Formerly known as the “Civil War,” the football game between the Oregon State Beavers and Oregon Ducks has bigger stakes than normal this year.
The teams will play each other for the last year, as the conference realignment will change a lot come next year and UO has not scheduled the Beavers for their 2024 season.
The Beavers’ schedule hasn’t been released yet, but the Ducks have, leaving the Beavers off the schedule for the first time since 1944 when the game was canceled due to World War II.
Residing from one of the top high school football teams in recent years, DJ Uiagalelei, found his way to Corvallis as an early holiday gift for the Beavers, announcing he was coming to Oregon State University on Dec. 24 last year.
Neither quarterback has won this big game yet.
After attributing to 56 touchdowns as a senior in high school, Uiagalelei committed to Clemson as a five-star recruit, where he replaced National Football League starter Trevor Lawerence after he left for the NFL draft.
University of Oregon quarterback Bo Nix comes from Alabama and came out of high school as a four-star recruit.
Nix, out of high school, committed to being a Tiger at Auburn University in his home state.
His very first game with the Tigers would be against his future team the Ducks, where he led the team to a comeback win, scoring 14 points in the fourth quarter to upset current Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert.
Since Nix joined the Ducks in early 2022, he has played in the Rivalry Game against Oregon State and understands how big of a game it is.
In last year’s Rivalry Game, Nix and the Ducks blew a 31-10 lead and lost 38-34.
Nix threw for 327 yards and two touchdowns, but that wasn’t enough as the Beaver’s defense held strong as the Duck offense went stagnant in the fourth quarter.
Uiagalelei didn’t play at OSU last year as he was still a part of the Clemson Tigers.
Clemson doesn’t have a specific rival like the Ducks and the Beavers, as they are rivals with three teams, Georgia Institute of Technology, Florida State University and South Carolina University, three teams from three different states.
The game against the South Carolina Gamecocks in 2022 was only the second loss of the season for Uiagalelei and No.13 Clemson Tigers. This was the last rivalry game Uiagalelei would play in before transferring.
Clemson ended up losing that game 31-30, but the game wasn’t as close as it seemed, as they scored nine of those points on defense (interception for a touchdown and a safety).
Uiagalelei was outperformed statistically in that game by Gamecocks QB Spencer Rattler. Rattler threw for 261 more yards than Uiagalelei, yet threw more picks.
When Nix played at Auburn, he finished his last season with the Tigers with a win against their rivals, the Ole Miss Rebels in 2021.
Nix got the upset win primarily on his legs, rushing for two touchdowns and throwing for another in the 31-20 win over No.10 Ole Miss.
This year, both quarterbacks are playing at very high levels.
Nix has thrown for 3,135 yards and has the highest completion percentage in Football Bowl Subdivision, completing 77.7% of his passes.
Uiagalelei is still putting up numbers even for a team with the No. 12 best rusher in the nation in yards gained with Damien Martinez.
Uiagalelei has thrown for 2,254 yards and 20 touchdowns with only four picks through eight games.
The Ducks are currently ranked No. 6 with a 9-1 record with the only loss coming to No. 5 Washington.
The Beavers have dropped two games this year, are 8-2, and are currently ranked No. 10.
