What if Chip Kelly never left Oregon for the Philadelphia Eagles?

Dec 28, 2014; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly before the game against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

Chip Kelly quickly rose to one of the best college football coaches at Oregon before leaving to coach in the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles, but what if Kelly never left Eugene? 

What if questions are what keep us going as fans. What if? I’ve been to a lot of college football games in my short lifetime. Most of the time, the team I choose to root for loses.

However, what keeps me there when my team is down by two touchdowns with thirty seconds left is the simple question, what if? What if we see a Miracle at the Meadowlands? What if they score here, kick an onside kick, recover it, etc?

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What ifs keep us sane. They’re the backbone of hope and optimism in our lives.

However, what if Chip Kelly never left Oregon for the Philadelphia Eagle? Would college football be the same? Would the NFL be the same?

Kelly was the head coach of the Ducks for four years. In those four years, Kelly won three Pac-12 Championships, and made one appearance in the BCS National Championship. Kelly’s Ducks were electric. They were revolutionizing college football, snap by snap. Their offense was fast and efficient, something that Kelly has brought with him to the NFL.

During Kelly’s tenure as the head coach of the Ducks, Oregon averaged the thirteenth best recruiting class in college football, per rivals. Kelly was building Oregon into a national powerhouse.

Then, Kelly up and left Oregon for the NFL to be the head coach of the Eagles where he has a 20-13 career record and one playoff appearance in two years.

What if Kelly stayed in Eugene? How different would college football and the NFL look today?

Next: Would Oregon have a National Championship?