For 130 years, the Civil War game has been a rivalry. Ahead of what could be the finale, read all about it

With Oregon’s departure for the Big Ten and Oregon State’s uncertain future, it’s possible that the Nov. 24 game at Autzen Stadium between the archrivals will be the final Civil War football game.

There’s no better way to commemorate the occasion than by reading my “Civil War Rivalry: Oregon vs. Oregon State,” a book providing history of a grid rivalry that began in 1894.

For the project, I interviewed more than 250 players, coaches, officials and representatives — roughly the same number from each school — to get a first-person account of what the rivalry was about through the years. I spoke with representatives of every era since the 1940s and interviewed all of the living head coaches from both schools through 2014.

Those interviews provided the greatest pleasure I had while writing the book. It was a great opportunity to have so many people involved share stories and provide a window into the Civil War’s past and offer anecdotal evidence into what makes it one of college football’s true rivalries.

Chip Kelly, Phil Knight, Pat Kilkenny, Mike Riley, Dennis Erickson, Terry Baker, Dan Fouts, Ahmad Rashad, Bill “Earthquake” Enyart, John Robinson, Bob Berry, Ken Simonton, Joey Harrington, Kenjon Barner, Mike Hass and Brandin Cooks were among those whose reflections enhance the quality of the book.

The book opens with the inaugural game, in which the “Farmers” of Oregon Agricultural College (later to be Oregon State) beat the “Lemon-Yellows” of the University of Oregon 16-0 before 500 curious observers on a sawdust field in Corvallis. The first two chapters provide a history of the early years of college football, both nationally and on a local level, and in particular the in-state rivalry that became popular so quickly that by 1908, a crowd of 10,000 watched Oregon beat OAC 8-0 at Portland’s Multnomah Field.

There is a chapter on “Civil War pageantry,” covering pre-game and halftime entertainment and student-body and cheerleader involvement that seemed just as important as the game for many years. Shenanigans and stunts by members of one student body to another — Beavers painting orange the Oregon “O” on Skinner’s Butte, Ducks painting the Oregon Aggie “Iron Woman” green and yellow — added color to the rivalry.

Another chapter -- “Fisticuffs, Horseplay and More” — details some fights and altercations, on the field and off, that marked the matchups through the years. There were head-shavings of freshmen from the other side, a pummeling of a jeering Duck mascot by members of the OSU team and even a kidnapping by UO athletes of members of the Oregon State homecoming court (imagine how that would go over today).

The book covers the eras of Baker and Fouts and Norm Van Brocklin and Mel Renfro and Ken Simonton and Rich Brooks and Len Casanova and Tommy Prothro. There is a chapter on men who switched allegiances from school to school — there were more than just Rich Brooks — and brothers who squared off from opposite sides.

Old-timers remember the “Toilet Bowl,” and you’ll read all about it here. Also: The Ducks’ 1994 win at Parker Stadium that precipitated their first Rose Bowl appearance in 36 years … The greatest Civil War game ever — Oregon State’s 44-41 double-overtime victory in 1998 … the 2008 and ’09 games in which Oregon State was playing for a Rose Bowl berth both years (and made it neither). …

and a chapter on what the rivalry meant to each of the players and coaches.

There is some surprisingly in-depth commentary on the Civil War from Jonathan Smith (and also Akili Smith) …  former UO coach Dick Enright ranting about having to trade season tickets for carpet and drapes in his office while basketball coach Dick Harter badgered AD Norv Richey into getting anything he wanted (Enright, on what Harter told Richey: “Listen you SOB, there better be carpet in our dressing room or I’m going to expose what a chicken s—t you are.”). … chapters on the dominance of Dee “Great Pumpkin” Andros and “Big Daddy” Brooks. …  inside scoops on Chip Kelly’s promotion from offensive coordinator to head coach and Mike Riley’s ride aboard the Oregon plane when coming home from a Pac-12 media day in Los Angeles. … interviews with former UO assistants such as Nick Aliotti, Denny Schuler, Steve Greenwood, Don Pellum and John Neal about the rivalry.

This is an important book on the history of sports in the state of Oregon. Many of the people who were interviewed have spoken their final words. Gone are the likes of Dave Wilcox and Bob Berry and Bill Enyart and Bob Newland. Former OSU tailback Joe Francis, a star of the 1957 Rose Bowl team, died from cancer a month after he spoke to me from his native Hawaii. Former Gov. Victor Atiyeh, who played at Oregon in the early ‘40s, passed in July 2014, about six months after we did an interview.

We have a limited number of books available at $25 a copy plus shipping. Order form is available when you hit the “book store” tab atop the home page. We’ll have the book to you within five days of receiving your order. Over 527 pages, the Beaver/Duck sports fan will finally plenty of items of interest. It’s a nostalgic look at a rivalry that will rekindle memories and provide football for thought as the Civil War rivalry enters perhaps its final chapter on Nov. 24.

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