On Oct. 21, the WSU Cougs traveled down to Eugene, Oregon, to take on the Oregon Ducks in their home Autzen Stadium. It is the final matchup of the two teams in Eugene with the current Pac-12 and a unique opportunity to visit a unique stadium.
Autzen Stadium, Oct. 21, in Eugene, Oregon.
Oregon’s video board is the biggest in college football and just one thing that the Ducks have that has cost a lot of money.
The first thing about the facilities that was clear was the amount of work and resources that went into them. From the view of the press box, the baseball field and soccer fields were clearly visible and the 60,000-plus available seats were clear.
Autzen Stadium itself was a clear, beautiful stadium, but even more so, the scenery took the cake. Looking out from the press box side, orange, red and green trees were a beautiful backdrop of a great football team.
Going down to the field, despite limited space to operate on the sidelines, the view was nice. Seeing 58,000 fans surround the field in green with some crimson sprinkled in, it became clear that this program was ready for the Big Ten.
An Oregon fan questions the call of the officials during the early stages of the Ducks game against WSU, Oct. 21, in Eugene, Oregon.
Puddles the Duck led Oregon out of the tunnel on a motorcycle, a tradition that gets the crowd into the game and gets Autzen loud from the get-go.
One way the crowd shone was after the first and third quarters. Akin to the Cougs’ playing of “Back Home” by Andy Grammar after the first quarter, the Ducks had “Coming Home” by Mat Kearney. Like WSU, a stadium of people brought together with a song is a sight to behold.
But it was not the best the fans had to offer.
To prepare for the final 15 minutes of play, the fans all listen to “Shout” by the Isley Brothers. Seeing a packed stadium shout and throw their hands up in unison was a sight to behold and it was clear why several Oregon players have said it is their favorite stadium tradition.
From the beginning of the game and Don Essig saying with the crowd, “It never rains in Autzen Stadium,” it was clear that the fans enjoyed the gameday experience and being a part of the atmosphere of the stadium.
While the Cougs fought throughout the entirety of the game and held leads in the first half, the Oregon Ducks held out for a 14-point win, the experience of Autzen was more than I could have hoped for.
Nakia Watson dives for the end zone during the first quarter against Oregon, Oct. 21, in Eugene, Oregon.
But it still cannot beat Cougar Football Saturday at Martin Stadium.
