Last Saturday a mild-mannered, shy, quiet, unassuming gentleman roamed Autzen stadium with a slight limp in his giddy-up, a lingering ailment due to repeated knee injuries. He was one of nearly 60,000 present that day enjoying the festivities for the Washington State-Oregon game. In other cities his presence may have gone largely unnoticed, but in this town on this day …
The Oregon Ducks football team is a family. This is something stated often, the family atmosphere that surrounds the football program and its connection to the community. It’s an easy thing to claim, but difficult to fully comprehend until seen first-hand. It starts at the top, with the majority of the Oregon Ducks coaching staff having been a part of …
Part 3: Going Their Separate Ways — Friends Struggle to Succeed On Separate Paths For The First Time For friends Jaiya Figueras and Kenny Wheaton, their first couple of years at the University of Oregon had seen the pendulum swing wildly. After their redshirt season in 1993 watching their teammates struggle to win, the two roommates had spearheaded the improbable …
Part 2: Jaiya Figueras: The hero’s coming out party arrives early in 1995 The 1994 season was special for the players and fans alike. The sting of losing seasons had been washed away with an improbable run to the Pac-10 title and Rose Bowl berth. It was a huge surprise to everyone, except roommates Jaiya Figueras and Kenny Wheaton, who …
Part 1: Jaiya Figueras and Kenny Wheaton: Freshmen Roommates Driven to Succeed Every Oregon Duck fan can probably recite verbatim the infamous Jerry Allen call of Kenny Wheaton’s interception versus Washington in 1994, or fondly remember Joey Harrington hitting Samie Parker in stride for an 80 yard touchdown in the 2002 Fiesta Bowl, or Marcus Woods flattening BYU quarterback Ty …