Oregon Football: 5 reasons Ducks will win 2017 national title

Oregon football played in the first College Football Playoff Championship. Here are five reasons why the Ducks will win the national title in 2017.

In a parallel universe, Oregon won three national titles after the turn of the 21st century. Back in 2001, the Pac-10 champions were snubbed from playing for the crystal pigskin in favor of Nebraska. The Ducks promptly walloped a Colorado team that had crushed the Cornhuskers by 24 in November. That UO squad would have been a far tougher matchup for Miami than Nebraska proved to be.

Nine years later, a failed tackle on Michael Dyer allowed Wes Byrum to kick a winning chip-shot field goal on the last play to give Auburn the BCS crown. One more stop could have sent the game to overtime, at the very least. There one of the nation’s most prolific offenses very well could have gone punch for punch until the Tigers cracked.

Then, four years later, Heisman winner Marcus Mariota fizzled in his final game as a Duck as Oregon fell big to Ohio State in the inaugural College Football Playoff national championship. After looking so dominant against defending national champion Florida State in the Rose Bowl semifinal, the Ducks laid an egg against the Buckeyes.

Of course, this is no parallel universe. Oregon has always been a bridesmaid and never a bride up to this point in college football history. But, while the Ducks are coming off a 4-8 season that got their coaching staff fired, the building blocks are in place for a huge resurgence. Click ahead for five reasons why the Ducks are poised to finally snag their first national title in 2017.