I guess you could say that I went into last night's BCS championship game with mixed emotions. I had picked Auburn to win in our bowl pick'em contest but I'm also sick of the whole Cam Newton saga so I started pulling for the Ducks. The about halfway through the second quarter I realized that I could actually have the best of both worlds. Here in about five years the Tigers are going to have to vacate all 14 wins from the 2010 season so if the game could find a way to break Oregon's heart in the process it could make for the perfect night of college football.
It appeared there was a lot better chance that Oregon's performance was just going to be a big fail as Auburn's defense held the potent Duck offense to just 8 points over the first three quarters of the game. However, college football's highest paid player gifted the Ducks with hope when he fumbled the football at his own 40. The result would be a touchdown and two point conversion for Oregon to tie the game at 19 with 2:36 left to play. Oh yeah, the stage was set for some Oregon heartbreak but it got even better thanks to a somewhat controversial play.
Oregon safety Eddie Pleasant appeared to have tackled Auburn freshman running back Michael Dyer at the Tiger 46 but Dyer popped up and ran all the way to the Oregon 23 before finally being dragged down. There it was! A crushing blow to a team that I've despised since 2006 when they were awarded the ball on an onside kick they never recovered. This was a much bigger stage though. This was the national championship and the entire nation was watching. The only thing that could have made it better was if Dyer was actually down and then the officials let the play stand because the only controversy that really surrounds the Dyer run is why the Oregon defenders stopped playing before a whistle blew.
The agony, pain and disbelief on the faces of Oregon fans Monday night as Auburn set up to kick the game winning field goal was absolutely priceless to me. Yes, I'm bitter and yes I still cringe at the name of Gordon Reese but at least the BCS championship game offered some vindication for a wrong that was done four years ago. Look on the bright side though Oregon, at least the officials got it right this time and you only have your own team's incompetence to blame for the loss in the biggest football game in your school's history.
Loading comments...