It’s been a remarkable year in sports for the Northwest, and for many of these teams, their year is just ramping up. Oregon’s football team has a legitimate shot at the national title, and the Seahawks could win the division and host a playoff game for the first time since 2020. The Huskies also have a chance to win a playoff game for the first time since 2019.
The Trail Blazers put together forgettable seasons but had some brief bright spots along the way. Then there are the Beavers, who had a decent but tough year in the first season of the new-look Pac-2.
Good, bad, or indifferent, many memories were made this year.
Bryant Knox (BK) and Casey Mabbott (CM) share their favorite memories team by team. Feel free to comment with yours!
Portland Trail Blazers
BK — I’m tempted to call Donovan Clingan at No. 7 overall in the 2024 NBA Draft my favorite Trail Blazers moment. By the draft day, I’d convinced myself I’d trade up to get the 7’2”, two-time NCAA champion, as it was rumored others may try to do. Cling Kong slipping to seventh has been one of the team’s greatest fortunes this calendar year … But really, there’s no better memory than Damian Lillard’s first game back to Moda—where Dame Time began.
Sadly, I wasn’t in the building the night of January 31st. But I knew plenty who were. From what they told me, the energy was only matched by playoff games during the Dame Era itself.
Dame struggled with efficiency in his Portland re-debut, and Portland won 119-116.
It was one of those Blazers victories (over a 32-15 Bucks team) that ultimately hurt the team’s shot at a top pick. But it was exactly what the doctor ordered for a good vibe check midseason.
The team went on to close out the year 6-28 anyway, so there was no harm, no foul.
CM – This is going to sound super petty (and it is!), but seeing the Bucks get kicked out of the playoffs was my favorite Blazers memory this season. We knew we were in for a brutal stretch in the post-Dame Lillard era, but I don’t think any of us realized just how tough the road ahead would be.
The hype surrounding Scoot evaporated almost as quickly as he arrived, and that was devastating. Then he was wearing goggles (goggles on a point guard? What?!) to improve his vision, but he still couldn’t hit a bucket. It was just sad, man.
Meanwhile, Dame was playing with Giannis and doing all the things we said he would do here. It wasn’t fun to watch until they got into the first round, and they could barely win a game. Then it looked all too close to his time in Portland, with an overmatched team going home in the first round. The Blazers didn’t have any games played in the month of May, but the Pacers’ series-clinching victory over the Bucks on May 2nd was my favorite game of the season.
It would have been way too sour to watch the Bucks win a title in Lillard’s first season on a new team, so it was a fitting end to their first year apart.
Oregon Ducks
BK — Entering Oregon’s October 12th game vs. Ohio State, everything about it felt like a “classic” game the Ducks would drop. Not that it was a “trap” game—not at all. As much confidence as you might’ve had, mid-October counts as Spooky Season, and the tension in the crisp, fall Autzen air gave off eerily similar vibes we’ve felt in the past against Auburn, LSU, or, let’s say…Ohio State.
As it turned out, the game was about as close as it gets to leaving you with a new set of ghosts to think back on in the future. But Oregon’s season-defining showcase (not to mention the signature win of head Dan Lanning’s career) led me to utter these exact words after the clock struck zero: “Football has finally given something back to me.”
I said it with joy and the biggest sigh of relief I’ve ever let out as a Ducks fan.
No matter what happens the rest of the way, this was one game to remember.
CM – I want to say Ohio State because that was the best moment of the season, but one other game meant more to me. Boise State was this unbeatable force that the Ducks simply couldn’t figure out. They had only played them three times in their long history, but Boise had the Ducks’ number all three times. They were worse than seeing an Arizona game on the schedule during a year when the Ducks were a title contender. They were a sure loss waiting to doom the season.
When Boise State was leading 20-14 at halftime, I honestly thought this would be it. The Ducks could win most, if not all, of their remaining games, and with the playoff expanding to 12 teams, a one-loss team wasn’t automatically counted out—they could still win their conference and force their way in. But none of that mattered—I just wanted to see the Ducks beat the Broncos.
For reference, kids born in 2008 have a driver’s license now. That’s how long we were waiting to breathe easy when Boise State shared a field with the Ducks.
The second half was not for the faint of heart. The Ducks lost two fumbles and just could not seem to take hold of the game. Boise State matched Oregon at every turn and held a 34-27 lead with 10 minutes to go. Oregon ran the kickoff back for a touchdown to tie it up. The teams traded punts, and the clock kept ticking away. It sure looked like the nervous tension in Eugene was going to boil over if the game extended into overtime.
Oregon had the ball on its own 32 with just over three minutes left. Oregon put together a methodical drive of short runs and passes to move to the Boise State 8 with just thirty-nine seconds left. That final half-minute seemed to last an eternity, but Oregon kicker Atticus Sappington nailed the game-winner as time expired to send Oregon into the win column against Boise State for the first time in its program history.
The Ducks and their fans breathed for a moment, which was my most important moment this season.
Oregon State Beavers
BK — I’ll admit something right up front: I did not watch an Oregon State Beavers football game this season before the showdown vs. Washington State. The Pac-12 “title” on the line November 23rd got me watching Beavs vs. Cougs. And boy, am I glad I did.
As it turned out, the game was a classic. ICYMI, Washington State’s head coach gave the Beavers a bit of bulletin board material earlier in the week, claiming “Oregon State is not our buddy.” But both teams were gritting it out on the field, and a late field goal earned the real headlines when it was all said and done.
Of course, if you know the Beavers and Reser Stadium, you know ranked opponents can struggle even without offering bulletin board motivation. This year’s version of the Cougars weren’t exactly “giants,” but the Beavers slayed them nonetheless, and it really was a game fans should hold onto for years to come.
CM – Oregon State’s game against Purdue was my favorite moment of their season. They were clicking in all three phases that day and got a chance to punish the only actual Big 10 team they faced all season. It was a fun game to watch, and the Beavers held the Boilermakers to just seven points through three quarters.
Oregon State had a vintage Beavers game. They racked up over 300 rushing yards and only had to attempt 18 passes. They came close to 500 total yards and didn’t turn the ball over. They had the ball for more than 40 minutes of game time and simply imposed their will under the sunny skies of their home stadium.
They deserved more moments like this during the season, but this was my favorite one. The crowd storming the field just added to this being their big moment.
Seattle Seahawks
BK — I’m just really enjoying watching Geno Smith on his mission to prove doubters wrong. He’s in Year 11, and he’s never gotten the respect he probably deserves as a player. His interceptions are up this season, but so are his completion percentage and his total completions with four games left to go.
Ever since he famously said, “They tried to write me off…I ain’t write back, though,” I’ve been hooked. I can’t get enough of Geno and can’t wait to see how this journey ends.
CM—Seattle was in New York to face Geno Smith’s former team, and it was supposed to be a circled win. The Jets were in free fall, and the weather was perfect—or as close as it could be in Jersey. A win would put Seattle in the driver’s seat for the division crown; a loss would force them to possibly win out the rest of the way to earn a playoff spot.
After a circus of errors, Seattle was down 21-7, with New York driving for what probably would have been the kill score. Seattle had just fumbled the kickoff (again) and gave the Jets the ball on the Seattle 38. Jets QB Aaron Rodgers quickly moved his team to the Seattle 9 and a first and goal. It sure looked like Seattle was going home at 6-6 with more questions than answers.
What happened next looked like the bang-bang ending of a Martin Scorsese movie.
Jets receiver Garrett Wilson lined up in the slot against Seattle cornerback Devon Witherspoon. Witherspoon blitzed Rodgers, while defensive tackle Leonard Williams dropped into coverage against Wilson. Rodgers spotted the mismatch and fired a pass to Wilson, but Williams turned out to be a pretty good cover corner. Trained for years to get his hands up when the ball is in the air, Williams batted at the ball and deflected it into the air, then caught it and started to run. He was at his own 8-yard line when he caught the ball, and he didn’t stop running until he reached the Jets’ end zone 92 yards later.
ANY Moment, ANY Team
BK — I didn’t grow up watching the Olympics. Well, that’s not true. I grew up watching men’s basketball every four years at the Summer Olympic Games. And then I’d tune out the rest.
As I’ve gotten older, that’s changed. I’ve appreciated watching sports (and insane athletes!) who aren’t usually on my radar. I like learning new games. And I LOVE being present in the moment when legends—like Simone Biles—are building their legacies in front of our eyes.
Biles epitomized that this summer. So did Stephen Curry, yes, the guy who put Victor Wembanyama and France to “Night Night.” But it was also Katie Ladecky who deserves an extra gold medal for making things look easy. It was Scottie Scheffler on the course. It was Stephen Nedoroscik on the pommel horse!
Something about these Summer Games really hit different. Maybe it was the competition. Maybe it was the distraction from political and global headlines. Whatever it was, it was the highlight of my sports year in 2024.
CM – Dallas had not lost a game at home since the first week of the 2022 season, which made Green Bay destroying Dallas in the playoffs at home such an unexpected surprise gift for everyone that I still can’t get over what a soul-crushing win it was almost a year later. I don’t remember a team coming in as the underdog in recent memory and putting on such an epic beatdown of a title contender in their own house. Underdogs win every year, but it’s increasingly rare that they go on the road as a team that is just happy to be in the playoffs and make it look like they were a wolf in sheep’s clothing all along.
It wasn’t just the amount of points or how quickly the score became lopsided, it was also the near perfect plan the Packers had to remove pass rusher Micah Parsons from existence. Green Bay running back Aaron Jones had the freedom to adjust to what Parsons was doing from play to play and provide crucial protection for Packers QB Jordan Love. It’s not something you usually see from a back, and definitely not against one of the best blitzers in the game today. Parsons might have just taken the night off; that’s how effective Jones was against him.
For those who don’t recall how big of a blowout it was, the score was 48-16 with just over ten minutes left in the game. Dallas would claw their way to a more respectable 48-32 final score, but the first three quarters looked like a lopsided disaster. Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott threw for over 400 yards and had three passing touchdowns, and the fourth quarter was so wild that Green Bay had to put their starters back in to keep the game in hand.
Dallas has been playing playoff games since 1966, and the 48 points allowed were the most they had ever seen from a postseason opponent. Dallas allowed a playoff-high 38 points thrice, twice on the road in 1991 and 1994 and only once at home in 1969. Their largest deficit at home in the 2023 season? 8 points. They were down 27 before they got their first points in their loss to Green Bay.
Be the first to comment