Black and yellow, black and yellow. Oregon revealed their look for Saturday afternoon’s Big Ten matchup with #20 Illinois, a 12:30 P.M. Pacific Game on CBS from Autzen Stadium.
It’s a blend of tradition and new tech, a black matte helmet with silver wings, the yellow “fight cancer” jerseys and black pants. It’s the “flight + fight” series. There’s a splash of diamond plate from the Dennis Dixon era around the collar, the feather pattern on the shoulders.
It’s a clean, fierce look, and no one will object to repeating the fight cancer theme or to paying tribute to some great Oregon squads of the past two decades. On the field, the Ducks have to fly like the Black Momba and hit like DeForest Buckner to compete with a tough, upset-minded crew from Champaign.
The Illini rank 13th in defensive efficiency in the Big Ten Conference at 5.43 yards per play but they are physical and disruptive, 4th in the league in sacks, 2nd in the Big Ten in turnover margin with 13 takeaways gained against 5 fumbles and one interception on offense.