Ducks Go Down: Outcome of National Championship Game Could Benefit Chip Kelly & Eagles
By Somers Price
Jan 12, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; Oregon Ducks former coach Chip Kelly in attendance before the 2015 CFP National Championship Game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
In their latest attempt to capture the National Title that has eluded them since the prime of the Chip Kelly era, the Oregon Ducks took one on the chin Monday night. Ohio State proved to be the dominant team on the field as they took apart Mark Helfrich’s team level by level before easing out a 42-20 win. Most of the Oregon players looked ill-prepared for the stage of the first-ever National Championship playoff game and, once Ohio State got their footing, the Ducks did not have a prayer.
From early in the day’s festivities, there was plenty of coverage of Chip Kelly’s presence at the game in Dallas. Not only had the Eagles been selected as one of seven teams to have been awarded a credential to the game, but Kelly still had relationships with several players on the Oregon team from his college days. The Eagles head coach had appearances on ESPN and
Pac-12 Network throughout the evening and
was a popular sight along the Oregon sideline.
While Kelly was certainly within his rights to catch up with old friends and colleagues with all of them in one location, one hopes his primary purpose at ‘JerryWorld’ was of the professional variety. All things considering, he was probably the NFL executive in attendance who could benefit most from being in attendance, given his increased exposure to the Oregon team. That being said, there was plenty to see on both sides of the field in a game that spoke high volumes about both programs.
The results of Monday’s game were going to dictate a lot of narratives at both the college and professional level. Depending on which players performed well, which team handled adversity, and which coach made the right calls in the high-pressure situations; an entire offseason of football was ripe for the storylines that came out of the contest. For Chip Kelly and the Eagles, I actually think the game turned out rather favorable. Here’s my reasoning.