By the early third quarter, Oregon football supporters were beginning to recognize the Ohio State vs. Notre Dame national championship game.
The Buckeyes were crushing the Irish, with a 31-7 lead, which was comparable to the 34-8 lead Ohio State had at the half against the overpowered Ducks in the Rose Bowl.
In yet another critique of the structure of this inaugural 12-team playoff run, Oregon appeared to have a chance to finish the season as the nation’s second-ranked team at that precise moment on Monday.
No, unlike four other teams, the Ducks did not make it past the quarterfinals. They didn’t even win a postseason game. Nevertheless, the Ducks achieved three things that no other playoff team did: they finished the season with just one loss, went undefeated in the regular season, and defeated a completely dominant national champion.
I would have been at ease placing the Ducks in second place with the rationale that the playoff system sent the two greatest teams to the quarterfinals if Ohio State had done to Notre Dame what it did to the Ducks in Pasadena.
But Notre Dame was able to get back into the game against the Buckeyes in a manner that the Ducks could not. To at least make Ohio State work for their spot in the championship game, the Irish came within 31-23. Additionally, Buckeyes offensive coordinator Chip Kelly is remembered by Duck supporters for making the audacious call for a go-route bomb from Will Howard to Jeremiah Smith on the game-ending third down call. Duck lovers also recall that combination. As the clock ran out, Smith caught the ball in single coverage to set up the game-winning field goal.
The ring that escaped Kelly while he was in Oregon is returned to him.
The Ducks have yet to arrive.
I submitted my ballot in the AP Top 25 poll every week during the regular season. My final ranking for the 2024–25 season is as follows:
1. The 14-2 Ohio State
2. The 14-2 Notre Dame
3. 13-1 Oregon
4. Texas (13–3)
5. 13-3 Penn State
6. Georgia (11–13)
7. Arizona State (11-3)
8. Tennessee (10-3)
9. Indiana (11-2)
10. (12-2) Boise State
11. BYU (11-2)
12. Iowa State (11-3)
13. Ole Miss (10-3)
14. Clemson (10–4)
15. SMU (11-3)
16. Illinois (10-3)
17. Syracuse (10-3)
18. Miami (10-3)
19. Alabama (9-4)
20. (9-4) South Carolina
21. Missouri (10-3)
22. Memphis (11-2)
23. UNLV (11-3)
24. Army (12-2)
25. Michigan (8-5)
–Bill Oramis, The Oregonian/OregonLive’s sports columnist.
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