Oregon Football: Ducks Dress to Impress

Two entities are rapidly changing the game of college football: the spread offense and inner city urban culture.  No program is taking more advantage of these resources than the University of Oregon.

Nike CEO Phil Knight, head coach Mike Bellotti, and offensive coordinator Chip Kelly are doing all they can to coordinate these tools as the major assets of the soon-to-be powerhouse club. 

The inner city culture privileges the flashiest and hippest program in deciding which to attend.  Oregon provides 384 unique jersey combinations, the most impressive locker room in the nation, and a defense that feeds off emotion and hard hits.  Plus, the new age program is capped off by the infamous "22-second offense."

Without these special extras, Oregon's Mike Bellotti would find it hard to recruit players like Wichita's Chris Harper, Aldine's Darron Thomas, and Sunnyvale's Kelly Page.  Oregon has become a magnet for nationally acclaimed athletes who will lead the team to become a powerhouse.  In the decades to come we will see Oregon and Southern California fight for Pac-10 supremacy.

The players who are drawn in from far away see Oregon as a fresh alternative with endless opportunities to offer the college athlete.

Fans outside of Oregon criticize the 384 jersey combinations as "unclassy" and a "disgrace to the history of football."  But take a look at the teams without modernly styled jerseys: Penn State, Nebraska, Michigan, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Notre Dame, and Stanford.  It would be hard to find anyone jealous of the offerings at these programs.

Now take a peek at the teams making an effort to create a new, hip atmosphere: Florida, LSU, Boise State, Hawaii, Clemson, and even Oregon State.  These are all programs on the ascent, increasing efforts to invest money in the aesthetics of the program.

And the aesthetic concerns don't stop at the jersey stylings.  Oregon, funded by Nike, has been able to build some of the nation's best facilities.

The Casanova Center on the campus of the University of Oregon boasts a weight room open to all university sports and a football locker room that is described as "second to none" by athletic director Patrick Kilkenny.  The locker room includes multiple multi-screen televisions, x-box game consoles, a world-class sound system, lockers enabled with cable internet, and an HVAC air-flow ventilation system.

Nothing like a little bit of luxury, hey?

The jerseys and facilities are comparable to something out of "The Jetsons," but it is the on-field side of the program that takes this modern day spectacle to another level.

Chip Kelly has implemented the "22-second offense" as the most innovative offensive strategy the game has ever seen.  The concept easily confuses the defense and is not terribly difficult to implement and enforce.

When one play is over, the team rushes to the line of scrimmage and Kelly reads the defensive alignment from the coordinator box.  Then Kelly radios down to Mike Bellotti who gives the signals to the quarterback who may then manipulate the call.  Most calls involve four wide receivers and one split back.  The play starts with a "quarterback choice," followed by the quarterback's decision to pass or run, rendering the method an invincible offense.

This is a bling-bling-esque approach that fits perfectly into what the urban culture is looking for.

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