Good Luck Ducks, Week 10: Hell to Pay

Let's just burn this thing down to the ground.

Rivalries are one thing, steeped in history with lots of older men exchanging stories about past border clashes. Families are divided over their allegiances to one team or another. Beneath all the crosstalk, however, there's usually a measure of respect that lies below the surface. Even in the most contentious of seasons, Beavers and Ducks usually can come to praise each other when the dust settles. There are regional bonds. It's weird.

There's another kind of "rivalry", though I wish there was another word for it. Maybe there is. It would be a word to represent pure loathing of the opponent due to recent results. Oregon hasn't lost games consecutively to many teams of late. Arizona actually joined this list of two earlier this season, but the simple fact is that everyone on the Oregon side is seething with fiery anger for the Stanford Cardinal. Twice in a row has a season been derailed by the school with the higher academic standards and completely different on-field philosophy.

Yo Ho! The pundits were proven right! Oregon doesn't play football the right way. Stanford plays "smash mouth knock your sister over and step on her back for good measure" football just like the Football Gods intended. Two seasons ago, it wasn't surprising that Stanford one because Oregon doesn't know how to play physical. Last year, it was just more of the same!

Well, with Oregon knocking on the door of the Top 4 of the committee-elected playoff teams, this is the biggest game for the Ducks in four years. And with a power running back finding his way in this crazy mess, it looks like Oregon may even show some glimpses of Playing Football The Right Way this year, after all. If Oregon can get on the board early a couple of times, I think it will do away with the nerves of past failures and put the Ducks in a good spot for another victory.

In different times (2010), a battle of top 10 teams saw Oregon come out victorious over Stanford in Eugene.

Game time is 4:30 PDT with national TV coverage on FOX. Go Ducks!