement from Harrington, who has seen some of the best Oregon teams to ever play. A part of the podcast that didn’t make the social media video is Harrington describing why it’s the defense that impresses him the most with this iteration of the Ducks:

“I think you have to give a lot of that credit to Tosh Lupoi and Dan Lanning for how they’ve shaped this defense,” Harrington said. “Because Oregon has always been able to score points, they’ve always been able to compete offensively. What they’re doing on the defensive side of the ball, with talent and scheme, is pretty tremendous. And the way that they are starting to build this Oregon defense into those SEC-style defenses — the defenses that truly can compete at the end of November, December, and January — that makes me think that this is a good year to put that money down.”

While there is still a lot of football left to be played in the month of November before any major conversations about the Ducks and a College Football Playoff spot can be held, this team is on a trajectory that makes it so fans can at least consider those possibilities in the near future.

“While they may not be the flashiest team that Oregon has ever had, come the end of November, if things play out right I think you can potentially be making the argument that this is one of the best teams in the history of Oregon football, and that’s saying something.”

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LOOK: Bo Nix gets ‘Joey Heisman’ treatment with massive billboard in New York

Bo Knows Heisman? Oregon’s QB is getting the ‘Joey Heisman’ treatment with a 12-story billboard going up in New York City.

Do you want to feel old for a second?

It was over two decades ago that Oregon Ducks quarterback Joey Harrington had his name, image, and likeness plastered to the side of a building in downtown New York City, kicking off his campaign for the Heisman Trophy in 2001. The poster hung adjacent from Madison Square Garden on 7th Avenue, and remained there throughout the season.

Time is a flat circle, isn’t it?

On Tuesday, pictures started circulating online that could give Oregon fans flashbacks. According to multiple reports on the social media platform formally known as Twitter, a massive 12-story poster is going up of current Oregon QB Bo Nix, appearing to be labeled “Bodacious.”

The poster, located at 315 Park Avenue, is not completed yet, but it appears that the Ducks are going all in on the Heisman campaign for Nix just as they did for Harrington a couple of decades ago. In 2001, Harrington finished fourth in the Heisman voting.

Unsurprisingly, the news of the billboard going up in New York City drew a lot of excitement across the country in Eugene. Here are some of the best reactions on social media from fans, former Oregon players, and Joey Harrington himself.

Green and Yellow Fireworks: Some of the best Oregon Duck highlights in the 21st century

What better way to celebrate the 4th of July than with an Oregon Ducks firework show?

Who doesn’t love a good fireworks show?

On the 4th of July, it is an American tradition to get together with friends and family and celebrate independence by lighting things on fire and watching them explode in the sky.

While you prepare for those festivities to begin on Tuesday night, we wanted to offer some fireworks of our own — some Oregon Duck fireworks.

The past couple of decades in Eugene have been incredibly entertaining. With the rise to national prominence for Oregon football, and the Chip Kelly blur offense that took the college football world by storm, the Ducks saw themselves one of the biggest fan favorites across the nation this century. Go ahead and add in Marcus Mariota’s Heisman season, the enthralling career of Sabrina Ionescu, and the deep tournament runs made by both basketball teams in March.

It’s safe to say that the past 23 years have provided a ton of highlights. I want to bring them to the surface and give you all a fireworks show to start your holiday.

Of course, there are going to be many plays that I missed throughout this all. To every player and every play that did not get mentioned, I apologize. If you have any favorite firework-worthy plays that didn’t get mentioned, comment below and let me know.

Without further ado, let the firework show begin.

Oregon QB Ty Thompson is doing what few players do in this era of college football

Oregon Ducks QB Ty Thompson is doing what few players do in college football anymore, and it deserves some recognition.

Whenever the topic of quarterback Ty Thompson comes up in Oregon Duck fan circles, there is often some passion that becomes prevalent. You won’t be able to find many Oregon fans who don’t have some type of opinion about the soon-to-be redshirt sophomore.

It’s understandable, too. What Ty Thompson has done during his time in Eugene is rarely seen anymore in the world of college football. His actions ironically go against the grain of what has become common in the sport. His situation is an interesting topic of conversation.

None of that is because he’s doing things on the football field that we’ve never seen before, but rather because we aren’t seeing him on the football field, and he’s choosing patience over playing time at the moment.

Thompson is a former 4-star QB who came to Eugene as the highest-rated passer to ever sign with the Ducks. He was billed to be the next great thing at Oregon, walking in similar footsteps as Marcus Mariota and Justin Herbert. Instead, he’s been relegated to a backup role for his first two seasons, sitting behind Anthony Brown and Bo Nix, and only getting on the field sparingly, often in late-game situations where the game has already been decided.

In today’s era of college football, nobody would blame Thompson for entering the transfer portal and trying to find a team where he could become the starting QB. As a highly-rated prospect, it’s understandable that he would want to spend his college years actually playing, rather than sitting on the sideline with a headset on.

However, that’s not what we’ve seen. Thompson has stayed the course thus far and is biding his time while growing and improving in the shadows. I asked former Oregon quarterback Joey Harrington what he thought about Thompson’s decision to stay on a recent episode of the Sco-ing Long podcast. Here is what he had to say:

Obviously, the fact that Thompson is willing to stick around in Eugene and try to improve to the point where he can take over as the starter is noteworthy and noble. We don’t see that decision be made by many players anymore, and it’s refreshing to see.

It also is a great development for the Ducks, who now have a backup QB behind Nix that they can feel confident knows the system well, and can keep the ship afloat in the case that something were to happen to the starter.

It’s not something you see often in college football anymore, so when you do, you have to take notice and appreciate it.

Thompson is biding his time. A year from now, the keys to the car will likely be his, and the wait will be worth it.

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Where can Bo Nix improve his NFL draft stock the most going into the 2023 season at Oregon?

Former Oregon QB Joey Harrington breaks down how Bo Nix can improve and best raise his NFL draft stock during his final season with the Ducks.

By almost any measure, Oregon Ducks quarterback Bo Nix was outstanding during the 2022 season. He completed almost 72% of his passes, threw for over 3,500 yards and totaled 43 touchdowns (29 passing, 14 rushing) to just 7 interceptions.

It’s hard to ask him to be much better than that. In fact, if it weren’t for an ankle injury that hobbled him for the final three games of the season, Nix likely would have ended up in New York City at the start of December as a finalist for the Heisman Trophy award, while the Ducks had a good chance at making it to the Pac-12 Championship game with a potential shot at getting into the College Football Playoff.

So, how do you take a player like that and ask him to improve? It’s not easy. However, when I had former Oregon QB Joey Harrington on the Sco-ing Long Podcast earlier in the week, I asked him what he thought Nix could still do to elevate his game.

“I don’t know, not get hurt,” Harrington joked. “The only reason that he wasn’t a Heisman contender at the end of the season is because he hurt his ankle, right? H was literally just skyrocketing up and, you know, Oregon was on track to be in the playoff discussion.”

While that’s an easy answer, and one that a lot of fans would have, Harrington was able to dive deeper into the game, using his knowledge not only as a college QB, but an NFL passer who was selected with the No. 3 overall pick by the Detroit Lions in the 2002 NFL Draft.

“There are the little things, you know, like being more consistent from the pocket,” Harrington continued. “There are little things that he did. Not that he was bad from the pocket — he was fantastic from the pocket, right? But you have to be elite if you’re going to be in the NFL. So there are things that he has identified that can help take him from what third or fourth-round pick to a second-round pick.”

The draft status for Nix is likely what played a part in him returning to the Ducks for the 2023 season. There is a belief that he got evaluated as someone who would be selected in the third or fourth round of the draft, but another successful season could see his stock rise, should he be able to clean up a few small things in his game.

“For those of us who are looking at this as a fan, you see the success that he had, right? I mean, was completing 70% of his passes, you know, throwing touchdowns not throwing picks, leading teams to victory, doing it with his legs, doing it with his arm. There is a certain level of, I’ll say leeway at the college level. There’s an amount of leeway that you have where you can make little mistakes and still have success. Or I should say those who are super talented can escape and create plays that aren’t necessarily there in the NFL. And then they’re not often seen by the average fan sitting and watching a game, right? You see a guy take a team down the field and score a touchdown, but the NFL scout sees ‘well why did he have to scramble?’ They’re watching the filming from the all-22 and saying ‘all right, you’ve got Cover 2 here, the middle linebacker is is working strong for the three-receiver side, you need to be throwing that ball over the back of the weak side linebacker, right? That’s the throw I need to see you make.’ And when you don’t make it and instead you scramble out and get the fancy yards and the fancy touchdowns, the scout sees a hesitance to cut that loose. So those are the little details, and honestly, we’re nitpicking. But when you get to this level, that’s the level of pickiness that is involved.”

When a former NFL QB breaks it down for you like that, it certainly makes sense. While we saw a lot of great play from Nix in 2022, there is an understanding that he will be to be better this season if he wants to make it as a QB at the next level. It will certainly be fun to watch him make those adjustments over the coming months.

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Which Oregon Duck legends should be added to the ‘Shout!’ video?

Does the ‘Shout!’ video need to include more Oregon legends? That’s up for debate. If you do want to include more, here’s who should be added.

One of the greatest current traditions in all of sports takes place inside Autzen Stadium during the intermission between 3rd and 4th quarters of football games.

Fans know it’s coming. Players know it’s coming. TV crews across the nation know it’s coming, readying their cameras for the exuberant explosion getting set to take place in Eugene.

The singing of “Shout!” has become one of the time-honored traditions in college football over the last decade or so. An ode to Otis Day and the Knights, the popular fictional band from National Lampoon’s Animal House — which was filmed on the University of Oregon campus — the crowd at Autzen always turns into a frenzy for a span of several minutes in between quarters, with a well-produced Nike video playing on the jumbotron.

The video — a remake of arguably the most popular scene in Animal House — features some of the most legendary athletes and figures to be associated with the Ducks over the years. Here are just a few featured in the video:

  • Marcus Mariota
  • Joey Harrington
  • Ahmad Rashad
  • LaMichael James
  • Kenjon Barner
  • Dennis Dixon
  • Kenny Wheaton
  • Dan Fouts
  • Ashton Eaton
  • Galen Rupp
  • Neil Everett
  • English Gardner

That’s a great list of Oregon legends, but it is undoubtedly missing some names. This past week on the Sco-ing Long podcast, I was lucky enough to talk to Joey Harrington, one of the prominent figures of that ‘Shout!’ video. Of course, I asked him whether or not he thought the video should be updated to include some of the newest Oregon legends. His answer may surprise you.

It’s hard to disagree with Harrington. While the list of great Oregon athletes will continue to grow, the competition for screen time will grow as well. It’s only so long of a song, and by adding a handful of Duck legends who were left out the first time, you would be taking away from those who made it.

However, in a perfect world, there’s no cap on who gets to be in the video, and “Shout!” becomes a defacto “fan version” of the Oregon Ducks Hall of Fame.

In this world, here are some names that I would like to see added to the video, in no particular order.

Note: It needs to be said that creating this list was much harder than I originally thought. My first draft had well over 50 names on it of players who I believed should make the cut. Even in a perfect world, that’s too many. So I forced myself to cut it down to 30 names. There are unlimited honorable mentions that I could go through. However, these are the most deserving in my mind. 

Who takes biggest leap for Oregon in 2023? Joey Harrington says it’s an easy answer

Joey Harrington was asked which Duck made the biggest leap to stardom in 2023. The former Oregon QB didn’t have a hard time answering.

A lot of time during the offseason is spent with fans and media members looking at the current players on a roster and trying to figure out who is going to be the most important going forward. Here at Ducks Wire, we recently dove deep into the incoming transfers and tried to predict which players were going to have the biggest impact right away in Eugene.

While a lot of the focus goes into trying to see how good the new players, both transfers and recruits, will be in their first year with the team, we often overlook which current players on the roster may be poised to make the biggest leap.

I’m talking about the guys who were already good and performing well, that might have a chance to leap into stardom going forward, becoming nationally relevant.

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I had Oregon legend Joey Harrington on the ‘Sco-ing Long’ podcast this week, and I asked him to identify one person that he thought was poised to take that step to the next level this year for the Ducks.

His answer? Wide receiver Troy Franklin.

“I know that’s not really out of left field, it’s almost like ‘yea, of course,’ but the flashes that he showed last year, it almost reminds me of Dillon Mitchell,” Harrington said. “Is Kris Hutson capable? Yeah, sure. Ferguson? Absolutely. But neither one of them has shown the explosiveness that Troy Franklin did. I’m thinking of the two running backs. You know, they’re going to be really good. They’re again going to be really good football players. But I think if you’re talking about somebody who can make the leap from being, ‘hey, he was really good,’ to being ‘okay, that guy’s in the discussion for the Belitnikoff Award.’ Like, that’s the type of guy that Troy Franklin could be.”

Going into his junior season, Franklin is absolutely poised to be the Ducks’ leading receiver for the second-straight season. He closed out his 2022 campaign with 61 catches for 891 yards and 9 touchdowns, and he has been ranked by 247Sports as one of the best-returning WRs in the nation for 2023.

While there is a lot of receiver talent on Oregon’s roster, nobody is as proven as Franklin when it comes to consistency or big-play ability. With QB Bo Nix returning for another season, there are expectations that the Ducks’ offense is going to be elite in the Pac-12.

If that’s going to happen, expect Franklin to be at the center of it.

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Joey Harrington wasn’t surprised Bo Nix returned for 2023 season in Eugene

Joey Harrington knows how special Eugene can be, so he wasn’t surprised to see Nix return for another year after the QB experienced it himself.

On December 17, 2022, things were starting to look a little bit dire for the Oregon Ducks. There was still no clarity on whether or not quarterback Bo Nix would be coming back for his final season in Eugene, and speculation that 5-star QB commit Dante Moore was going to flip from the Ducks to UCLA was growing. With new offensive coordinator Will Stein taking over for Kenny Dillingham, some questions were starting to swirl about what the future was like for Oregon.

Fortunately, Nix’s decision soon came, and his return to Eugene would immediately shift the Ducks’ future outlook from questions into contention.

For Joey Harrington, a former Oregon QB legend, the fact that Nix came back for another season was not a surprise. I spoke to Harrington this last week on the newest episode of the Sco-ing Long Podcast and asked him about Nix’s decision.

“I wasn’t surprised to be perfectly honest,” Harrington said. “Because of how he spoke about the team, how we spoke about Eugene, how he spoke about his experience versus what it was at Auburn. And there was never a direct comparison; like he never said ‘at Auburn, this was terrible, and at Oregon, it’s fantastic.’ But there’s a reason he left, right? I mean, let’s kind of take this whole picture, you know. He was the golden boy. I mean, he literally was the coach’s son who, you know, who was a former quarterback and now is destined to be, you know — his son is going to be the savior for Auburn football. And it was a pretty rough, rough time for him. You know, it was not a smooth few years.”

Nix’s career at Auburn started out on an incredibly high note when he, as a true freshman, mounted a comeback in his first career game to beat Justin Herbert and the Oregon Ducks in 2019. However, the entirety of his Auburn career would see a lot of ups and downs. In 34 career games with the Tigers, Nix threw for 39 touchdowns and 16 INT, going 21-16 as a starter.

The ‘golden boy’ status quickly wore off, and Nix drew a lot of criticism and guile from the Auburn fanbase.

“And so he left and he came to a place where he was immediately accepted. He had immediate success. I mean, let’s be honest, he was adored, and he connected with not just the team but the community. You heard him say over and over how much he and his wife loved being in Eugene and loved to be part of that Oregon community. And so, when people talk like that, there are emotions at play, right? It’s more than just a financial decision. Now, had he been projected to be a first-round pick, you know, I’m sure he would have left. But I think that combination of him not just wanting to improve draft stock or prove to people that he could be the type of player that everyone thought he was coming out of high school. When you combine that with the emotional experience that he had, I wasn’t surprised to see that he made the decision to come back.”

Regardless of the reasoning, every Oregon fan is thrilled to have Nix back in Eugene for another season. With him under center, the sky is the limit for what this team can achieve in 2023.

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Ranking Oregon’s most important non-conference games in recent Duck football history

The Ducks aren’t afraid to mix it up with the best of the best in early-season games. We ranked the most important non-conference games in Oregon history.

In a matter of weeks, the Oregon Ducks are going to be traveling down to Atlanta to take on the defending champion Georgia Bulldogs. It’s a game that holds more meaning this year than it would in other years, simply because Oregon’s new head coach Dan Lanning is less than a year removed from helping lead the Bulldogs to the promised land as their defensive coordinator.

If you take the drama away from the game, though, it is still a juicy matchup that will catch the attention of the college football world. That’s something that the Ducks have been able to do a number of times over the past few decades — schedule a big non-conference game at the start of the season to give the team a monster test before Pac-12 play begins.

We’ve seen Oregon on neutral sites in Dallas, in the belly of the beast in Columbus, or welcoming some top-ranked teams to Autzen Stadium. All of these matchups have been important, either getting the team off to a hot start on the season or derailing their potential championship hopes early on.

We decided to rank the best ones.

For this exercise, we looked at all of the non-conference games Oregon has played since 2000 — bowl games excluded, obviously — and put them in order of the ones where the result, either a win or a loss, meant the most for the team. Here’s what we came up with: