The Civil War count stands at 112. It’s about to move to 113. Through all those games, there have been just a handful that have truly mattered at a national level. In recent memory, a Pac-10 title has been at stake four times (that’s since football began in 1994). Before that, I’d guess the total was probably about four all time.
But really, the argument for “Biggest Civil War Ever” really comes down to one of two years: 2000 or 2009?
You can make an argument for either year. I had been thinking 2009 without question. Now that I look back at it, it’s a lot closer than I thought but two things ultimately make this the bigger game: (1) The winner goes to the Rose Bowl and (2) Media attention is infinitely more intense now.
In arguing for the the 2000 game, you could say both teams were more nationally prominent. The records were much better and Oregon was aiming at becoming one of a select few teams to ever go undefeated in Pac-10 play.
Either way, you can’t go wrong.
| Tale of The Civil War Tape | ||||
| Category | 2000 | 2009 | ||
| UO/OSU Ranking * | 5 & 8 |  |
8 & 16 | |
| Winner Eligible For Rose Bowl ¥ | Both | Both | |
|
| Combined Record Prior to Game | 18-2 | |
17-5 | |
| Combined Win Percentage | 90% | |
77.2% | |
| Worst Case Scenario for Losing Team | Holiday Bowl | |
Las Vegas Bowl | |
| TV Broadcast | ABC Regional ?? | ESPN HD National | |
|
| Venue | Original Reser | Remodeled Autzen | |
|
| Coaches ± | Erickson/Bellotti | |
Riley/Kelly | |
| Star Players † | Chad Johnson/Joey Harrington | Jacquizz Rodgers/Jeremiah Masoli | |
|
| Roses Being Waved From Our Car in Corvallis En Route To Game | A Bushel | None | |
|
| Soul Crushing Defeats | 1 | No Freaking Way | |
|
* Using AP Rankings.
¥ Oregon State would have gone to the Rose Bowl had Washington lost later that day so technically, the Beavers had a shot going into the game.
± None of the four coaches had/has the cache that Dennis Erickson carried with him off of his Miami Hurricane fame and NFL experience.
† I think the 2009 game has more star power, if only because the media is more intense now. Chad Johnson wasn’t even close to a household name yet and Joey Harrington was a year away from a Times Square billboard.
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I think I’d have to give worst case scenario for losing time to 2009..
i would love to see oregon send OAC to vegas hah
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Based on NFL careers, Ochocinco was the star of the 2000 team. But no contest that the star of the OSU team was Ken Simonton.
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Good point. I agree with that. I forgot about Simonton. It was easy to go right to numero ocho cinco, but he wasn’t that big of a deal yet.
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I think the criteria for “Winner eligible for the Rose Bowl” is a push, since the winner of 1990 still went to a BCS game… OSU’s crushing win over Notre Lame in the Fiesta.
Also, while we’re at it, let’s just deposit of the notion that Oregon has not been back to a Rose Bowl since 1995. Yea. I get it, in 2001 the Rose Bowl was Nebraska v. Miami. Oregon still won the PacTen and went to the Fiesta Bowl and beat a good (better than ND, even) team in Colorado.
So, when you consider the time-honered and traditional fact that the PacTen Champion is *the* Rose Bowl (read: BCS) team, then Oregon is that team. Oregon has two outright championships since 1994, and has shared one in 2000.
We will make that three outright championships on December 3rd.
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By the way, I still think that the 2000 game is the biggest in the rivalry. I base this on facts one and two. The average ranking was higher (6.5 in 2000 and 12 for this year) and a BCS game went to the winner.
Also, I would have added another criteria: Preseason expectations. I would say that going into the year, both OSU and Oregon were expected to be very good. Starting this year, only Oregon had that weight, and OSU was slated to finish in the middle of the PacTen, and be eligible for a mid-tier bowl. Heck, that was the consensus till just a few weeks ago…. until they beat Cal. And all along, Oregon has been slated for the Rose since the win over USC.
Just saying.
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