Saturday’s 5 p.m. kick-off at recently expanded Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Ore., will mark the first time that the University of Oregon Ducks have ever battled the Mississippi State University Bulldogs. The historical meeting should break the Autzen Stadium attendance record as the two teams of power conferences collide. The Ducks migrate throughout the season, but Autzen has become quite a haven.
In the last 26 home contests, Stanford is the only team to shoot the Ducks down. The loss ironically came on Homecoming and wounded the Ducks’ BCS rankings just enough to keep them out of the Rose Bowl.
This inaugural challenge will not only be a battle on the field, but also a meeting of the minds on the sidelines.
Mustached Mike Bellotti stands on the home side sporting green and yellow and back-to-back Pac-10 title rings. The 51-year-old native of Sacramento, Cal., took his team to the top last season finishing No. 2 nationwide with an 11-1 record and a convincing Fiesta Bowl win.
Since Bellotti’s tenure (the longest of any current Pac-10 head coach) as UO head honcho began in 1995, the Ducks have “quacked up” 429.7 total yards and 33.2 points per flight, on the way to placing Bellotti at the top of the conference in league victories (37) and overall triumphs (60).
Bellotti has never squared off against a Southeastern Conference foe, but will probably continue to spread his offense. This method has found him successful in 21 of his last 24 challenges, and earned his teams 6 bowl bids in 7 years.
The challenger, wearing maroon and white, is Jackie Sherrill. The 59-year-old native of Duncan, Okla., will lead the underdogs from the visiting sideline.
The SEC West favorites of a year ago will be vying for the respect that they have earned in the Sherrill era.
In his 11 seasons as Top Dawg, Sherrill has taken the program to new heights, including six bowl games. In the last five seasons, the Bulldogs have posted an SEC West best 34-21 record, including the divisional championship in 1998, a number 12 finish in the ’99 season, and back-to-back postseason bowl wins (1999 Peach Bowl and 2000 Independence “Snow” Bowl).
Sherrill, the winningest coach in MSU history (70-56-2), has logged one career victory over the Ducks. In 1976, while at Washington State, Sherrill led the Cougars to a 23-22 victory. In order to repeat this feat, Sherrill will try to have his Bulldogs dominate the clock. The day on the calendar will be quite rare for both coaches. Oregon is 1-0 (30-27 over Fresno St.) in August under Bellotti, while State is 2-0 (Cal State Fullerton 1991, and Memphis 1997) under Sherrill.
Bellotti and Sherrill have both been remarkably successful in building a loyal fan following. Ticket sales have escalated in almost every passing year.
Both coaches also realize the amount of money and exposure that televised games create. Saturday’s contest will be shown across the nation, and will allow football fans across the nation to take a peek at what happens when teams from powerhouse conferences collide.
Thus both teams can win in this situation, regardless of the score. The same will be true next August when the Ducks land in Starkville for a rematch.