By Sean Schoppe

While no one who actually played in the 1917 Rose Bowl is still around, John Parsons, Jr. is one of the few who can at least give a direct second-hand account of Oregon's lone Rose Bowl victory.

Parsons' dad, John Parsons, Sr., was the starting running back for the 1916-1917 Webfoots. They finished the season tied for first in the Pacific Coast Conference with Washington, but they owned the tiebreaker simply because they were closer to Pasadena.

Oregon faced a Pennsylvania team that was expected to win big. The Quakers were so confident, their coach invited Oregon's coach, Hugo Bezdek, to their practice to show him some of their plays. That plan backfired, though, when Oregon used one of Penn's own plays in the third quarter to take a 7-0 lead.

Oregon was not only able to retain their lead, but build on it, after quarterback Shy Hunnington ran one yard for a touchdown. It was a 14-0 win that put Oregon on the map, and a win the school hopes to replicate more than 90 years later.