Do you support an official Platypus Trophy?

The Platypus Trophy has an interesting history of use and disappearance since its creation.  For three years, from 1959 to 1961, the trophy was awarded to the winning school. The trophy was lost for more than 40 years before being rediscovered in 2005 and proposed as the game’s unofficial trophy in 2007. It is currently awarded to the alumni association of the winning school.  Many though believe that the Civil War should have an official trophy.  They feel De Carolis and the Oregon AD at the time should have made it official.

College football trophies are a big tradition at many schools.  There is the Paul Bunyan Axe (Minn. vs Wisc.),  Golden Hat (UT vs OU), Little Brown Jug (Minn. vs Mich.), Jeweled Shillelagh (USC vs ND), Floyd of Rosedale (Minn vs Iowa), Golden Egg (Miss. vs Miss St.), Illibuck the Turtle (Illinois vs Ohio St.), the Stanford Axe (Stan. vs Cal) and so many more.  Almost all of these trophies are unusual and weird.

That is what would make the Platypus Trophy work so well.   And if for some reason you want to do a new design then go for it.  Boise State and Fresno State introduced the Milk Can in 2006.  Corvallis is full of talented artists that would love the chance to come up with something great to start out our new Pac-12 era.  I still prefer to just use the original with its history but the point is that we should not be so conservative about everything.  Plenty of possibilities always exist.  Maybe our AD didn’t think we would win it enough.  Lame excuse.  No school can be proud without belief in beating their biggest rival.  No desire short of a Rose Bowl is greater than that.

The trophy seems to fit Oregon perfectly.  We are a unique state and it definitely is a unique trophy.  How random is it to have a state where the Ducks and Beavers are the mascots?  That fact should be celebrated with a trophy of an animal that noone is sure if it is more duck or beaver.  The timeless debate could be settled every fall as the winning team proudly claims the platypus as one of its own.  So what does Beaver Nation think?  Would seeing the Platypus trophy on the sideline during the game help give the game an extra element of intrigue during the Civil War, especially in a game that is often nationally televised?  I think it would and think it should be restored to its true official glory.  If it wasn’t stolen way back when we still would be proudly fighting for it and may as well again.