Civil War 2000-2009 - A Growth In National Interest

Before the turn of the century, the Civil War in football barely ever drew any attention outside of the state of Oregon. Prior to 1999, the Beavers were in the midst of a losing season streak that had started 28 years beforehand. The Ducks were starting to gain some success, going to the Rose Bowl and the Cotton Bowl in the mid 90's, and enjoying winning seasons on a regular basis. 

It wasn't until 2000 when the Civil War gained some headlines around the country. Both Oregon State and Oregon were 9-1 and ranked in the top 10 in the nation. The Ducks were a win away from going to the Rose Bowl, while the Beavers were enjoying arguably their best season in school history, knocking on the doors of a potential BCS at-large bid and a share of the Pac-10 title. With the bouquet of roses on hand and legendary announcer Keith Jackson calling the game, the Ducks faltered behind five Joey Harrington interceptions, sending the Beavers to the Fiesta Bowl and the Ducks to the Holiday Bowl.

The following season brought high expectations for both teams, including a pre-season No. 1 ranking for the Beavers by Sports Illustrated. While it was a disappointing season for OSU, going 5-5 heading into the Civil War, the Ducks were enjoying another successful campaign, again going 9-1 into the Civil War and not only with Pac-10 title aspirations, but on the verge of crashing the BCS National Championship game. The Ducks prevailed in a rainy Autzen Stadium, giving the Beavers a losing season and heading off to the Fiesta Bowl (since the Rose Bowl that season was the host of the National Championship game). Although the Ducks were ranked No. 2 in the media polls, the BCS Rankings held them out of the top two spots, giving Nebraska (a team that did not even win its own conference) a spot in the title game. The Ducks crushed Colorado to end the year ranked No. 2.

In the following four seasons, the home team won each match up in fairly convincing fashion. In 2004 the Ducks were handed a losing season after dropping to the Beavers 50-21. The next season the Beavers were on the end other end of the spectrum, losing 56-14 to fall short of a winning season as well.

The stakes would rise in the coming years in a way which alums from both schools would not have imagined. In 2006, both teams entered the contest with 7 wins. The Beavers were able to get a sizable lead before halftime, but the Ducks would roar back, taking a one point lead late in the fourth quarter. The Beavers marched down the field and kicked a field goal with under two minutes to play to take a two point lead. Oregon got the ball back and was able to get in field goal range before time ran out, but missed a 44-yard field goal to hand OSU the victory.

2007 served to be one of the most riveting Civil Wars in recent memory. With the game tied at 28, Oregon had the ball in field goal range with time running out, but barely missed a field goal as time expired to send the game into overtime. Both teams exchanged field goals in the first overtime, but when OSU got the ball first in the second session, James Rodgers scored on a fly-sweep to put the Beavers up seven. The Ducks got stuffed on three downs and could not get on the board, falling in double overtime 38-31.

History would be made the next two Civil Wars, as both games had Rose Bowl implications. In 2008, Oregon State was one win away from going to its first Rose Bowl since the 60's. However, a rowdy Reser Stadium was quickly silenced, as the Oregon offense put up 65 points and ran the ball at will, knocking the Beavers out of a chance to go to Pasadena. Jeremiah Masoli and Jeremiah Johnson gave the Chip Kelly offense its coming out party and haven't slowed down since.

Last years game, the stakes were raised even higher, with a "War for the Roses" as the winner would be assured a spot in the Rose Bowl. In a tightly contested match up, Oregon State had a 30-21 lead midway through the 3rd quarter, but field goals instead of touchdowns doomed the Beavers as the Ducks put up a couple more scores, helped with the return of beleaguered  LaGarrett Blount. The Beavers had a chance down 37-33 to score, but failed to convert on third and fourth down in Oregon territory. The Ducks then ran off the remaining 5-plus minutes on the clock to book their ticket to Pasadena.

Once a mocked rivalry in the sporting world, including an infamous 0-0 tie dubbed "The Toilet Bowl," the Civil War has come full circle, a tribute to both programs' success and high level of competition. And it doesn't look like either programs are going away any time soon.

Civil War Week

For college football fans around the state of Oregon, Civil War week is one of the most exciting times of the year. Families, friends, and coworkers alike generally share an allegiance with the Ducks or the Beavers, and the rivalry can become anything from fun to pure hatred and anything in between.

This week I'd like to take a look back at Civil Wars from the past decade, look ahead to keys to the game for both teams, and try to size up the outcome of the game (as unbiased as humanly possible).

So wear your school's colors this week and share as many jokes as possible and enjoy one of the better rivalries in college football.

Oregon State vs. Stanford: Notes and Thoughts

Coming off an impressive victory over USC in Corvallis, the Beavers fell flat in Palo Alto, losing 38-0 to Stanford. The offense could not get anything going all game long, while Andrew Luck and the Cardinal offense carved up OSU's defense like a Thanksgiving turkey.

- Not exactly what Beaver fans were looking for heading into the season finale against the Ducks in the Civil War. While a little optimism was instilled after the thrashing of the Trojans, it was back to square one after the visit to Stanford. With little bright spots on either side of the ball, expectations are once again lowered from modest to desperate.

- Individually, Stephen Paea showed why he is a top defensive tackle prospect for the 2011 NFL Draft. He was able to give fits to both of Stanford's guards, although the Cardinal were able to scheme around Paea with running plays designed to put Paea out of position to make a play. His brute strength and quickness will sorely be missed next year.

- The injuries that have plagued the Beavers all season long have more than caught up to them. Especially against a superior team like Stanford, the defensive front and linebackers had trouble getting into position to keep the Cardinal offense under wraps. Stanford's offensive line played like the blue-chip recruits they were touted as, and OSU (apart from Paea) just seemed small and over-matched in comparison. 

- While this has been a relatively uncharacteristic year for Beaver football, it is puzzling to see the offense lay a goose egg in the second to last game of the season. Beaver fans have been accustomed to the team's steady rise as the season has progressed, but the troubles on the offensive line and the lack of consistent play-makers apart from Jacquizz put any progress on hold. The youth on the team has also showed, with a tendency to get down on themselves after slow starts.

- The last two Oregon State losing seasons (in 2001 and 2005), the Beavers were 5-5 heading into the Civil War, needing a win over Oregon to become bowl eligible. The same scenario occurs this year, with OSU needing a victory to get to 6-6 and become bowl eligible. Also, in '01 and '05, the Ducks were riding on highly successful campaigns, entering each of those match-ups at 9-1. In 2001 the Ducks were looking to claim the Pac-10 title, while in 2005 their only loss came to top ranked USC and were vying for a BCS at large birth. Both those Duck wins were in Eugene. This year, of course, the Ducks are the top ranked team in the nation, and with the Pac-10 title already clinched, they are looking to solidify a spot in the National Championship Game with a Civil War victory in Corvallis. 

Oregon State vs. USC: Notes and Thoughts

After dropping three of their last four games, Oregon State came out fired up against Southern Cal, taking down the Trojans 36-7. Jacquizz Rodgers rushed for over 100 yards and got into the end zone once, while the defense slowed down the potent USC offense for the majority of the game. Trojan QB Matt Barkley was knocked out midway through the game and the offense could not regroup after that.

- Give tons of credit to the coaching staff for keeping the players' spirits up after back-to-back disappointing losses to struggling teams. The players easily could have started looking forward to next season, but with their backs against the wall, the Beavers came out with a level of intensity that had not been seen since early in the season.

- The offensive line finally took a stand and paved the way for a fine performance from Jacquizz. When he has a little room to wriggle, his ability to shake defenders is further exemplified. It's one thing to try and escape the grasp of a monstrous defensive tackle, but when he gets into the second line of defense, making defensive backs look silly is a lot easier.

- Apart from the fantastic play of Jacquizz, Markus Wheaton stepped up again and provided a threat through the air and on the ground. While him and Ryan Katz missed a couple times on some deep routes, the threat to stretch the field kept the SC defense honest and opened up the the fly sweep and bubble screens.

- The defense shook off their tentative ways and came out with a sense of urgency, sniffing out the Trojan running game and keeping fairly consistent pressure on their quarterbacks. After the ankle injury of Barkley, backup Mitch Mustain was never able to settle in. 

- Jordan Poyer showed off his potential to be a big time playmaker. He had been showing glimpses of his potential in the return game, and after his interception returned for a touchdown, gave himself a little notoriety on defense as well.

- A couple new sights that should occur more also happened Saturday night. First off, Mike Riley's unsportsman like conduct for getting a little riled up after a missed call was a sight to see. It's one thing to see Mike Stoops, Lane Kiffin or Jim Harbaugh whine at the officials, but mild mannered Riley throwing his head set down probably struck a chord with his players and showed them a little passion that he normally reserves. Also, between the third and fourth quarters, the team started dancing and jumping up and down together to AC/DC's "TNT", which not only fired the team up but got the fans back into the game as well, even with the lead comfortably in hand.

The Beavers take on Stanford next week in Palo Alto. The Cardinal are coming off a thrashing of their rival Cal, and their only loss of the season was at Oregon where they fell apart at the end of the game. The Beavers need to win one of their final two games against the Cardinal and Oregon to become bowl eligible.

Bears, Bruins & Cougars: Beavers Lose Focus

After a strong game against Cal following their bye week, the Oregon State football team struggled against UCLA in Los Angeles the following week. The offense failed to put together any consistency, while the defense was gashed up the middle all day long by the Bruin running game. With their backs against the wall, the Beavers headed home to face Pac-10 cellar dweller Washington State, only to come out flat and drop a disappointing 31-14 contest. At 4-5, OSU needs to win two of their last three contests against USC, Stanford in Palo Alto, and Oregon.

- Offensively, every inch of progress that was made in the Cal game was laid to rest the past two weekends. Defenses have been able to load up the box to try and shut down Quizz, and while his efforts have been excellent, turning one yard losses in to three to four yard gains, the offensive line has not made any room to run.

- With the ability to consistently run the ball out the window, the passing game has suffered immensely. The poise and confidence that Ryan Katz had shown earlier in the season is slowly fading, having trouble finding open receivers and often times holding on to the ball too long trying to make a play. Even with his recent struggles, he is still having a solid year for a first year starter.

- On defense, the mantra has been to bend but not break. The ability to stop opposing offenses on third down has haunted the team all year long, and when the Beavers have faced a mobile quarterback, forget about it. The ability for other teams to control time of possession has tired out an already thin defensive front plagued by injuries. The effort has been there, but it appears the D is just one step behind more often than not.

- The youth across the board has started to show more and more. The inconsistencies haunting this year's team can be pointed to that. Combine that with the season-ending injury of their emotional and physical leader James Rodgers, the lack of fire could be narrowed down to these two factors.

- Here is a good opportunity for the coaches to really see what this team is made of. The season is not completely lost. While it looks bleak facing the top three teams in the Pac-10, crazier things have happened. USC did lose at home to Washington and has trouble beating teams in the state of Oregon. Stanford has been a force this season, but have struggled with the Beavs this past decade. The Ducks will have all the pressure come Civil War if they can knock off Arizona in two weeks, and you can almost always throw out the records come rivalry games. If (and it's a big if) the team does not completely throw in the towel, there are three exciting games left on the docket and a good chance to take the season deep into December.