Four years ago, Oregon State pulled off a 34-24 victory over Oregon in the Civil War, snapping an eight-game losing streak in the series. It was also the Beavers’ last win in the rivalry...

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Expectations are high for the Oregon Ducks this season, from both outside the team and from within.

Quarterback Justin Herbert opted to stay at Oregon rather than bolt...

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Oregon coach Willie Taggart has never experienced a Civil War game, but he certainly knows hard feelings when he sees them.

And that's what he sees among the Ducks.

Oregon lost 34-24 to Oregon State last year in the 120th Civil War rivalry game, snapping an eight-year losing streak for the Beavers. The Ducks finished at the bottom of the Pac-12 North and a few days later fired coach Mark Helfrich.

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — The Oregon Ducks have welcomed coach Willie Taggart's infectious positivity with a new kickoff tradition: Swag Surfin'.

But the sideline dance is not the only manifestation of the brand-new Ducks under Taggart. The whole team seems to be lighter and looser than last season.

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — As Willie Taggart would say, it's go time.

The first-year coach and his Oregon Ducks open the season at home against Southern Utah on Saturday afternoon. And yes, he's a little bit nervous.

Mark Helfrich went into last season with a 33-8 record in three years as Oregon coach and an appearance in the national championship game.

He then went 4-8 and was fired. Point is, just about every coach outside of Nick Saban and Urban Meyer can be considered on the hot seat.

Willie Taggart credits Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh for putting him on the path that brought him to Oregon.

Taggart was introduced as the Ducks' coach Thursday following a 4-8 season and the dismissal of coach Mark Helfrich.

In 1994, Taggart was recruited to play at Western Kentucky by Harbaugh, who was then an unpaid assistant under his father, longtime Hilltoppers coach Jack Harbaugh.

Willie Taggart has become known for rebuilding programs at Western Kentucky and South Florida. His next endeavor will be much more high profile, trying to turn around the struggling Oregon Ducks.

Oregon announced Wednesday that it had hired Taggart to take over following a disappointing 4-8 season and the dismissal of coach Mark Helfrich.

It has been 40 years since Oregon fired a head coach. That was also the last time the Ducks went outside the program to fill the spot.

Now Oregon is again looking beyond its current staff following the dismissal of coach Mark Helfrich.

Athletic director Rob Mullens told players that he would be hitting the road on Wednesday and moving quickly to make a hire. Oregon has hired an executive search firm to aid in the process.

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — San Francisco 49ers head coach Chip Kelly said Wednesday that he has no interest in the Oregon Ducks coaching job and has not spoken to anyone associated with the program about it.

Kelly was head coach at Oregon from 2009 to 2012, compiling a 46-7 record. He won at least a share of the conference title every season he was head coach and led the Ducks to the 2011 BCS national championship game, where they lost to Auburn.

Oregon has fired coach Mark Helfrich after a disappointing 4-8 season, and just two years after getting the Ducks within a victory of the program's first national championship.

Helfrich was head coach of the Ducks for four seasons, leading the team to the first College Football Playoff championship game after the 2014 season. But Oregon faltered this year with a five-game losing streak, and finished at the bottom of the Pac-12 North with just two conference wins.

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Oregon's run as one of the nation's elite teams came crashing to a halt this season.

Now the question is, was the year just an anomaly?

The Ducks, who just two seasons ago were playing in the first College Football Playoff championship game, wrapped up a season to forget with a 34-24 loss to the Oregon State Beavers in the 120th Civil War. The loss snapped an eight-game winning streak in the series.

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Oregon coach Mark Helfrich was heading out to recruit while speculation swirled about his job security — or lack of it.

Helfrich spoke to reporters Sunday, a day after the Ducks ended the season with a 34-24 loss to the rival Oregon State Beavers in the 120th Civil War game.

With a quarterback controversy as a backdrop, Oregon is preparing for a daunting Washington team that proved its mettle on a national stage against Stanford.

Could the Ducks' 12-game winning streak against the Huskies be coming to an end?

The rivalry game with the No. 5 Huskies couldn't come at a worse time for Oregon, which is reeling from a three-game losing streak. The Ducks (2-3, 0-2) are coming off a 51-33 loss to Washington State in Pullman.

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Oregon coach Mark Helfrich suggested that quarterbacks Dakota Prukop and Justin Herbert are competing to start against No. 5 Washington on Saturday.

Prukop has started this season for the Ducks, who have lost their last three games. Last week in a 51-33 loss at Washington State, Herbert led Oregon on its final drive, capping it with a 4-yard keeper for a touchdown.

Oregon players held a team meeting without their coaches this week following back-to-back losses.

Veteran players addressed their teammates on a practice field Monday, two days after the Ducks' 41-38 loss at home to Colorado. The Buffaloes had not defeated Oregon since joining the Pac-12 in 2011.

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Coach Mark Helfrich certainly wasn't concerned about Charles Nelson's missteps in Oregon's opener, joking that he'd bet his mortgage on the receiver and special teams standout.

Nelson had 288 all-purpose yards for the No. 24 Ducks in the season opener as he transitions back from the defense to the offense. He chalked up a pair of fumbles to first-game jitters.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — When Arizona and Oregon decided to make changes on defense after disappointing 2015 seasons, they did so in a wildly disparate fashion.

The Ducks demoted defensive coordinator Don Pellum and replaced him with former Michigan head coach Brady Hoke, while the Wildcats completely overhauled their staff, adding rising star Marcel Yates from Boise State.

The varying approaches reflect both the coaches and programs that met in the 2014 Pac-12 title...