A game where one kick can make all the difference. The stakes can be really high. The 60 minutes story on college ball may be interesting this evening.

I think the key to being a fan is to keep one thing clear: No team or rock group or movie star owes you anything. I remember hearing this girl on a Beatles documentary say, "We grew up with them. They belong to us." No, dear. They may have contributed to your life, but they didn't become yours.

If you keep this one little thing clear, then it all works. Oh, you still get angry at the athletes for underperforming or screwing up, and you definitely get upset at the occasional injustice of it all. And you can still revel in the agony of others - even family members and friends. I got a call from a SEC guy before overtime started last night, saying, "Okay, no excuses. If the Ducks want a championship, here's there opportunity."

That was sort of a jerk move, especially when he started the conversation with, "Are you watching this?" I said, "No, I'm looking at a tape of The View." But that's what sports allows you to be: A major jerk. The same guy called seconds after Batum punched the Spanish dude in the nut sack, and said, "I thought you told me he was such a good person."

Sports fans. It's all good. And later if you want to slap some kind of noble reason on your reactions and say the best thing was redemption for a field goal kicker, I'll go along. I read Canzano's column and I admit I was happy for the kid, although the Ducks kicker has got to feel pretty bad today too.

The ultimate sports fan type thing for me last night was enjoying watching that great old coach lose with Kansas State. I did it because I thought the Ducks would have a tougher time against them than Notre Dame.

Knowing the Ducks lost, I feel bad for that great old guy, and wish KC State had won, but last night, I was reveling in his agony. That's what being a sports fan is about: It allows you do be a major jerk. It is the forum for that.

And I say, as long as Duck fans don't feel that they were let down, then it's cool. Because these young men on the Ducks didn't owe you a damn thing.

Bill, those are great points and I find it really interesting to hear it from a fan’s point of view. I have always enjoyed watching athletes perform, but have a really hard time understanding the psyche of those who get angry at one or all of the players at the end of the game. I also have a hard time understanding why the word psyche starts with an “s” sound.

I often care less about who actually wins the contest, and much more about seeing great unexpected plays (unless of course I have made a small to medium wager). My friends are sometimes skeptical when I was excited to see the game, but proclaim it was no big deal our team lost. They have made me feel like maybe I’m not a real fan at all. I love the Blazers for instance, but I’m not upset when they lose because I know tickets prices will decrease and I would rather watch them when they are underdogs anyway.

I agree with you that athletes owe us nothing, expect to do their best. Maybe those who expect more out of these guys are exhibiting some of their own low self esteem, or I am getting too deep?

The SEC guy from Florida just called back and said he was sorry the Ducks lost. I called him on it for BS, and he had a laugh and said, "Alabama is going to slaughter Notre Dame."

There's no need to be phony about it. We rejoice in sports when our friends suffer. We love pointing out who on their team is a criminal, etc..How their coach sucks, etc...

I consider Jack a friend but after last night's little "I'm so giddy I can't think straight" bit, I'm praying that the UCLA Bruins crunch Stanford. I don't know anybody on the Bruins. I sort of hate teams from LA but this is a sports fan thing. By the way, how dumb is it to the call a sports team the Stanford Cardinal?
Not a bunch of cardinals...just one big fat Cardinal. Go UCLA!

Bill McD: Stanford used to be called the Stanford Indians - that was before politically correct speech and mascots took over on University campuses. They also used to have an Indian Chief mascot that wore an Indian Chief's bonnet and sometimes rode a white horse into Stanford Stadium.

Man, you're laying the schadenfreude down a bit thick, aren't you Jack? I'm getting creeped out. Didn't the game last night put the Ducks' kicker in the same spot this guy was in? As grotesque as NCAA football is, these are still kids (student athletes?) playing games. I understand (I think) that your bile is mainly generated by animosity toward the entitled, shot-calling bigwigs at UO, and maybe the arrogance of the fan base, so really, do you have to revel in the supposed glory and redemption for one kid at the expense of another?

The way I see it, from the end of the Kansas State game, and for the next half hour or so, 'til the end of the Stanford game, the Oregon Ducks were the number one team in America.

Think of all the colleges in this great huge country - it's not easy to make it to #1. That makes 2012 the best year for Oregon Duck football ever.

Alabama vs. Notre Dame would be a blood bath. Notre Dame might not even get a first down much less a score.

It's not just the administration, although they are indeed terrible. Chip Kelly is the biggest a.h. in the State of Oregon. And that is saying a lot.

UCLA can't win. All the track stars from L.A. are playing for Nike in Oregon.

The Oregon kicker is actually more pitiful than the Stanford kicker, because his coach already disrespects him at every turn, and he probably will never get a chance to redeem himself now.

I will admit the Stanford coach is a gem and would look great on the sidelines of the Philadelphia Eagles. And I really admire what the coach of Kansas State has been able to do without much recruiting help geographically.

But compared to Nick Saban of Alabama and the mega-jerk at Notre Dame, Chip's a lot easier for me to take. Yes, he can be an arrogant schmuck in interviews, but at least he brought something new to the game. Coaches come and go with the same old thing, and here's a guy who does it differently. That's interesting to me.

One problem was that Chip Kelly was clearly too amped up yesterday getting a 15-yard penalty for arguing about a minor point. His job was to make the game fun to alleviate some of the immense pressure on his team and he failed to do that. I noticed De'Anthony Thomas dropped 2 punts and picked them up again, and the red-shirt freshman quarterback also seemed tight.

I think the idea of my home state celebrating a championship - all the joy it would bring to Oregonians - vastly outweighed any objections to Chip Kelly as a person. I'll concede the visor hat is annoying, but I've got to put the joy of Oregonians ahead of how I feel about a hat.

I went to Stanford. I have been rooting for Stanford for 37 years. I have a friend who was the QB at Stanford. Politically, I'm pulling for Cory Booker, mayor of Newark, another Stanford football alum. I'm glad to see the Stanford tree dancing in victory, no matter who the opponent is. It's not just about my being sick of Chip Kelly and his Nike Ducks, although heaven knows I am.

Understood. Hey, my best friend went there, and I partied there back in the day. Palo Alto is sacred turf. We even went in and saw Willie Mays strike out with the Giants. I was just kidding about the Bruins over Stanford. I'm not all that invested in it now that the championship is out the window. USC's Matt Barkley won't even be playing against Notre Dame so...

And I don't mind sports hate. I think it's a good release and it doesn't have to make sense. I hate the Dallas Cowboys for what happened to JFK. I'm fairly certain they weren't involved, but sports fans can choose and turn on a dime. I think I hate the SEC because of the whole southern civil rights thing. Plus, it means so much to them that I sort of hate their teams just for that. The Crimson Tide...give me a break.

I seem to remember you hate Gonzaga teams, too. It happens.

I didn't realize you were a Stanford alum. For a huge win like this, it's totally normal to go all kinds of unhinged. Sorry to have rained on the parade.