There have been too many. It's impossible to name the ten greatest football highlights in Oregon Duck history, but it's fun to recall the first six that come to mind.
From the back of the bar or two rows up, another fan could come up with 20 more. It's May, 120 days until the Ducks host Boise State, and the assignment here is to pick six that had impact and a wow factor, not to slight any of the other great moments.
If we're talking about Boise State, how about the 2024 game, when Oregon salvaged a creaky, tense home opener with a 100-yard Noah Whittington kick return (Jayden LImar saving the day by picking up his fumble in the end zone) in the fourth quarter after Tez Johnson scampered 85 yards with a punt return in the third, all to set up Atticus Sappington's 25-yard field goal as time ran out for a 37-34 victory, a rocky start to an undefeated regular season.
That game had half a season's worth of highlights in one night, particularly as on the other side Bronco running back Ashton Jeanty ran for 192 yards and three touchdowns.
One of the most memorable highlights of last season had to be Malik Benson's 64-yard touchdown in Husky Stadium. In the fourth quarter with eight minutes to play the Dastardly Dawgs had closed within five and Dante Moore faced 3rd and 9 at his own 36.
He found Malik Benson in an open area on a deep in-route. Benson leaped for a high pass and split the defenders for a decisive touchdown, a Husky backbreaker.
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Two years ago Tez Johnson did the same thing to Penn State in the Big Ten Championship Game. Named MVP of Oregon's first Big Ten Conference title, the diminutive jitterbug caught 11 passes for 181 yards in the game, none bigger that the 48-yard catch-and-run for a touchdown on 2nd and 9 in the third quarter.
It wasn't as dramatic or decisive, but a memorable moment from Oregon's 59-20 thrashing of No. 1 Florida State at the 2015 Rose Bowl was punctuated by Tony Washington's 58-yard fumble return for a touchdown, scooping up a pratfall from the Old Crab Stealer, Jameis Winston.
Washington's smooth move was memorable for how it symbolized a day in the golden light of Pasadena where everything went right for the Ducks in a big postseason game. Certainly there have been other games where the memories weren't as sweet.
De'Anthony Thomas defines an era with a sudden score
Then there was the Fiesta Bowl where De'Anthony Thomas introduced Kansas State and the nation to Oregon speed.
The Kansas fan with his arms folded, shaking his head, is perhaps the most iconic part of the highlight if not for DAT's break-the-tape gesture at the goal line.
You could fill a whole list with De'Anthony Thomas highlights. He was that electric in big moments. The speedster from Crenshaw went crazy at the 2012 Rose Bowl, baffling the Badgers with touchdown runs of 91 and 64 yards.
Kiko Alonso's diving interception and Michael Clay's fumble recovery in the 4th quarter were two other pivotal plays in a 45-38 game that was full of them.
The memories go further back and defy exclusion. For longtime fans it's impossible to leave out Kenny Wheaton's decisive interception in '94, the one that changed the trajectory of Oregon football forever, or Pat Johnson's 29-yard touchdown catch against Washington on third and 20 in November 1997.
Call it the extra point of a fabulous era.
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