Urban Meyer answers if Oregon is a blue blood in college football

Every college offseason there are numerous discussions that come to the forefront. Which coaches are on the hot seat? Who will win the Heisman Trophy? Who are the true college football blue bloods?

The latter was of recent interest to the crew of The Triple Option podcast, which discussed that very question when it came to one school. Oregon.

“They’re a relative blue blood,” former coach Urban Meyer said. “But they’re not a historical blue blood.”

What does that mean, exactly? Well, it means that Oregon is one of the current powers in college football. And even if the Ducks haven’t reached the highest level in the sport just yet, they seem right on the verge.

“So as of right now anybody in their common sense says, ‘OK, give me the blue bloods of college football,'” Meyer said. “You say, ‘Absolutely Oregon.'”

The Ducks have had their pockets of success, to be sure. The program has competed in two national title games, doing so in 2010 and in 2014.

The program had success in the BCS era, then again in the playoff era. Just last year the program was the No. 1 ranked team in the College Football Playoff, though the run ended at the hands of eventual champion Ohio State.

Meyer’s co-hosts on The Triple Option podcast, former Alabama running back Mark Ingram and analyst Rob Stone, seemed to agree with Meyer about Oregon’s ‘relative blue blood’ status.

“They have not won the game that matters,” Ingram said. “But they have everything that it takes to be a blue blood. The support, the fandom, the players, the coaches, the money behind them.”

Few have as much support as Oregon, with its connections to Nike and founder Phil Knight. The Ducks have absolutely beautiful facilities, among the best in the sport.

And they’re also getting the name recognition now, with coach Dan Lanning in charge. The Ducks are recruiting at a level they haven’t seen in a long time. All that should add up to eventual top-level success.

Stone had an interim term for Oregon until the Ducks win a title. He explained.

“They’re a green blood,” he said. “They’re a green blood, now they’ve got to be a blue blood. They’ve got to turn to a blue blood.”