It was late November and Oregon State had just finished its Civil War pile-driving of Oregon. The Beavers had just run 21 straight running plays to put the game away, and Ducks coach Mark Helfrich was on the ropes.
Three days later, Helfrich would meet with athletic director Rob Mullens and be informed he was fired. But already, the back-channeling for Oregon's soon-to-be-open football job had begun.
Bryan Harlan, PJ Fleck's agent, called me while I was on deadline writing my rivalry-game column in the press box at Reser Stadium. He wanted his client, then rowing the boat at Western Michigan, in the conversation for the Ducks job.