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THURSDAY, APRIL 15, 2021
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Oregon Duck Thibodeaux hopes to strike the Heisman pose
By RYAN THORBURN
The (Eugene) Register-Guard
EUGENE — Kayvon Thibo-
deaux might have a creative new
way of celebrating sacks next
season.
By striking the Heisman pose.
The All-American defensive end
isn’t shying away from the lofty
2021 expectations for Oregon.
Thibodeaux, who led the Ducks
in sacks and tackles for loss the last
two seasons, will be featured in new
defensive coordinator Tim DeRuy-
ter’s scheme at the “Joker” position
made famous by Von Miller, now
with the Denver Broncos, at Texas
A&M.
Oregon’s most talented player
is already in a New York state of
mind when it comes to the Heisman
Trophy race.
“Coach DeRuyter does have
a great plan in place. One of my
goals is to try to win the Heisman,”
Thibodeaux said during a Zoom
with the media following spring
practice last week. “He honestly
just puts me in more positions to
make plays. A lot of guys, honestly,
not just me.”
In 1997, Michigan’s Charles
Woodson became the only “primar-
ily defensive player” to win the
Heisman.
The list of defensive linemen
who have been finalists for the
award in the last 30 years is limited
to Washington’s Steve Emtman
(fourth, 1991), Miami’s Warren
Sapp (sixth, 1994) and Nebraska’s
Ndamukong Suh (fourth, 2009).
Oregon coach Mario Cristobal
didn’t pour any cold water on
Thibodeaux’s hot take.
“I think it’s very possible for a
defensive player,” Cristobal said of
winning the Heisman. “The thing
about K.T., he’s a high achiever and
he wants to be around guys who are
into high achievement standards.
“He sees himself as limitless.
We feel the same way, sky is the
limit for him.”
Championship drive
During Oregon’s victory over
USC in the 2020 Pac-12 champi-
onship game, Thibodeaux fl ashed
his seemingly boundless potential
with 12 quarterback pressures, two
tackles for loss and a sack to win the
See Ducks, Page A11
THE NEXT LEVEL
Life on the
other side
Two-time
Eastern Oregon
League MVP
Makenna Collins
headed to EWU
Umatilla graduate
enjoys winning
side of football at
Carroll College
By ANNIE FOWLER
East Oregonian
By ANNIE FOWLER
East Oregonian
RRIGON — The fi rst time Makenna
Collins watched a college volley-
ball match she was 11 years old. Her
cousin, Nicole Rigoni, was a setter for
Eastern Washington University, and she was
captivated by the sport.
“It was right then and there that I decided
I wanted to play college volleyball,” Collins
said. “It’s interesting to look back and I have
a story to tell.”
Her dream of college volleyball came to
fruition late last year when she signed to play
at EWU.
Collins was one of four players who
signed with the Eagles on Nov. 10, 2020.
“Our 2021 class is a group of hardwork-
ing, ambitious and talented women,” EWU
coach Leslie Flores-Cloud said in a news
release. “They have been dialed in to EWU
volleyball for quite some time and are ready
to jump in and become Eagles.”
Collins, a libero, decided EWU was the
place for her after her sophomore year in
high school.
“I went to a camp up there,” she said.
“They invite you to the camp, and that’s
where I would be fi ghting for a spot with
other liberos. I went to camp in July, and
in September they said they wanted me to
come play with them. I jumped on that.”
Flores-Cloud was not going to let the
5-foot-3 defensive specialist slip away.
“Makenna came to camp and knocked
my socks off,” Flores-Cloud said. “She
might be the smallest in the gym, but she’s
also the most dialed in. Her serve receive
and defense is outstanding, she is sure to be
a fantastic defender for us.”
From there, Collins went on an offi-
cial visit. She saw the campus, met college
professors, watched a volleyball match, and
hung out with the team.
“After that, I decided Eastern was the
place I wanted to play,” Collins said.
Irrigon competes in the 3A Eastern
Oregon League, where Collins has been a
fi rst-team, all-league libero for three years,
and was the EOL Player of the Year her soph-
omore and junior years.
The Knights advanced to the 3A state
tournament in 2018 for the fi rst time in
I
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Irrigon’s Makenna Collins (1) serves the ball during the fi rst set against the Stanfi eld Tigers.
The Irrigon Knights defeated the Stanfi eld Tigers 3-0 on March, 9, 2021, at Irrigon High
School.
school history. They lost in the fi rst round
to South Umpqua and fi nished the season
with a 14-10 record.
Last year, the Knights (15-13) fell short
of the state tournament with a loss to Burns
at the district tournament, but it’s her club
volleyball play that has put her on the map.
Collins has played for Club Gold out of
the Tri-Cities since she was 11 years old.
“They (colleges) look at club,” Collins
said. “You learn some life lessons and play
against some of the best teams in the nation.”
Club ball may be the key to playing
in college, but it’s hard to ignore the stats
Collins put up in her fi rst three years at Irri-
gon.
She had 608 digs, 151 aces, 100 assists
and every libero’s dream — 30 kills.
“There are times I will hit from the back
row,” Collins said. “That’s where I satisfy
my need to hit. I didn’t get blessed with
height, so I get to sacrifi ce my body and fl y
all over the fl oor.”
At EWU, Collins will be stepping into a
position that has been held by Catelyn Linke
the past few years. Linke has been moving
up the list in the EWU record book for career
digs, and is ranked sixth.
“She is really good,” Collins said. “She is
super cool. I’m excited to take over for her.”
It might be a year or two before Collins
gets her shot, but she’s willing to put in the
work.
“The fi rst couple of years depend on how
good I play and fi t into the role they need me
to play,” Collins said. “I hope to make the
travel team as a freshman, but it’s hard to
get that spot.”
HELENA, Mont. — When Trent
Durfey played football at Umatilla
High School, the Vikings had just
one winning season.
As a redshirt freshman at Carroll
College, Durfey and his fellow Saints
are co-champi-
ons of the Frontier
Conference and
headed to the fi rst
round of the NAIA
Football Champi-
onship Series.
“It was abso-
Durfey
lutely surreal,”
Durfey said of
winning a conference title. “When
that buzzer rang, all the memories of
playing in Umatilla, and the summer
workouts in the weight room with
my dad (Dan) came rushing back.
This is what it feels like to win. We
used to lose by a lot of points in high
school. To be on the other side is a
big change of scenery.”
The Saints (3-1), who are the 16th
seed in the playoff s, will take on the
top-ranked Morningside Mustangs
on Saturday, April 17, in Sioux City,
Iowa. Morningside (8-0), which has
won the past two NAIA titles, last
played Nov. 21, 2020, as its season
was played in the fall.
It’s the fi rst trip to the playoff s for
Carroll College since 2014.
“We were on a high for about 12
hours,” Durfey said. “We found out
(on Sunday, April 11) who we were
playing, and now it’s time to focus on
the next game.”
The 6-foot-2, 240-pound Durfey,
who is majoring in health sciences,
has started at outside linebacker
and defensive end for the Saints. He
had fi ve tackles in Carroll College’s
28-19 win over College of Idaho on
Saturday, April 10, that gave them
a share of the conference title with
the Coyotes.
As a former high school hurdler,
the Saints like Durfey’s speed
combined with his physical game.
“This has been a dream season,”
See Winning, Page A11
SPORTS SHORT
AP sources: NCAA dumps requirement that transfers sit a year
By RALPH D. RUSSO
AP College Football Writer
INDIANAPOLIS — Starting
next season, major college foot-
ball and basketball players will
be permitted to transfer one time
before graduating without being
required to sit out a year of compe-
tition.
The NCAA Division I Coun-
cil voted Wednesday, April 14,
to change the long-standing rule
that has often deterred players in
high-profi le sports from switching
schools, two people with knowl-
edge of the council’s decision told
The Associated Press.
The people spoke on condition
of anonymity because two-day
meeting was still in session and
the council’s decisions would
not become offi cial until it ends
Thursday, April 15. The Athletic
fi rst reported the council’s vote.
The so-called, one-time excep-
tion has been available to athletes
in other NCAA sports for years,
allowing them to transfer and play
immediately. Athletes in football,
men’s and women’s basketball,
men’s ice hockey and baseball
have not had that available to
them without asking the NCAA
for a special waiver and claiming
a hardship caused the need for a
transfer.
Athletes who have graduated
have also been permitted to trans-
fer without sitting out, but not
undergraduates.
Starting this fall semester, all
athletes will be operating under
the same rules: Transfers will be
allowed to play right away.
Those in fall and winter sports
must notify their schools they
intend to transfer by May 1; in
spring sports, the notification
date will be July 1. The notifi ca-
tion dates begin in 2022.
For this year, athletes in all
sports will be required to notify
their schools about their intent to
transfer by July 1.
The council also voted to let
the current dead period in recruit-
ing in all sports expire June 1. A
ban in in-person recruiting has
been in place for more than a year
because of the pandemic. Coaches
will again be permitted to visit
recruits off campus, hold camps
on campus and welcome prospec-
tive student-athletes on offi cial
recruiting visits.
Paul Vernon/Associated Press, File
Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields throws during an NFL Pro Day at
Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, on March 30, 2021.