The "Civil War" remains a bitter rivalry between Oregon and Oregon State, even though the two teams are no longer in the same conference.
And, as is the case with most rivalries, the Ducks and Beavers engaged in some pre-game banter during their respective press conferences this week.
This time around, it involved Oregon linebacker Jerry Mixon, the reigning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week, and Oregon State quarterback Maalik Murphy, who is in the midst of his first season with the program after transferring from Duke this past offseason.
What did Mixon and Murphy say?
Mixon began the war of words during the Ducks' media availability on Sept. 16 while responding to a question about the nature of the "Civil War."
"It’s a big rivalry game. Everybody pop out in Oregon," Mixon said. "Just from being here, that they’re our little bros, and we go out there and kick their a—."
Given how one-sided the rivalry has been in Mixon's two-plus years with the program thus far, his comment does carry some weight. The Ducks thrashed the Beavers 49-14 on the road in Corvallis last season; the year before, Oregon emerged victorious by a 31-7 score at home.
But Oregon State has remained competitive in these contests in recent years, despite their two most recent meetings being blowouts. In the three years prior to Mixon's arrival on Oregon's campus, the Beavers won two games against the Ducks.
The rivalry certainly remains testy, but Murphy offered a level-headed response to Mixon later in the day.
"I love it. You know, competitive spirit. I don't really focus on the talk or anything like that, other guys, media," Murphy said. "I'm just focused on the team and whatever we do in practice and how we can prepare to get better and go out there and put our best foot forward."
This year's "Civil War" matchup between Oregon (ranked No. 6 in the country with a 3-0 record) and Oregon State (unranked with an 0-3 record) will kick off at 3 p.m. ET at Autzen Stadium in Eugene.