Jay, here.

This past Thursday, Sports Illustrated opened the vault on all of their content.

Explore the 54 years of Sports Illustrated history including over 150000 stories, 2800 covers, 500000 photographs, a Wiki sports encyclopedia and links to …

Covers. Articles. Ads. Everything.

That got me to thinking: how many times has the University of Oregon been represented on the cover of Sports Illustrated? The answer? Four. (Unfortunately, I can’t count Eugene resident Brian Lanker’s 1985 Swimsuit Issue cover photograph of Paulina Porizkova.)

Then I was curious as to how that stack up against the rest of the Pac-10. Pretty well. But, as you will see, USC and UCLA are in a league of their own.

This is not an exhaustive list (because of USC and UCLA). And the cover count only represents the instances where a school is the primary focus on the cover. For example, USC’s Todd Marinovich made the cover throwing against Stanford. But Stanford really isn’t the focus (Actually, they’re kind of oblique and out of focus.). So, that doesn’t count. And SI.com’s search feature is OK, but sometimes returns inconsistent results.

Here are the Pac-10 covers of Sports Illustrated.

Sports Illustrated Covers: OREGON - 4

Cover Dates: 06.15.70, 02.25.74, 08.13.01, 09.29.03

The Ducks kind of have one more cover. Well, a lot of schools have at least one cover, sort of, with this year’s NCAA Tournament Preview edition. Kind of like “Where’s Waldo?”, where’s Malik Hairston?

Did you find him? Look right next to the “I” in “Illustrated. And, I think, that’s Malik.

UPDATE: In the comments section, Chris pointed out that Aaron Brooks was on the cover of the 2007 NCAA Tournament Preview edition (03.19.07). I kind of put this cover in the category with the above cover: it’s nice, but doesn’t count as Oregon having a cover. That’s Aaron on the basketball.

Sports Illustrated Covers: OREGON STATE - 5

Cover Dates: 10.16.61, 01.07.63, 03.05.90, 03.23.81, 09.29.03

Sports Illustrated Covers: WASHINGTON - 3

Cover Dates: 10.03.60, 10.04.71

Thanks to Alex, there is one more from 11.24.06 that did not come up in SI’s search feature.

Sports Illustrated Covers: WASHINGTON STATE - 0

Washington State joins Arizona State as the only Pac-10 schools not to have a Sports Illustrated cover. Although, I think there is a WSU player (Cowgill?) on the cover of the 2008 NCAATournament Preview edition.

Sports Illustrated Covers: CAL - 2

Cover Dates: 11.24.75, 03.29.93

Sports Illustrated Covers: STANFORD - 5

Cover Dates: 11.08.02, 03.17.97, 11.23.98, 10.07.02, 03.29.04

Sports Illustrated Covers: ARIZONA - 4

Cover Dates: 08.29.94, 04.07.97, 04.02.01, 11.25.02

Sports Illustrated Covers: ARIZONA STATE - 0

Like Washington State, Arizona State does not have a Sports Illustrated cover to its name. Unlike Washington State, though, I don’t even think they have a player on the cover of the 2008 NCAATournament Preview edition.

Sports Illustrated Covers: USC - 31

Cover Dates: Too many. First: 11.26.56 Most Recent: 11.19.07

Sports Illustrated Covers: UCLA - 35

Cover Dates: Too many. First: 01.05.59 Most Recent: 03.18.08

For more, visit the Sports Illustrated Vault.

For more on the Ducks, visit DuckSportsNews.com.

Ducks fans, you know how you’re feeling right now.  But do you know how the rest of the Pac 10 feels about your team?  Do they feel your pain?  Not exactly.

Here’s a sampling from around the Pac 10 blogosphere.  Mind you, this is only a compilation, a very sour sampler.  This is not a compendium of forum and message board comments.  If want to get a glimpse into a fan’s online soul, go the message boards and forums to take a look at your own risk.

Arizona - Not available.

Arizona State - “Tucson, AZ: Where BCS Dreams Go To Die”

Cal - Not available.

OSU -”Oregon Ducks Suck Against Arizona”

Stanford - Not available.

UCLA -”No Dixon”

USC - “Dixon out with a Torn ACL”

Washington - “Wow….34-24 Arizona Over Oregon”

And we saved the worst for last…

Washington State - “WHAAAAAAA! WHAAA!”

At Oregon, he was 44 on the field.

After a seven-year career in the NFL with the Tennesse Titans, it’s now The 4|4 with Peter Sirmon.

This week, OneClickSportsNews is proud is introduce a new weekly feature and contributor to DuckSportsNews, The 4|4 with Peter Sirmon. Every week throughout the second half of the football season, Peter will answer four questions asked by visitors to DuckSportsNews.com.

The Walla Walla, Washington native was a four-year letterman with the Ducks from 1996-1999. He was named first-team All Pac-10 as a Senior and a Sophomore. Peter closed out his career with 16 tackles and a school-record seven tackles for a loss in the 1999 Sun Bowl victory over Minnesota. In the 2000 NFL Draft, he was selected by the Tennessee Titans in the fourth round. After playing seven years in the NFL with the Titans, Peter is now retired from football and pursuing a career in real estate in Nashville. He and his wife, Lindsay, live in the Nashville area with their four children.

Now it’s time to kickoff…

1. What does the Oregon-Washington rivalry mean to the players?

While I was at Oregon the biggest game every year for me was the Washington game. The energy in the stadiums was always different for me when we played the Huskies. When I was a senior in high school I attended the Oregon-Washington game that made Kenny Wheaton a household name in the state and eventually catapulted them into the Rose Bowl in 1994. The obvious proximity plays a part and the schools go after a lot of the same recruits.

2. What kind of leadership qualities is Coach Bellotti looking for on the field?

Coach Bellotti and really all coaches are looking for players of high character to build a program around. Players with real character never quit, or give in when the games turn against you or even when some of their fellow players start to criticize. They become the glue of all great teams. It’s just so easy to be a front runner and be enthusiastic and positive when you are winning every game. When you come across tough times in a season is when the true leaders show up and refuse to allow the other players to quit working and preparing. Some of the most respected players are the guys that are not necessarily the stars of the team. Eric Winn (FB 1993-1997)was a great example of that, always working and preparing. He became a player that people really looked up to and followed.

3. How does the defense react after the offense suffers multiple injuries?

The best advice that I could give a defense is that “nothing else matters.” You can’t control the offense so don’t even worry about how they are playing. One thing about Oregon is that they always seem to be able to replace skill position players. Focus on what you can control and basically that is all you can do.

4. Are coaches more effective with or without mustaches?

I’m pretty impartial to facial hair when it comes to coaches. Just as long as they knew my name and my position I felt lucky!

Do you have a question for Peter? If so, go to OneClickSportsNews.com and send Peter your question.