Reports of the Ducks impending death penalty were greatly exaggerated.
For two and a half years, rumors and innuendo dogged the Ducks like a smelly carpet in the basement of a rental house, waiting for the landlords to replace the leaky washer.
National columnists and one Oregonian hack took turns predicting doom. The Hammer. Bowl bans, stripped conference titles, the possible loss of five to ten scholarships a year for three or more years. Oregon was going to get hit hard, and soon, and when it happened, all the blur-fast flash and sold-out home games would go away. Back to the basement, Ducks. Back to The Suffering, back to just hoping to occasionally make 6-5 and a WeedEater Bowl.
The Will Lyles case threatened to wreck Oregon football, accomplishing what Washington, Oregon State and the rest of the PAC-12 couldn’t on the field, destroying what Phil Knight, Rich Brooks, Mike Bellotti and Chip Kelly shrewdly and patiently built over 25 years.
It could have easily happened. The NCAA has not been a bastion of reason and rationality. In college football, they are the cops, prosecutor, judge and jury. It’s like the scene in “The Blind Side” where the investigator corners Michael Oher in the big room with the glass walls. Once they start asking questions, the walls seem to starting rising and closing. The questions are pointed, and each one takes the form of an accusation.
The NCAA waterboarded Oregon for 27 months, and all they could come up with was this.
But they write the rules and set the penalties, and recent cases against Miami, Penn State, Ohio State, Boise State and USC clearly indicate that no program is too big to fail.
In the past few months multiple, highly-placed national sources, including sportsillustrated.com’s Stewart Mandel, in a tersely-worded post last night, insisted the Ducks would get at least a one year bowl ban. In fact, he was certain they would. He had a source.
Instead, the Ducks got the lightest, most manageable penalty possible. And they got closure and resolution, just in time for The Opening, Nike’s premier national recruiting showcase, a week long 7-on-7 tournament and scouting combine on the Nike Campus in Beaverton, Oregon. Several of the nation’s top recruits will be there, and at least five will announce a verbal commitment. It isn’t strictly an Oregon Duck event, but having all these elite recruits in the state of Oregon, just a few days after the cloud has been lifted over UO football, is impeccable timing. Oregon targets like Arrion Springs, Mattrell McGraw, Buddha Baker and Royce Freeman will be there.
Sanctions no longer loom. The Hammer turned out to be a brush with a feather duster.
The Ducks still have to serve a three-year probation, and another violation during that time would indeed plunge the program into darkness. They’ll also suffer a reduction of official recruiting visits from 50 to 37, which means they’ll have to be extremely selective and close strong. They’ve never approached the visit limit, typically averaging in the 40s. There’s also a reduction in evaluation days.
The loss of one scholarship per season means the Ducks will be able to reward one less walk-on for these next two seasons, but it’s very manageable.
Compared to what was possible and what was widely rumored and discussed, the only reasonable reaction is jubilation and relief.
The most significant result of the decision is that Oregon can go back to football. Fans can talk about the prospects for this season without that giant “IF” poisoning the conversation.
Oregon will be very good in 2013. There’s speed, talent and depth. There’s coaching continuity and a winning system. There is exceptional internal leadership, discipline and motivation. It’s a group that knows how to win, and is eager to prove they can win without Chip Kelly pulling the strings.
Oregon football is alive and well. The team that’s gone 46-7 in the past four years and beaten Washington nine times in a row is limited only by their effort, desire and commitment. There’s no longer any danger of legislative fiat or a dirty bomb of technicality.
The Ducks once again have the opportunity to win or lose based on how well they play rather than have the results determined in a committee room. They’re free to compete for another PAC-12 title or even a national one. Announcers won’t cloud the air with ugly references to violations and possible penalties and Will Lyles.
The Ducks found Marcus Mariota before he ever started a varsity game in high school. They’ve qualified and enrolled 83 of the last 83 recruits who chose the school on Signing Day, a perfect record over four years. They found players like Kenjon Barner and Jeff Maehl that no one else wanted, and lured top recruits like De’Anthony Thomas and Arik Armstead here by showing them what a great place Eugene is to live, and what a great time it is to be a Duck. They don’t need Will Lyles or anyone like him. They never did.
And now the whole miserable mess is behind them. With a renewed commitment to compliance and the opportunity to compete on the field without threat or restriction, Mark Helfrich has the opportunity to build his own legacy and extend Oregon’s marvelous run of success.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
