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Early-season college football games can often be a bit clunky as teams work out the kinks in their first live action after several months off. As it turns out, those struggles expand beyond just players and coaches.
The defending Big Ten champion Oregon Ducks welcomed Montana State to Autzen Stadium on Saturday for their season opener. And prior to the contest, the program’s beloved mascot suffered a tragic accident.
OOP 😬@TheOregonDuck just lost his head during the run out 👀 pic.twitter.com/eFsGFHw0sA
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) August 30, 2025
While running out onto the field during pregame festivities, the Duck (often referred to as Puddles, although that is not an official school name), tripped and fell. The fall sent the mascot’s head flying off its shoulders.
In response, the mascot then sprinted back into the tunnel, headless, in order to preserve his identity.
The Oregon Ducks Mascot Has A History Of Head Loss!
The incident was as tragic as it was hilarious. But as it turns out, this type of thing is becoming commonplace for Oregon!
In fact, the Oregon Ducks mascot also lost his head last year after getting leveled by a player who didn’t see the mascot in front of him!
Oregon’s mascot is one of the most storied in all of college football, due to both his hilarious antics and incredible history.
The Duck first came about in the late 1890s. The University of Oregon did not have a mascot at the time. A local sportswriter referred to the team as the ‘Webfoot boys’ in a preview of its game against Pacific University. One thing led to another and the name totally stuck.
There were several attempts to find a better mascot during the 1900s, but the Duck stuck and by the 1940s, Oregon received permission from Walt Disney to use Donald Duck’s likeness as its mascot.
Although if Oregon keeps allowing the poor guy to be beheaded, Disney might have to rethink this arrangement.