Ranking Oregon’s Top-5 Bowl Victories of the Past 20 Years

Since 2000, the Ducks have won 9 out of 18 bowl games, which have compiled into a number of instant classics.

No. 5 | Holiday Bowl, 2008: No. 17 Oregon 42, No. 13 Oklahoma State 31

This game was a doozy, and was Mike Bellotti’s last as head coach of Oregon, which would mark an end to a very significant era.

Duck quarterback Jeremiah Masoli trucked nearly every Oklahoma State defensive back at least once and provided highlights both on the ground and through the air.

Oklahoma State was in control early, as they were carving up the Duck corners who had little-to-no chance guarding Dez Bryant. Once Bryant was hurt and taken out of the game before halftime, Oregon took control and never looked back, and they were able to send Bellotti out with a W.

No. 4 | Fiesta Bowl, 2002: No. 4 Oregon 38, No. 3 Colorado 16

Those who have been riding with the Ducks long before the Chip Kelly era should remember this game fondly. Oregon came out with something to prove, after having their National Championship hopes erased at home by Stanford (shocker) only a few games before. The team still felt like they deserved a date with the then-infamous Miami Hurricanes, and they played like it.

In a game that was supposed to be close, Joey Harrington threw for 350 yards as the Ducks showed they were capable of dominating a top-5 opponent on national television. The game was filled with big plays — including the classic highlight of Maurice Morris’ long 3rd-quarter touchdown run, where he sat down on a defender, got back up, and scored.

No. 3 | Holiday Bowl, 2000: No. 11 Oregon 35 No. 12 Texas 30

With this win, Oregon had its first 10-win season in program history. Mike Bellotti rallied the troops to face Mack Brown’s Longhorns, who then had a mental edge on almost everyone as one of football’s most feared teams.

Oregon had all the momentum in the first quarter when Keenan Howry took the ball on a reverse and tossed it back to Joey Harrington for a Duck touchdown.

Texas then rallied with 21 unanswered points before halftime, but the game would fall in the Ducks favor after a back-and-forth second half. At the very end, Texas receivers dropped 3-straight passes that could have been game-tying touchdowns. The Ducks thanked their lucky stars, as they held on to win the last game of their historic season.

No. 2 | Rose Bowl, 2012: No. 5 Oregon 45, No. 10 Wisconsin 38

This one was a true barn-burner, and resulted in the first BCS bowl win for coach Chip Kelly. Big plays flooded this game on both sides, and the Ducks were able to come up with two big turnovers at the end to narrowly hold on.

Notably, freshman sensation De’Anthony Thomas had his coming out party as the Ducks’ flex running back when he took the ball up the middle for a 91-yard touchdown to set a Rose Bowl record (big deal).

The Ducks offensive attack was strong and balanced, with the likes of LaMichael James, Lavasier Tuinei, Thomas, and Kenjon Barner all making huge plays and scoring at least one touchdown.

Wisconsin’s stars came to play as well: Monte Ball ran for 164 yards, Russell Wilson threw 2 touchdowns and ran for another, and Nick Toon caught 9 passes for 104 yards and a score.

If you like offense — which many of us do — this was the place to be. Rose Bowl records were broken for combined points in a half (56), combined points in regulation (83), and combined first downs (45). It sure was fun, and it made it all the way to No. 2 on our list.

No. 1 | Rose Bowl, 2014 (CFP Semifinal). No. 2 Oregon 59, No. 3 Florida State 20

Some might disagree with this ranking because this game was a blowout, but come on, what was more fun than this for Duck fans?

Not only was this the first-ever College Football Playoff game; and not only did it feature the Heisman-winning quarterback from the last two seasons, including Oregon’s first and only; this game was also a clash between teams representing opposite sides of the country, adding some territorial flare. Florida State had won 29-straight games and were the reigning champs. Oregon wanted to prove they still belonged in the spotlight, even without coach Chip Kelly. There was a ton riding on this game.

It was close in the first half, and both prized QB's looked the part for their respective squads. The flood gates opened in the second half when Oregon forced turnovers on 5 out of the first 6 FSU drives, and capitalized after each one. The game was over halfway through the third quarter, and fans on both sides were genuinely shocked.

Although the Ducks would go on to lose in the championship, this win was not only a great bowl win — it was monumental. They’d won the first CFP game ever, and ended the longest winning streak in college football at the ‘Grandaddy of them all.’ It was a day that will not soon be forgotten for the players and fans and is No. 1 on our list.