Sports Editor:
Adam Jude
adamjude@dailyemerald.com
Monday, June 10,2002
Oregon Daily Emerald
John Stoops for the Emerald
Adam Amato Emerald
Not alone
in world
of Ducks
On the banks of the Hudson
River, overlooking mighty
New York City, there sits a
tiny engineering college
called the Stevens Institute of Tech
nology.
There is a legend passed down
through generations at Stevens. It was
a revolutionary,
ambiguous time in
America, some
time in the ’60s or
’70s, and the presi
dent of Stevens
wanted to change
the school’s image.
This president
held a vote, but the
students, desperate
to keep their “Engi
neer” nickname,
proposed mascots
with names that
were unprintable
and certainly un
usable. The presi
dent, sitting in his office and mulling
over the situation, was desperate. He
looked out his window onto the banks
of the Hudson River.
And thus, the Stevens Ducks were
bom.
There is perhaps no better measure
of the success of the Oregon program
than the increased visibility for the
Stevens Institute, a college in Hobo
ken, N.J., whose members chuckle at
the notion of “The Year of the Duck.”
“Because of what (Oregon has)
done on a national scale, it doesn’t
make the Ducks sound so funny any
more,” Stevens lacrosse coach Byron
Collins said. “They used to just put
‘Stevens’ in the reports, now they say
‘the Ducks were led by... ’ We thank
(Oregon) for that.
“We’re riding on the coattails of
Oregon.”
Collins has Mike Bellotti’s job at
Stevens; he is coach of the premier
sport on campus. The lacrosse Ducks
do, after all, draw between 750-1,000
fans on good days. Many of those fans
are professors.
“There is no football, lacrosse is it,”
Turn.toHockaday,page15A . , .
Hockaday
IWo minutes for
crosschecking
Led by the football team’s historic
11 -win season, Oregon’s 2001 -02
sports resume is the most
impressive in school history
By Adam Jude
Oregon Daily Emerald
It started with a Sept. 1 football game
against Wisconsin and ended at the
NCAA track championships on June 1.
The 274 days and 300-some events in
between created what will surely be re
membered as the best year in Oregon
sports history.
Future storytellers will label the
2001-02 school year “The Year of the
Duck” because for the first time in
school history — and just the eighth
time in Pacific-10 Conference history
— both the football and men’s basket
ball teams won the conference champi
onship. Oregon’s overall success,
though, came from more than just its
money-makers: The supporting cast of
the women’s basketball, wrestling, ten
nis and track teams all had memorable
seasons.
But many may have even considered
this the greatest year in Oregon sports
simply because of the success of the
Oregon football team in the fall.
The magical season, however, near
ly got off on the wrong note. Looking
to avenge a 27-23 loss in Wisconsin at
the beginning of the 2000 season, the
Ducks opened the 2001 campaign at
Autzen Stadium in dramatic fashion
against the Badgers. In what has be
come a staple of the Oregon football
program, Joey Harrington led the
Ducks on a fourth-quarter comeback
and pulled off a 31-28 victory.
The Ducks would go on to win nine
more times in 10 tries before heading to
Tempe, Ariz., for the New Year’s Day Fi
esta Bowl. Many prognosticators pro
jected Colorado’s explosive rushing of
fense to bowl over the Oregon defense.
Turn to Year of the Duck, page 14A
TOP LEFT:
Freddie Jones
TOP MIDDLE:
Joey Harrington
TOP RIGHT:
Cathrine Kraayeveld
LEFT TOP.
Nicole Garbin
LEFT MIDDLE:
Luke Ridnour
LEFT BOTTOM:
Eugene Harris
Dishing out prestigious Emmies
■The Emerald sports staff members
honor what they feel is the best and worst
of Oregon sports in the Year of the Duck
By Peter Hockaday
Oregon Daily Emerald
Oh, it’s that time of year again, friends. That
time when we look back on what happened, rem
inisce, laugh, cry, all that stuff.
It’s Emmie time.
For the third year in a row, we here at the
Oregon Daily Emerald will give out the presti
gious Emmies, rewarding the best of Oregon
athletics. This has been a special year for the
Ducks, without a doubt, but you know all about
it. So we won’t waste time getting to the awards
(all awards are voted on by the entire Emerald
sports staff).
Most Entertaining Female: We start with the
athlete who kick-started our year in a most en
tertaining way. Freshman striker Nicole Garbin
scored the only goal in her first match this fall
and never slowed down as the Ducks ran
through their most successful season ever.
Garbin finished third on the team with five
goals, and we can only hope that there will be
more excitement to come from Garbin.
Most Entertaining Male: When Onterrio Smith
stepped on campus last spring, nobody knew
what to expect from the flashy running back with
the troubled past. But Smith proved all the
doubters wrong by electrifying the field with his
ooh-aah runs. With bobbing and weaving as his
specialty, Smith also proved he could overpower
defenders like the unfortunate Washington State
safety who met Smith and lost on Smith’s drive
for a touchdown in Pullman.
Biggest Heart: A lot of Oregon athletes have
heart, but none were as big as Eugene Harris’ this
season. Coming off knee surgery in 2001 and
playing in pain for most of his matches, Harris
still managed to win a Pac-10 title and earn the
team’s most valuable player award, with his wife
and 4-year-old daughter rooting him on. For that,
he earns our Biggest Heart award.
Best Interview: This category was a no-brain
er. We interact with hundreds of athletes over the
Turn to Emmies, page 15A