RESPECT FOR PAC-10

by ROYINORYGUN
(Oregon)

Excellent website on SEC Football, my compliments. I enjoyed the facts and detail. You clearly spent a lot of time on it.

My main purpose in writing is to lobby for a bit more respect for the PAC-10. I noted that the Pac-10 leads the SEC 9-6 in head to head match-ups over the past ten years, coming into this season. So, I guess UCLA’s win over the Vols make it 10-6.

Of course that is padded by Oregon’s home and away wins over Mississippi State of a few years ago. I’ll gladly concede the SEC as the top college football conference, but disagree with your ranking of the Pac-10 so low (5th). Or maybe you are just using the number of National Championships to arrive at that.

I am an Oregon Ducks fan, but enjoy all of Division I football (refuse to use the new nomenclature). The Pac-10 suffers from beating each other up in a full 9 games against conference opponents. Plus, everyone schedules at least one MAJOR non-conference game each season, or so it seems.

Since you are so familiar with SEC football, I think you’ll agree that Georgia actually traveling to Tempe to face Arizona State is a rarity for an SEC team.

Anyway, good job with the site!

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Oct 25, 2008
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PAC-10 is Moving Up
by: Mo Johnson

Thanks ROYINORYGON for the kind words.

And, actually you are right about the pac-10. they are much better, especially this year. i've adjusted my sec football page and sec vs
pac 10 pages to at least account somewhat for it. but, haven't changed the ranking i have as it is based on more than just who's the best on the field today.

maybe i'm biased, but i just don't feel like the pac 10 has much history or tradition in football. not compared with other conferences
anyway. too many empty seats at their games. so, that's a big part of it.

but, i'll grant you, pac 10 teams are better on the football field than we often give them credit for.

thanks again for the comment

Oct 25, 2008
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PAC 10 Has Football History and Tradition
by: ROYINORYGUN

I wanted to take issue with your statement that you "...don't feel like the Pac-10 has much history or tradition in football." I am not sure exactly what you mean.

I will respond with a bit of information that might mention mostly the Oregon Ducks since I went to school there and am most familiar with compared to the other 9 schools in the conference. I might be missing your point but I will spell out a few facts.

Oregon has been playing college football since the 1890's. The Ducks first met their rivals from Oregon State in 1894. The annual Oregon/Oregon State game (known as the Civil War) is the longest running rivalry game west of the Mississippi. This game certainly is not Alabama/Auburn--not by a long shot-- but it's a big deal here. In the 1960s and 70s both teams were quite awful and the cold and rain of November made some of the games real mudbowls but, of course, there is field turf these days and with the 85 scholarship limit both teams more competitive and have better depth than prior to that.

The Ducks first played California in 1899, the Washington Huskies in 1900 and Washington State in 1901. They did not face USC until 1915.

The Pac-10 conference started small with just Oregon, Oregon State, the University of Washington and the Cal Bears. That was in December, 1915. Then known as the Pacific Coast Conference, they began play in the fall of 1916. Washington State joined the conference in 1917 and Stanford was brought in in 1918. In 1922, the conference grew to 8 teams when the University of Idaho and USC were accepted into the league.

Like a lot of conferences, schools would sometimes be cut out and others added. But, lately the conference has been very stable. Arizona and Arizona State joined on July 1, 1978 and there have been no changes since that time. That's 30 years of the same 10 schools.

Oregon is a small population state with few rich boosters (although lately Phil Knight and Nike have helped a great deal). But until the last 15 or 20 years or so the Ducks were in lean times. Not to say we did not have our share of outstanding players. Quarterback Norm VanBrocklin was a great player for the Ducks in the late 1940s and went on to an excellent pro career spent mostly with the Los Angeles Rams. Late in his career he was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles and led them to the NFL championship. He's in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

(more in next post)

Oct 25, 2008
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More Pac 10 Football History
by: ROYINORYGUN

Mel Renfro was a two-way star for Oregon in the early 1960s. He was fairly small but very fast and ended up as a defensive back/kick returner with the Dallas Cowboys where he played 13 seasons. He also is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

For the most part the Oregon teams were just not that good during that time period (that lasted too long). With Dan Fouts at quarterback and Bobby Moore (who later changed his name to Ahmad Rahshad) Oregon had an exciting offense in the early 1970's but they had no defense to speak of and just could not stop anybody. The conference was dominated by the schools with money (i.e. the University of Washington and USC).

There were other good programs from time to time. When John Elway was the quarterback at Stanford they were very good. When Troy Aikman was the signal caller at UCLA they were quite competitive. The Ryan Leaf quarterbacked team even brought lowly Washington State into the Rose Bowl only to lose in a close game to a good Michigan team. But the jerk was certainly a bust as a pro.

But empty seats? I am not sure what schools and what years you are referring to. Many teams do not always sell out that's for sure. Stanford Stadium held over 80,000 for the longest time until they redesigned and trimmed it down a few years ago. They have had some bad teams and lots of empty seats that's for sure.

Interest is pretty high right now around the conference. UCLA has high hopes again with Rick Neuhisel as the coach but they play in the Rose Bowl. Even with a good team, that place will be hard to fill every time. Dennis Erickson worked miracles for Oregon State with Chad Johnson (or Ocho Cinco if you prefer) and the fans in Tempe hope he will also have them on the rise in years to come.

The coach Stoopes at Arizona may not be up to the standard his brother has set at Oklahoma but the Wildcats do not have the oil money the Sooners do. But at least they have stayed with him and it might pay off dividends since recruiting takes time at the out of the way places a little more (Tucson, Pullman, Corvallis) than Phoenix or Los Angeles.

Oregon expanded its venue --Autzen Stadium--a few years ago to just over 59,000 and has a fairly long consecutive sell out streak going but I am not sure how many games and years that covers exactly and certainly a number of SEC teams must have longer ones.

Anyway, if your point is that the SEC fans are much more fanatical and turn out in larger numbers, you are right. But I just feel there is a lot of history and tradition in this conference also. You just might not be aware of it.

If it is simply the number of national championships you are talking about, the SEC wins it hands down when comparing the two. Anyway, it is fun to bat it back and forth.

Oct 25, 2008
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SEC Fan Passion is the Difference
by: Mo Johnson

Thanks ROYINORYGUN, good stuff and thanks for the info. It is good to hear
more about football tradition and history in the Pac 10.

But, at the
end you admit that SEC fans are more fanatical and turn out in higher
numbers and also has more National Championships. So, doesn't that
pretty much make my point? I don't know. maybe i should move them
ahead of the acc. i would except that miami, fl. state, va tech and
clemson have great history fan bases, etc as well. but, the acc is
down at the moment and the two conferences are close.

i think you've
convinced me to move the pac 10 up to 4. but no way they are,
overall, as strong a football conference as the SEC, Big Ten or Big
12.

the deal for me really, in the end, is about what the game means to
the fans of the schools. my perception/opinion of fans of these other
conferences is that they generally are much more committed to their
team than fans in the Pac 10 are. Maybe it's just because there is
more to do on the west coast, more distractions, whatever. but the
environment is just so much less intense i think.

sure the rose bowl seats 100k and ucla can't fill it. hey, neyland
stadium seats 106k and is always a sell out. same thing in michigan
-- even more seats.

that's the difference.

Oct 25, 2008
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PAC-10 Disappointing of Late
by: ROYINORYGUN

I must say this season the Pac-10 has not done well as a group. Oregon’s loss to Boise State in Eugene was very disappointing. Georgia dominated ASU in Tempe. The Washington schools are way down this year and the Huskies QB broke his thumb so they are really done.

I fear for the Ducks this Saturday as USC will likely play smash mouth with “double revenge.” Oregon having beaten them in Eugene last year and the embarrassment in Corvallis last Thursday night.

Anyway, keep up the good content!

Sep 20, 2010
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PAC-10 Conference of Champions
by: trojanforlife

The PAC-10 ain't called the conference of champions just for nothing you know but then again I am biased to the PAC-10 just like you are to the Sec.

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