Originally posted on CampusAttic.com on January 8th, 2014
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| Oregon CB Terrance Mitchell has decided to enter the NFL draft. |
‘Tis
the season, that time in the postseason before the January 15th deadline when
college athletes can decide if they want to leave school before their
eligibility is up and declare for the NFL draft.
As Oregon has steadily improved, so too have the early departures, an
inevitability in today’s big money football for some to choose to jump the ship
early. For a few it makes total sense, having proven everything they possibly
could at the college level and being 100% NFL ready, like Kenny Wheaton or
Haloti Ngata.
For others it has raised an eyebrow, appearing as a move to leave before losing
their job their senior year to a younger player, like Javes Lewis and Darron
Thomas. Considering the rough and tumble game of football and injuries that can
and will occur, it’s understandably a matter of making a living while the body
still holds up for some.
Regardless of the motivation, this is the time of year when fans worry,
checking message boards constantly for the latest rumor on this player or that,
who said what, which twitter or instagram post might maybe hint at their
decision (and about DAT’s now infamous instagram post of a Campus
Attic image–let us reiterate once more that he just liked our drawing of him,
it wasn’t an announcement of ANYTHING, as was proven by his departure).
While fans held their breath about news of Ifo Ekpre-Olomu as the next
potential player from the UO to also declare for the draft following Terrance
Mitchell and De’Anthony Thomas both deciding to leave this year, there is also
great comfort in knowing that at least Marcus Mariota and Hroniss Grasu are
returning for the 2014 season. And now with official word from Ifo Ekpre-Olomu
that he is returning for his senior year, barring a last-minute change of
heart, fans can breathe easy this week.
Kenny
Wheaton, Onterrio Smith, George Wrighster, Igor Olshansky, Haloti Ngata,
Jonathan Stewart, Jairus Byrd, Javes Lewis, Darron Thomas, LaMichael James, and
now Terrance Mitchell and De’Anthony Thomas after their recent decisions to
test the NFL waters–what was once the rarest of occurrences is now an almost
annual event, somebody leaving Oregon early for a shot at the pros.
 |
| Kenny
Wheaton left Oregon after the 1996 season, taken in the 3rd round by the Dallas Cowboys. |
Kenny
Wheaton in 1996 was the first Oregon player in recent history to make the leap
to the NFL, foregoing his senior season after being a two-time 1st team
all-Pac-10 selection and All-American, most famous for his 1994
interception vs. Washington. Wheaton had led Oregon in
tackles in 1996, the only in team history to do so from the cornerback
position, becoming one of the most feared and respected cover men in Pac-10
history.
A third round draft pick of the Dallas Cowboys, his career was derailed by a
severe knee injury in 1999 that ended his NFL career, but he continued playing
for a decade thereafter in the CFL before retiring. Regardless of how his pro
career went, Wheaton remains a legend in Eugene.
But
contrary to popular belief, Kenny Wheaton was not actually the first Oregon
Duck to leave school early for the NFL. That came nearly half a century
earlier, when Norm Van Brocklin forgo his senior year for the NFL draft in 1949.
He would go on to become the first University of Oregon player inducted into
the NFL Hall of Fame.
Van Brocklin established a legacy of providing great NFL talents to the pro
leagues…whether or not they had actually finished school. Let’s take a look
back at where the trend began, Norm Van Brocklin — the player who established
Oregon’s early departure legacy.
THE FLYING DUTCHMAN
IS THE FIRST TO GO
Nicknamed “The Flying Dutchman,” Norm Van Brocklin grew up in Walnut Creek, CA
by way of South Dakota, serving in the US Navy during WWII. Joining the
University of Oregon football team after being discharged from the military,
Oregon coach Tex Oliver didn’t think much of the young halfback/punter, barely
using him in 1946.
 |
| Norm
van Brocklin was the first Oregon Duck to leave school early for the NFL draft. ©University-of-Oregon-Libraries- Special-Collections-and-University-Archives |
“He’s
only a fair runner, and can’t block,” was Oliver’s assessment. Van Brocklin had
been known more for baseball in high school than football, and wasn’t recruited
heavily, but perhaps Oliver should have taken a closer look at the talent. He
wouldn’t get a chance to, however, resigning after a 4-4-1 season in 1946.
In
1947 a new head coach took over, Jim Aiken, and with the fresh face came a new
opportunity for Norm Van Brocklin after being moved to quarterback. Oregon had
an All-American candidate in halfback Jake Leicht, who had been an All-American
prior to joining the war effort, but amidst a switch in offensive philosophy to
the T-formation in 1947 under Aiken, Van Brocklin outshined Leicht as the young
team leader.
In
the first game of the year, Van Brocklin connected for a touchdown pass to Dan
Garza on just the fifth play of the game, a great start to a season in which he
would throw for nearly 1,000 yards and nine TDs, huge numbers in an era when
throwing the ball was rare. Leicht meanwhile led the Pacific Coast Conference
in rushing yards and scoring during his senior campaign, returning to his
All-American form.
Oregon
would finish that season 7-3, ending the year on a six game winning streak once
Van Brocklin and Leicht found their stride–a marked improvement from the 4-4-1
record under Tex Oliver while Van Brocklin sat on the bench for most of the
year, out of position.
 |
| Jake
Leicht was an All-American at Oregon before and after WWII.
©University-of-Oregon-Libraries-Special-Collections-and-University-Archives |
If
the 1947 season made Van Brocklin big man on campus, the 1948 season would make
him a national superstar. With John McKay replacing Leicht in the backfield
(McKay later becoming a hall of fame coach at USC and the first coach of the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers), Oregon lost only one game in the regular season,
finishing 9-1, dropping a tough battle to national champion Michigan in Ann
Arbor, MI, 14-0.
Thanks to Van Brocklin efforts, Oregon would make its first ever appearance in
the AP Poll, climbing as high as 9th by season’s end.
Van
Brocklin led the PCC in passing in both 1947 and 1948, and also led the league
in punting, becoming the first Oregon player to throw for more than 1,000 yards
in a season (1,010 yards in 1948), but the Ducks would be denied a chance at
roses. In one of the most atrocious underhanded blows from Washington adding to
the already bitter rivalry, despite Oregon being a perfect 7-0 in conference
the Huskies lobbied other schools hard to pick Cal over Oregon to represent the
conference in the prestigious Rose Bowl.
The Washington politicking worked, the vote going 7-3 in favor of Cal (Oregon
and Cal didn’t play each other in 1948, so there was no on-field tie-breaker to
settle it). When Van Brocklin learned of the news of being denied a trip to the
Rose Bowl, he openly wept at the team banquet.
 |
| Action from the 1949 Cotton Bowl – Oregon vs. SMU. ©University-of-Oregon-Libraries-Special-Collections-and-University-Archives |
Denied
a shot at the Rose Bowl by those bad dawgs to the north, the season instead
earned Oregon a trip to the Cotton Bowl on January 1st, 1949, to play SMU–led
by the legendary Doak Walker. In the game Van Brocklin was spectacular as
usual, bringing Oregon back from a 14-0 deficit, but eventually lost to the
Heisman Trophy winner Doak Walker and SMU Mustangs, 21-13.
Norm
Van Brocklin earned All-American honors in 1948, and many coaches and writers
alike agreed that Van Brocklin was clearly the best quarterback in the country.
Having earned his degree in only three years, Norm Van Brocklin did the
unthinkable–he left Oregon with a year of eligibility remaining to enter the
NFL draft.
VAN BROCKLIN IN THE
NFL
Norm
Van Brocklin was selected in the 4th round of the 1949 NFL draft by the Los
Angeles Rams (37th overall), as a quarterback/punter. He would play in eight
games his rookie year, starting none but throwing 58 passes and kicking two
punts, but by the 1950 season it was Norm’s team, leading the Rams to a playoff
victory. The next year, he would lead the Rams to the NFL championship.
 |
|
Norm
Van Brocklin led the Los Angeles Rams to a NFL Championship in 1951.
|
Over
the course of a 12-year NFL career with the Rams and Philadelphia Eagles, Van
Brocklin was one of the biggest stars of the NFL. Nine times selected to the
Pro Bowl, the 1960 NFL MVP, he led both the Rams and Eagles to National Football
League Championships. His greatest game came September 28th, 1951, when Norm
Van Brocklin threw for an astounding 554 yards vs. the New York Yanks, a record
that still stands after 62 years.
Three times he led the NFL in passing, and twice in punting, also giving the
Green Bay Packers the only playoff loss ever suffered during Vince Lombardi’s
tenure.
Rather
than continue his playing career after his NFL MVP season in 1960, Van Brocklin
again made an interesting career move, becoming the first head coach of the new
expansion NFL franchise Minnesota Vikings. He coached the Vikings for six years
(1961-66), followed by a seven year stint with the Atlanta Falcons (1968-74).
A CHANCE TO RETURN
HOME
A
1966 College Football Hall of Fame inductee and 1971 NFL Hall of Fame inductee,
Norm Van Brocklin wanted to come home to Eugene to end his career, lobbying to
take over the University of Oregon head football coach position in 1977 after
the university had fired coach Don Read following a 4-7 season.
Van
Brocklin wanted to finish his career back at Oregon, but that final year of
eligibility from 28 years prior wouldn’t be put to use, the university choosing
instead to hire Rich Brooks as the new head football coach, an Oregon State graduate.
Van Brocklin coached one year at Georgia Tech as the running backs coach in
1979, and died due to complications of a stroke in 1983 in Georgia. He was
posthumously inducted into the inaugural University of Oregon Hall of Fame
class in 1992.
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| Ad in 1977 promoting Rich Brooks’ hire as new head coach, picked over Norm Van Brocklin as Don Read’s successor. |
Today
Norm Van Brocklin’s mark is permanently placed on the University of Oregon, for
those adventurous and savvy enough to go exploring to seek it out. Along the
path of old campus in the area once known as “Hello Walk,” in front of one of
the entrances of Deady Hall, is an old bench by a tree. Like many of the
benches on campus, it at initial glance has little distinction, other than a
quiet place to rest in a part of campus rarely visited by students, but at its
foot is a plaque marking the place where Norm Van Brocklin first met his wife.
 |
| The plaque next to the Van Brocklin bench outside Deady Hall. |
The
plaque reads:
It
is here we met
and here we will always be
Gloria Schiewe – ‘46
Norman Van Brocklin – ‘49
——————-
Placed in loving memory
by their children
and here we will always be
Gloria Schiewe – ‘46
Norman Van Brocklin – ‘49
——————-
Placed in loving memory
by their children
Despite
missing out on his senior year, Van Brocklin remains arguably Oregon’s greatest
player in history, alongside some of the other legends who have chosen to leave
early–Kenny Wheaton, Haloti Ngata, LaMichael James. Of the six NFL Hall of
Famers though with UO ties, only Van Brocklin left early for the NFL, while
Emil “Tuffy” Leemans transferred to George Washington after playing the 1932
season at Oregon. John Madden, another NFL hall of famer, played on the Oregon
freshmen football team before transferring.
EARLY DEPARTURES
TODAY
Of
the other Ducks who have answered the beckoning call, only Haloti Ngata seems a
possibility so far for the NFL Hall of Fame, though LaMichael James seems
likely to join Van Brocklin and other Ducks in the College Football Hall of
Fame someday.
The
NFL is a very different game than in Van Brocklin’s era, but the lures of pro
ball are understandable with millions of dollars at stake. This year Terrance
Mitchell joins the fray as early departed Ducks, a corner with solid numbers
who certainly could have used another year in college to polish his game, but
has the skills to be given a shot at the next level. De’Anthony Thomas is also
NFL bound, the multi-talented but enigmatic superstar RB/WR hybrid tweener, who
seems likely to get his first shot in the pros as a returner.
With
a week to go to the deadline, it is unlikely that more may join Mitchell and
Thomas, with nervous eyes now relaxed after second team All-American Ifo
Ekpre-Olomu’s decision to return. More will follow suit in the coming years
though, a chance at a paycheck taking precedent over collegiate glory. It is
interesting to note though after speaking directly with several former Oregon
players who spent time in the NFL how much they opine for one more chance to
run out of the tunnel at Autzen Stadium, stating they would happily trade their
NFL experience for one more chance to play in a big game in college against
Washington or Oregon State.
During
the pep rally before the 2011 BCS National Championship – Oregon vs. Auburn,
Joey Harrington declared in front of thousands of Oregon fans that he would
trade his entire NFL experience for one more chance to play a game at Autzen
Stadium. Hyperbole perhaps, but nonetheless the sentiment has been often stated
by many Ducks who played at the highest level.
There’s just something special about game days at Autzen Stadium, something Van
Brocklin couldn’t speak of as a coach after being denied the job in 1977, but
others who have chosen to leave early can speak to the difference between
college life and professional. The pro game will be waiting, it will always be
there for those with the skill to play, but the time in college they will never
get back, especially the times they could have had but chose to miss.
Best
of luck to Terrance Mitchell and De’Anthony Thomas, and any other Oregon Ducks
who choose to forgo college glory for professional paychecks. The league will
wait, but if they can’t, like Van Brocklin or Wheaton their exploits in Eugene
will still be fondly remembered.
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