If you’re an Oregon football fan who believes in the Sports Illustrated Cover Curse, shield your eyes.
Multi-purpose star De’Anthony Thomas is on the cover of the Sept. 24 issue, with the billing “The Fastest Man in Football.” Thomas’ close-up comes almost nine years to the day since the Ducks’ last national cover, which featured QB Jason Fife in Sept. 2003.
Thomas is now a favorite for the Heisman Trophy after averaging 10.8 yards per carry though the first three games of the 2012 season with his 4.3 40-yard dash speed.
Kudos to SI for featuring Black Mamba in the crazy uniforms Oregon wore for its season opener. Of course, the last Pac-12 player to get the cover treatment was Matt Barkley, whose USC team lost at Stanford last Saturday.
Did the odds that No. 22 Arizona might shock third-ranked Oregon at Autzen Stadium this weekend just go up?
