Rose Bowl: Was this worth it?
Oregon didn’t want us to celebrate 2024. What are we supposed to do in 2025?
PASADENA, Calif. — Before the disaster happened, Urban Meyer was happy to reminisce about one of the worst times in Oregon history.
The former Ohio State coach was riding the elevator up to the press box of the Rose Bowl on Wednesday when the topic of Phil Knight came up. The Nike Co-Founder is Oregon’s most famous booster, but it wasn’t so long ago that Knight wasn’t shy about showing up on other school’s campuses. Specifically, Meyer talked about how cool it was when Knight came to observe one of their practices during his time at Ohio State, which sprung a memory from the final day of the 2016 season.
Oregon lost to Oregon State 34-24 on that November afternoon to finish off a 4-8 season, one that also included a 49-point loss to Washington, a 25-point loss to USC and a 35-point loss to Stanford. But Knight wasn’t in Corvallis for that loss. He was in Columbus, in the Ohio State locker room, congratulating the Buckeyes for their 30-27 overtime win over rival Michigan in a game that would propel OSU into the then-four-team College Football Playoff.