October 12th; a day likely marked on the calendars of most Oregon Ducks football fans for Oregon’s game against Ohio State. The Big Ten Conference game is guaranteed to draw national attention, as a win for the currently third-ranked Ducks over the second-ranked Buckeyes will pave the way to a potential national championship match. This is arguably the most important regular season game of the year for college football.
And this battle between two college football superpowers is not only monumental, it’s also personal for the programs. Ohio State lost to Oregon 35-28 on home soil in 2021. More importantly, Ohio State now has a new offensive coordinator who is very familiar with the Oregon Ducks.
Former Oregon coach Chip Kelly is currently reinventing the Buckeyes’ offense with Ohio State coach Ryan Day. Kelly is the former offensive coordinator turned head coach of the Ducks who completely reinvented the offense in college football. Kelly, who got his coaching license with the Ducks in 2007, pioneered an offense based on speed and explosive running that completely confused defenses. Rumor has it he’s trying to reinvent his tactics again for the Buckeyes.
Now, in an exclusive interview with the Oregon Ducks on Ally Osborne of Sports Illustrated and KOIN 6, two of Kelly’s former players weigh in on the coach’s return to his offensive plays. Jonathan Stewart and Kenjon Barner were both key running backs in Kelly’s plans. Stewart and Barner, who now host the “Ducks of a Feather Podcast” airing this Friday, August 30, have a lot to say about the upcoming game and their former coach.
“I love it. I love it,” Barner said. “You know, Chip’s legacy is cemented at Oregon. What he’s done at Oregon in that time frame, nobody had ever done before. The number of games he’s won. How the fashion is with Chip. He’s an Oregon legend, so I expect Chip to go out there and be Chip. I think he’s at a point where he’s got a certain level of talent around him that he can use now like he normally does.”
“I think it’s fitting. I think he went through a phase in his life where he tried some things, where he was dominant, but also had some difficulties. And I think he’s come full circle now that he knows exactly where he stands and is a coach. And that’s a dangerous situation for a lot of people,” Stewart said.
Stewart, in particular, is well-versed in Kelly’s experimental days at Oregon. Many may recall that Stewart was the first running back to execute Kelly’s “Statue of Liberty” play against Michigan in Ann Arbor in 2007. On that play, former Oregon quarterback Dennis Dixon fakes the ball and then passes it behind Stewart’s back for a 20-yard run to the outside. The Ducks eventually fake another Statue of Liberty play down the line, leading to a Dixon touchdown and a 39-7 overall win over Michigan. Interestingly, Oregon will play Michigan in Ann Arbor for the first time since that game on November 2 of this year.
“Yeah, those are plays you see in movies, in backyard football, and you think, ‘That’s never going to work in a game,’ maybe a high school game. On a national level, he had the courage to go to Ann Arbor and call that play. That was a testament to who we really were and how much faith he had in his players,” Stewart said. “We were prepared. We made that play like we did every practice, pretty much. And it was always like, hey, practice the way you want to do it. You never know when you’re going to have to do it. And sometimes you can get silly on those plays and just go through the motions and stuff. But he called that play and it worked perfectly.”
With Kelly now back to designing plays exclusively for Ohio State’s offense, Stewart believes he will pose a threat to teams facing the Buckeyes this year.
“You have to face him because he doesn’t question anything he does,” Stewart said. “He knows what he’s doing, where he wants to be and where he wants to be, which is calling plays. So Chip Kelly, who has so much time and energy and is looking for nothing but winning and planning things that nobody has ever seen before, is dangerous.”
Barner says he is quite confident about this duel in Autzen.
“I expect big things from Chip, but I also expect them to lose when they play in Eugene,” Barner said.
You can catch the Ducks of a Feather podcast, hosted by Barner and Stewart, on all podcast platforms this Friday, August 30. Their first guest is a big surprise, but the two former Ducks say it will be someone fans will love to hear from.
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