Oregon

AP Top 25: Oregon remains No. 1; Ohio State, Miami, Clemson take plunge

Published

1 year ago

December 1, 2024

AP Top 25: Oregon remains No. 1; Ohio State, Miami, Clemson take plunge

Ohio State, Miami (Fla.) and Clemson plunged in The Associated Press Top 25 college football poll Sunday following their losses during a wild weekend; eight of the top 10 teams moved up one spot and Oregon was No. 1 for the seventh straight week.

The shakeup creates two top-five matchups in conference championship games coming up on Saturday, a day before the College Football Playoff bracket is announced. Oregon, the nation’s only unbeaten team, will face No. 3 Penn State in the Big Ten game in Indianapolis. No. 2 Texas will play No. 5 Georgia in the SEC title game in Atlanta, a rematch of their top-five meeting in October won by the Bulldogs.

No. 4 Notre Dame, 11-1 and a winner of 10 straight, won’t play again until the CFP.

Ohio State, which lost for the fourth straight time to Michigan and was knocked out of the Big Ten title game, dropped five spots to No. 7, behind Tennessee.

SMU is No. 8 and followed by Indiana and Boise State. The Broncos are in the top 10 for the first time since 2011 and the highest-ranked Group of 5 team, two spots ahead of No. 12 Arizona State, the highest-ranked Big 12 team.

If the Broncos win the Mountain West title and are one of the top four-seeded conference champions in the final CFP rankings, they would receive a bye to the quarterfinals.

Miami’s loss at Syracuse cost the Hurricanes a spot in the ACC title game — and possibly the CFP — and dropped them six spots to No. 14. Clemson, which plays SMU in the ACC game, lost to South Carolina and fell six places to No. 18. South Carolina has won six straight — four against ranked opponents — and earned a promotion to No. 13.

Ole Miss remained No. 15 and was followed by Iowa State and BYU.

Michigan Wolverines vs. No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes Highlights | FOX CFB

Ohio State’s 13-10 loss to Michigan marked the fifth time this season a top-five team lost to an unranked opponent, the most since it happened five times in 2017.

Miami’s 42-38 loss to Syracuse was the 12th by a top-10 team against an unranked opponent, the most since there were 12 such losses in 2021.

It’s been 10 years since South Carolina was ranked higher than in-state rival Clemson. In 2014, the Gamecocks were No. 13 following a 3-1 start and finished 7-6 and unranked in Steve Spurrier’s last full season as coach.

Notre Dame has its highest ranking since it was No. 4 on Dec. 22, 2020.

No. 23 Syracuse enters the Top 25 for the first time since Oct. 30, 2022, after winning nine games for the first time since 2018 under first-year coach Fran Brown. The win over Miami was its first over a top-10 opponent since 2017.

No. 25 Memphis, which was last ranked in October 2020, knocked off Tulane as a double-digit road underdog and has 10 wins for the second straight year. Tulane, which plays at No. 24 Army in the American Athletic Conference title game, went from No. 18 to out of the rankings.

Texas A&M, No. 20 last week, was bounced after losing at home to Texas and dropping its last three SEC games.

SEC: 7 (Nos. 2, 5, 6, 11, 13, 15, 22).

Big Ten: 5 (Nos. 1, 3, 7, 8, 21).

ACC: 4 (Nos. 8, 14, 18, 23).

Big 12: 4 (Nos. 12, 16, 17, 20).

AAC: 2 (Nos. 24, 25).

Mountain West: 2 (Nos. 10, 19).

Independent: 1 (No. 4).

Here’s the full top 25:

1. Oregon
2. Texas
3. Penn State
4. Notre Dame
5. Georgia
6. Tennessee
7. Ohio State
8. SMU
9. Indiana
10. Boise State
11. Alabama
12. Arizona State
13. South Carolina
14. Miami (Fla.)
15. Ole Miss
16. Iowa State
17. BYU
18. Clemson
19. UNLV
20. Colorado
21. Illinois
22. Missouri
23. Syracuse
24. Army
25. Memphis

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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Oregon

There’s Good News: A beaver birthday celebration at the Oregon Zoo!

Published

4 hours ago

April 23, 2026

Press Room

There’s Good News: A beaver birthday celebration at the Oregon Zoo!

PORTLAND, Ore. (KTVZ) — The Oregon Zoo’s favorite “branch manager” celebrated a milestone this week, turning 15 years old. Despite his age, Filbert is still active and doing well. According to the zoo, his care team is keeping him moving with extra swim time and creative training sessions — even spreading out snacks to encourage him

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Oregon

5-star QB Will Mencl reveals what led to Oregon commitment

Published

16 hours ago

April 23, 2026

Press Room

5-star QB Will Mencl reveals what led to Oregon commitment

The good times keep on rolling for the Oregon Ducks in the recruiting world. Dan Lanning and the Ducks scored a massive commitment from five-star quarterback Will Mencl out of Chandler, Arizona.

Oregon had been rumored to be leading the race for Mencl’s services for months, but the No. 1 quarterback in the country, per Rivals, cleared the air and committed to the Ducks on Wednesday evening. Mencl chose the Ducks over Auburn and Penn State, both of which battled hard for him down the stretch.

However, Mencl has been connected to Oregon for a long time. While he was offered last fall before breaking out in his junior season, Mencl has been a fan of the program long before he popped up on the Ducks’ recruiting radar. In a post shared by Rivals recruiting expert Steve Wiltfong, Mencl was announced as a quarterback for the Ducks when he was a kid at the 2019 NFL Draft fan experience in 2019.

Now, Mencl is ready to don the green and yellow for real and make his childhood dreams come true. The Ducks have made a point to get Mencl on campus as often as possible and as recently as last week. The continued connection between both sides is ultimately what made the decision easy for the nation’s top passer. Mencl said he told Lanning and the Oregon staff about his decision on Sunday.

“The biggest thing was the relationship with the staff,” Mencl said after committing. “I feel like that continued to grow over time, especially when I first got there last spring. Being able to sit down with Coach Koa, really being an underlooked guy at that time, and kind of blowing up my junior season. And then, the path to the NFL. You can’t deny what they do with quarterbacks and the type of scheme they run. I felt like that was the best fit for me and my family to get to the next level.”

Koa Ka’ai, Oregon’s new quarterback coach, made waves earlier in the offseason after his recruiting test about ice cream flavors went viral, but that doesn’t appear to have scared Mencl off. In fact, the two have a close connection that Oregon hopes will translate to success on the field in the near future.

“My relationship with Coach Koa, I feel like that is super, super strong,” Mencl told Rivals. “I’ve had a lot of discussions with Coach Lanning about the culture there and how they’re going to continue to sustain greatness throughout the program.”

Mencl exploded onto the national recruiting scene with a massive junior season for Chandler. He completed more than 70% of his passes for 3,815 yards and 33 touchdowns against five interceptions in his junior season, leading Chandler to a state title berth. He also rushed for 741 yards and an additional 17 touchdowns.

The Ducks expect to have some competition for Mencl to compete with when he joins the team for the 2027 season, with Dylan Raiola and Akili Smith Jr. already on the roster and competing for a role as the backup. Oregon has gone to the transfer portal as well in recent seasons, finding success with Bo Nix, Dillon Gabriel, and now Dante Moore.

Oregon has recruited well at quarterback in the past, establishing an NFL pedigree that attracted Mencl. Maybe he will be the one to buck the trend and give the Ducks a true, homegrown product under center.

Contact/Follow @Ducks_Wire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oregon Ducks news, notes, and opinions.

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Oregon

Wine Enthusiast names 2 Oregon sparkling wines among best

Published

1 day ago

April 22, 2026

Press Room

Wine Enthusiast names 2 Oregon sparkling wines among best

‘Pour in the largest glass you can find while slow dancing in your socks,’ a Wine Enthusiast contributor said of an Oregon wine

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Wine Enthusiast released a list of the top 40 sparkling wines around the world in 2026 – highlighting two bottles of bubbly from Oregon.

“While it can seem like you need a fortune to enjoy high quality sparkling wine, you honestly don’t. Excellent affordable bubbles are being produced around the world, often in places you might not expect. Each of the selections on our inaugural Top 40 Sparkling Wines list delivers personality, freshness, and celebration for under $75,” Wine Enthusiast wrote.

Wine Enthusiast divided its list into separate sparkling categories including, Champagne, Italian Bollicine, American sparkling and bottles $25 and under.

Snagging a spot on the American sparkling list: Corollary Wines in McMinnville.

Corollary Wines’ 2021 Momtazi Carbonic Rose Pinot Noir scored a spot on Wine Enthusiast’s list of the top 40 sparkling wines of 2026 (Courtesy Corollary Wines).

Corollarly’s 2021 Momtazi Carbonic Rosé Pinot Noir scored 96 points from Wine Enthusiast.

“This is a Peter Max print of a wine, with vivid aromas and flavors to match the wine’s electric Kool-Aid color. It is filled to the brim with aromas and flavors of macerated strawberries, candied rose petals, apricots, and a bitter note similar to watermelon rind. Pour in the largest glass you can find while slow dancing in your socks,” wrote Wine Enthusiast contributor Michael Alberty.

The second Oregon winery to earn a spot on the list: Lytle-Barnett in Dundee.

Wine Enthusiast also gave Lytle-Barnett’s 2018 Brut Rosé Pinot Noir Chardonnay 96 points.

*Lytle-Barnett’s 2018 Brit Rose Pinot Noir Chardonnay was named among the top 40 sparkling wines of 2026 by Wine Enthusiast (Courtesy Lytle-Barnett, Lester Tsai).*

“Bubbles as persistent as an eight-year-old with a question deliver aromas of dried rose petals, macerated strawberries, and a touch of fresh hay and talc. This 70/30 Pinot Noir and Chardonnay blend is packed with flavors of lemon zest, Honeycrisp apple slices drizzled in caramel, and a dollop of raspberry,” Alberty wrote.

The nods to Corollary and Lytle-Barnett come as the wineries recently helped launch Method Oregon, a nonprofit made up of 50 Oregon wineries aiming to turn Oregon into a global sparkling wine destination.

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