For the past couple weeks, I have been waiting for the enthusiasm for the Alamo Bowl to kick into high gear, but alas, I find myself still stuck in neutral. It seems the days of being ecstatic about the Ducks landing a terrific matchup in a second-tier bowl game is so 20 years ago (like the 2000 Holiday Bowl versus Texas).
But, here we are, a day away from facing the blue-blooded Oklahoma Sooners and my resting pulse rate is sitting at a comfortable 52 beats per minute with the blood pressure checking in at 110 over 70. Not a chance my vitals were this heart-healthy back on September 10th, the eve of the Ohio State game.
Here are five reasons I came up with for my lack of enthusiasm:
1) The impending playoff expansion has created a feeling of even less importance for second-tier bowls such as the Alamo Bowl.
2) Oregon football is now a top-tier program, so anything less than a New Year’s Six bowl game is simply a shoulder-shrugger.
3) Having two interim coaches is certainly not helping.
4) Players opting out and entering the transfer portal (along with a bevy of injuries) means the Ducks and Sooners are not fielding their best teams of 2021. A matchup of these two teams back in September would have been infinitely more intriguing.
5) The way the Ducks were manhandled twice by Utah at the season’s end certainly sucked the life out of what might have been an outstanding season.
So, there it is. No doubt, the juices will be flowing tomorrow around kick-off and I’m sure a few “Let’s go Ducks!” will be belted out, but unfortunately, the excitement level will be more on par with the matchup against Stoney Brook than it was against Ohio State.
Darren Perkins
Spokane, WA
Top photo credit: Craig Strobeck
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Darren Perkins is a sales professional and 1997 Oregon graduate. After finishing school, he escaped the rain and moved to sunny Southern California where he studied screenwriting for two years at UCLA. Darren grew up in Eugene and in 1980, at the tender age of five, he attended his first Oregon football game. His lasting memory from that experience was an enthusiastic Don Essig announcing to the crowd: “Reggie Ogburn, completes a pass to… Reggie Ogburn.” Captivated by such a thrilling play, Darren’s been hooked on Oregon football ever since. Currently living in Spokane, Darren enjoys flaunting his yellow and green superiority complex over friends and family in Cougar country.