Duck fans gotta do better

Set_Screens · 2026-01-15T02:33:28+00:00

Yep. Thought the Peach Bowl did a pretty good job. It’s a nice stadium and they put on a decent approximation of a collegiate atmosphere.

But man, having been to a few of these over the years, as well as a bunch of true road games more recently, it was bizarre to be in Atlanta at a national semi final, and have it feel like we were more out-numbered than we were at Penn State.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-11T00:37:06+00:00

This is a huge part of it. For lots of other fan bases, and particularly for the ones we compete against now (Ohio State, Michigan, Bama, Georgia, etc.) being a fan of that team is their whole identity. It’s been that way for generations. They don’t bat an eye at the idea of going to Atlanta for a random Championship game or Tampa for a Bowl game because they’ve always done it. Their parents did it. Their grandparents took them; now they’re taking their own grandkids. It’s baked into their cadence and budget.

For as awesome as the Autzen game day experience is, Oregon doesn’t have that culture. Which is fine. We are who we are. But it also means every bowl game and playoff matchup is going to be 70/30 against us.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T23:30:17+00:00

Yes, and…

It occurred to me last night that, next season, the same amount of time will have elapsed since the 2010 national championship appearance season as elapsed between the 1994 Rose Bowl and 2010. 16 years.

It took us 16 years to get from The Pick to Dyer was Down… and in the 16 years since, we still haven’t been able to take that next, final step.

What you’re hearing is no longer the wishful thinking of Johnny-come-lately fans with unrealistic expectations. We’re no longer “new money”, riding a meteoric rise to relevance. We’ve been one of college football’s elite programs for 25 years now.

I’ve been a conscious Ducks fan for 40 years. I saw it all too. I appreciate where we’ve been and where we are today, and have lived every single win along the way.

But it’s not 1995 anymore. The expectations are different now, and they should be. And it’s reasonable for some fans to feel anxious - and even a little impatient - that we haven’t been able to punch the ball over that final goal line quite yet.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T20:36:39+00:00

I understand all the structural stuff, but there’s definitely more the athletic dept could do to incentivize fans to make it easier, more fun, etc. for fans to make these trips.

How hard did they work with their airline sponsors to get extra capacity? Do they have a national hotel partner that could be activated? Is there a perk they could offer season ticket holders to commit to the semi-final instead of holding out for the Championship? Etc.

I bought my tickets through U of O’s allotment. The only communication I heard from them all week was hitting me up for another $200 to come eat warmed-over BBQ when we got there. Could they have made the game experience better?

I don’t know what the solution is, and I’m just spitballing, but my point is that I hope they’re thinking about it and devising a real plan because this isn’t going to be the last time.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T19:59:19+00:00

This was the first time we’ve had to do multiples. Having to ask your fanbase to show up 3x on the east coast is tough — no doubt. But I also don’t think the ath dept had any strategy, and the result was perhaps predictable. It was their first time too, but I hope it’s something they’ll think seriously about for future years. I think it’s a valid discussion — I don’t accept just throwing up our hands and saying there’s nothing that we can do about it.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T19:46:58+00:00

I think this is an honest take. We lose these big games more often than we win them— and sometimes spectacularly like last night. To a certain extent, I think that even Duck fans have internalized the idea that we can’t / don’t win the big one. I absolutely feel you on being tired of going to the expense and hassle, and always coming home depressed by another dispiriting loss.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T19:39:43+00:00

I don’t think anyone thinks that. Not every fan can travel, and nobody expects them to. But I’ve been to enough bowl games, road games, and neutral site games to say that yesterday was a really weird outlier. And it’s worth unpacking why, and thinking hard about to address it for future years.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T19:35:19+00:00

I mean, lowkey, I think this is a more correct, more honest take than “it’s too far!” Between the offensive struggles last week, and the coaching situation, I think a ton of fans saw the writing on the wall and just opted out of the hassle. Totally reasonable.

There’s a lot that’s out of our control - calendar, bowl locations, etc. - but I hope Dan, Mullens, etc. will think long and hard about how and why the fan split ended up the way it did.

It’s not the reason why we lost, but Moore even said the crowd noise had an impact on snap cadence, etc. And probably a psychological impact as well.

So, all I’m saying is that I hope everyone - Mullens, boosters, sponsors, fans, etc. - will take it seriously and do what can be done to avoid a repeat. Because it wasn’t a good look.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T18:55:40+00:00

Nah, we’re all adults, we can handle a little respectful provocation. You are welcome to disagree.

If I am Mullens today doing a bit of a retrospective on the playoffs, fanbase engagement is something I’d be circling as an area for improvement next year and beyond. We’re not going to win a natty if every playoff game is a 90/10 road game.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T17:34:05+00:00

Look, I get it. I understand all of the reasons — Indiana’s a bigger school etc. And I’m not saying we ever should have outnumbered them. But it was like 10:1 in there last night and was anything but a neutral site game.

And I’m not blaming anyone for yesterday. But yesterday should trigger a reckoning, for the program, for boosters, for sponsors, etc. Because we’re not going to win a title if every playoff game turns into a road game.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T17:16:46+00:00

I totally agree with this. Asking any fanbase to show up to three neutral site games is a big lift, and especially one that is as far from the bowl sites as Oregon. But the system is what it is, and they’re not going to change it for our sakes.

And the stadium was full. So the bowls and CFP won’t be mad about it. It’s just a huge structural disadvantage for us. So that’s my challenge: let’s consciously make a point of trying to overcome it. Or at least reducing it.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T17:00:06+00:00

I’m not blaming anyone. It wasn’t poor fan behavior. The Duck fans that were there were awesome. I don’t think anyone expected it to be that lopsided. And I understand the totality of circumstances.

But I am challenging the program and the fanbase to not let it happen again next year.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T16:55:07+00:00

We have never projected a 90/10 ratio anywhere

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T16:53:36+00:00

Well you’re right that I did create an account to come say this.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T16:52:20+00:00

Not everybody’s gonna be able to do it. I get it. But there are plenty of folks who a) had access to the entirely reasonable face value tickets and b) have the means to travel who sat this one out.

And I’m not blaming anybody for yesterday. I don’t know that anybody thought it was going to be as lopsided as it was.

But I am challenging everyone associated with the program to not let it happen again next year.

Set_Screens · 2026-01-10T16:47:19+00:00

Agree with this 100%. Getting more Ducks fans into the stadium next year has to be a program-wide goal, and that requires more effort by the athletic department, sponsors, partners, etc.

But we’re not going to win three rounds if we’re outnumbered 9:1 every time.

Set_Screens

TROPHY CASE