Setting the record straight from the get-go, Utah and Oregon are not rivals. They do not have a rich history of tight, contested battles. The fan bases don’t trash talk each other in preparation for the annual game. They surely do not have a hatred toward each other that resembles an Auburn-Alabama game.
The Ducks are just another opponent for the Utes in the grand scheme of things, but make no mistake, the Utes will certainly be playing with revenge in mind when they travel to Eugene this weekend.
Turn back the clock to last season, when the Utes were working on one of their best seasons in the Pac-12 to date. They had already upended both LA schools, as well as Michigan at the beginning of the season, and Oregon was next on Utah’s list of trees to chop down.
For the first two quarters, it seemed like the Utes were on-track to pull off said upset. With Utah already up 7-0, former return man Kaelin Clay decided to turn Rice-Eccles Stadium into an earthquake zone by taking a punt to the house, giving the Utes an early two-touchdown lead over the highly-ranked Ducks.
Then the improbable happened. Inches before crossing the plane of the end zone, Clay dropped the ball in a play that will forever remain in infamy for Ute fans. This boneheaded fumble (Clay would be the first to admit it) completely shifted the momentum of the game, which ultimately resulted in a 51-27 loss for Utah.
What if Clay never dropped the ball? What if Utah went up two scores over Marcus Mariota and Oregon, the eventual national runner-up? Could the Utes have pulled off the upset?
These are questions that Ute fans will never get the answer to, but you can be assured that the current Utes are more than aware of those disappointing 2014 results. Players who were there last season — Travis Wilson, Kendal Thompson (who got injured last season against the Ducks), Jared Norris, Hunter Dimick — will play Saturday’s game full of vengeance, looking to make up for last season’s loss.
If nothing else, Utah will come out looking to embarrass Oregon in front of its own fans, just as it did to them. The Utes are a pretty hard team to beat inside the confines of Rice-Eccles Stadium, and when they do get beat, they take it personally. Not only did they get beat, but the Ducks handed Utah a 24-point loss in front of Ute fans in Salt Lake City.
I’m willing to bet that players like Tevin Carter and Gionni Paul, despite being injured during the Oregon game last season, remember these types of moments.
I’m not trying to stir the pot or create some sort of budding rivalry here between Utah and Oregon — that most likely won’t ever happen. All I know is that when I watch these two teams go at it on Saturday night, the Utes will be playing with motivation than a typical contest.
Looking for redemption and an opportunity to make a statement in conference play, Utah will have its chance this weekend against the Ducks in Eugene.
@GriffDoug