College football: 25 biggest what-ifs of the 2010s

College football: 2010s biggest what-ifs: 4. Chip Kelly doesn’t leave

Chip Kelly was on the doorsteps of greatness.

During his tenure with the Oregon Ducks, Kelly was praised for his up-tempo offense. Even with the unheralded Darron Thomas at the quarterback position, Kelly’s Ducks still managed to put up outrageous numbers. As a whole, they averaged 537.5 yards of total offense and 49.3 points per game. The Ducks were also close to becoming National Champions but ultimately fell short in 2010.

From 2009-2012, Kelly was regarded as arguably the best coach in all of college football. But, due to an investigation into the recruitment practices of Will Lyles, who openly admitted that the Oregon Ducks paid him $25,000, the program faced serious bans and penalties. Before those bans could be levied upon Kelly, however, he bolted for the NFL. He enjoyed plenty of success with the Philadelphia Eagles, bringing his same high-powered offense to the pros.

But with Kelly and the Ducks so close to winning a National Championship on multiple occasions, could he have eventually broken through? Well, three years following his departure, the Ducks found themselves in the championship game once again. This time, however, it wasn’t a nail-biter as they were destroyed by 22 points by Ohio State. Considering how much of a mastermind Kelly was, did his departure ultimately cost Oregon several titles? It’ll always be difficult to answer that question with 100% certainty but it’s likely that if the NCAA hadn’t become aware of Will Lyles and enforced a ban on Kelly and Oregon, they could have gone on a dynasty-type run.