The Most Intriguing Matchups for Oregon Football in the "Alliance" Era

These are the schools we want see Oregon go toe-to-toe with on the gridiron.

Sometimes it's fun to play the hypotheticals. With the news of the Pac-12's alliance with the ACC and Big Ten coming Tuesday, we thought it'd be fun to put together some matchups we'd like to see for Oregon football in an "alliance era". 

There are some ground rules however. 

We couldn't pick the same two teams, and these matchups are exclusively for football. These matchups are also projecting a little, with the expectation being that we'll see these matchups become a real possibility some time in the next five years, if not sooner.

Dylan Reubenking

ACC Matchup-Clemson

Oregon and Clemson have never faced each other on the football field. In fact, Oregon and Pac-12 teams alike hardly ever get a chance to play ACC opponents due to the distance between schools. The Ducks have only played three ACC opponents (Wake Forest, Virginia (2x), and Florida State) in the last 20 seasons, and has only traveled to face an ACC opponent once in that time period when they traveled to Charlottesville in 2013.

Clemson has been the cream of the crop in the college football world for the better part of a decade, with 10 straight winning seasons, two national championships, and six straight College Football Playoff appearances. Few opponents would present a bigger challenge for any team than Clemson, and few stadiums are tougher to win in than Memorial Stadium and Autzen Stadium.

An Oregon-Clemson matchup would be a battle of the elites and a real test for the Ducks to see just how elite they are and a win would place them on the upper tier of college football.

Big Ten Matchup-Penn State 

Believe it or not, the Ducks and the Nittany Lions have faced each other four times. The most memorable of those matchups was the 1995 Rose Bowl, where the undefeated Nittany Lions defeated the Ducks 38-20 in Rich Brooks’ final game as the Ducks’ head coach. It was the Ducks’ first Rose Bowl appearance in 37 years.

The other three matchups were in the 1960s, and the Ducks have only won once. It was in 1964 at Beaver Stadium.

Imagine the Ducks' flashy uniforms surrounded by a sea of more than 100,000 fans wearing white and waving around white shakers on a clear night at Beaver Stadium. There aren’t many more stunning atmospheres in all of sports than that. The Ducks would love to avenge that coveted Rose Bowl loss from 1995, especially in State College.

Nick Battey

ACC Matchup: Florida State Seminoles 

While Oregon and Florida State have only faced each other once in recent years, there would still be plenty of drama between these schools if they went head-to-head. Of course, the first thing people will think about is a rematch of the first-ever College Football Playoff game between the two Heisman-winning quarterbacks Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota. A rematch of that historic Rose Bowl would bring back fond memories for Duck fans everywhere.

There is also, of course, the drama involving Wille Taggart. The once Oregon head coach bolted for his ‘dream job’ in Florida less than a year after taking the Ducks job. While that was a short-term setback for Oregon, the two programs have gone in opposite directions since, with Taggart getting fired a few years later and Mario Cristobal leading Oregon to consecutive Pac-12 Championships.

Big Ten Matchup-Wisconsin Badgers

Oregon and Wisconsin have a recent history of classic Rose Bowl matchups, first, there was the high-scoring 45-38 final where Darron Thomas and the Ducks outlasted Russell Wilson and the Badgers to give Chip Kelly his first BCS victory at Oregon. 

Then there was the 2020 edition. A physical, throwback type of football game that saw Oregon come from behind led by three rushing touchdowns from Justin Herbert to give the Ducks a 28-27 win.

A home and home between the schools would not only bring back those memories for Duck fans but also provide the opportunity to experience some great traditions. While Oregon has “Shout” at the end of the third quarter, Wisconsin has “Jump Around.” 

I believe this would become one of the most passionate and interesting non-conference matchups Oregon has played in recent years due to the pageantry and recent history between the two schools.

Max Torres

ACC Matchup- North Carolina Tarheels

This matchup really excites me because Mack Brown has things headed in the right direction in Chapel Hill. The records from his first two seasons may not be incredibly impressive,  7-6 in 2019, and 8-4 in 2020, but he knows how to build a strong offense and field a team that will be fun to watch. Sam Howell is squarely in the mix for the Heisman Trophy and is widely viewed as one of the top quarterbacks in the country. 

Where things really get interesting is on the recruiting trail. Some may not know it, but  Brown flipped freshman quarterback Drake Maye from Alabama in the 2021 recruiting cycle, which was certainly no small task. Furthermore, he's shown the ability to keep North Carolina's best talent at home, signing defensive lineman Keeshawn Silver last year, and holds a verbal commitment from defensive lineman Travis Shaw in his 2022 recruiting class, which ranked No. 21 in the SI All-American team rankings released at the beginning of the month.

The Tarheels are on an upward trajectory and are one of the few teams in the ACC that might be able to challenge Clemson.

Big Ten Matchup-Iowa Hawkeyes

This is where I had some more difficulty after Dylan and Nick took Penn State and Wisconsin, but Iowa is a fun team to watch. Much like their in-state rivals in Aimes, the Hawkeyes are just a gritty team. They are a factory for a variety of positions, but they excel at developing elite tight ends, which can really give a defense fits and show you how good of a defense you really have.

Iowa is always physical in the trenches and is never an easy out. Sure this may not be the most appealing matchup on paper or with name brand, but they're a competitive team every year and it'd be great to see how Mario Cristobal's physical brand of football matches up with Kirk Ferentz's Hawkeyes. 

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