The Mighty Oregon Podcast

For many people on this planet, former Oregon football player Daryle Hawkins may have the best job in the world. Designing the Ducks’ Ohana uniform and making cool Nike products are a part of his job description. Hawkins’ eclectic upbringing in Omaha, Nebraska, helped charge his interest in sports and art, and after being recruited at the FCS level for football, Hawkins found his way to Eugene in 2009, where he played for some of the most successful teams in Oregon football history. It’s not lost on Hawkins that his journey at Oregon led to his fun work-life of design and creativity that he currently enjoys, and he also understands that his career with the Ducks was his one shot at making the life he wanted. He just had to have the fortitude to go get it.

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New women’s basketball assistant coaches Jackie Nared Hairston and Mike Moser have come back to their home state and the University of Oregon. Nared Hairston comes back to Oregon after spending the 2017-18 season with the Ducks and recently helping the Arizona Wildcats to the NCAA Championship game. The opportunity to work with headman Kelly Graves again was too much to pass up. Moser played for head coach Dana Altman and recently worked for the Dallas Mavericks, and although he is new to the women’s game, he is no stranger to basketball and the University of Oregon. Both Nared Hairston and Moser traveled different paths to get to their current position, and both are excited to keep the Duck women’s program on an upward trajectory. 

Oregon softball coach Melyssa Lombardi grew up in a competitive and rambunctious household with her two younger brothers. It was all she knew. Her parents also filled their household with tough love, and Lombardi used those lessons to fuel her to success and a college playing career at the University of Oklahoma. After playing with the Sooners, Lombardi latched on to coaching and was an assistant with Oklahoma softball for 21 years, where she helped direct one of the nation’s top pitching staffs in route to four NCAA titles. Now in her third season at Oregon, she challenges her Duck players to get out of their comfort zones to achieve things they never thought they could.  

Brady Breeze was born to be a Duck. They were his team for as long as he can remember, and when the time came to choose a place to play football, it had to be the Ducks. In the beginning, Breeze struggled for playing time and thought about leaving. But, the man from Medford stuck it out, and Oregon fans are glad he hung around. His exploits in 2019 led the Ducks to the Pac 12 title and a Rose Bowl win over Wisconsin, and despite the ups in 2019, Breeze encountered downs in 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic ended his chances at a senior season and his hometown burned due to wildfires. Through it all, the recent NFL draftee learned a valuable lesson through those tough times: Always be thankful for the opportunity. 

Oregon baseball coach Mark Wasikowski has seen it all on a baseball diamond- the highs and lows. And if you ask him, his ability to accept those moments come from the tough love and discipline he got from his parents. Those core lessons learned in his life helped him overcome adversity in his early college days and eventually led to winning a national championship at Pepperdine, where he was a throwback player for the Waves that was tough, disciplined and showed no fear. After initially wanting to work on Wall Street, Wasikowski instead chose to coach and after a winding coaching journey, which included being an assistant coach with Oregon, he was named the head coach of the Ducks in 2019. Wasikowski has his Ducks playing with his throwback mentality and the team is excelling, and he knows that there are expectations across the board for the Oregon athletic department. He wants to live up to his end of the bargain.  

The Hold. Extra Point Jesus. Just a couple of nicknames for a play that will be associated with Nate Costa and the annals of Oregon Football history. Oregon fans also associated Costa with a career that might’ve been. Multiple knee injuries derailed his chance to become the next great Oregon quarterback, but to Costa, it’s just part of the game. Costa’s gracious attitude has now turned to coaching, where he is an offensive analyst on Mario Cristobal’s staff. He sees lasting impacts as a coach – even more so than when he played for the Ducks. One thing is for certain for Costa. He knows how special his Oregon experience was and what it has brought him in his life, and there’s always something new to learn.

Oregon track athlete Charlie Hunter almost quit running. The fastest Australian to ever run the indoor mile and 800 meters had lost his love of the sport. Little did he know what a journey across the world to run for the Ducks would do for him. Hunter’s engine was fine-tuned in March of 2020 when COVID-19 destroyed any goals he had at the time. It had all been taken away from him in a blink of an eye. Interestingly, Hunter looks back at his time in lockdown in Australia as extremely beneficial to where he is in 2021. Which to put it mildly, is a pretty good place. COVID also brought a sense of appreciation to living in the moment for Hunter, because he always knew returning to a new Hayward Field and being with his teammates was a possibility when he was locked down in Australia. He knows he has a lot to be thankful for. 

Former Oregon great Kenjon Barner was on some of the most explosive teams in Duck football history, playing alongside some of the Ducks’ greatest players and winning at an unprecedented clip. To Barner, his success stems from being raised in a large family and doing whatever it takes to win. Barner left his home in Southern California and headed up the coast to play for Oregon, where he became a consensus All-American in 2012 and finished ninth in the Heisman Trophy voting. He was used all over the field, on offense and defense, and was truly a jack of all trades for the Ducks. His versatility and unselfishness landed him a spot in the NFL, where he has thrived on special teams and been a part of three Super Bowl champions, including this past season with the Tampa Bay Bucs. Barner’s mentality is contagious, and it’s quickly apparent why NFL teams would want him on their roster.    

Oregon great and all-things-golf Peter Jacobsen has had quite the journey. He’s played in the world’s top tournaments, befriended some of the greats of the game, and lived a life around the sport he loves. But before he became a household name in the golf world, he and his family just wanted to play golf. Jacobsen turned his early life lessons with his family into a very successful golf playing career. He was a three-time All-American at Oregon, won the Pac 8 individual title in 1974, and went on to have a stellar career on the PGA Tour, where he won seven Tour events and played in two Ryder Cups. With his on-course success, Jacobsen would also come to appreciate the social aspect of the game and how he could connect with others. And it all started with his dad and the lessons he was taught on the course when he was young. Jacobsen cherishes those early days, and to him, the game has taught him many life lessons and given him a life that he could have never imagined.

Oregon head football coach Mario Cristobal has lived a life of football since a very young age. But at the end of his football playing career, Cristobal entertained other options for his future work life, but eventually chose football, and life has never been the same. Cristobal has learned from the best throughout his coaching career, and he’s taken those lessons to great heights for the Ducks since becoming the team’s head coach in 2017. The Ducks won the Pac 12 conference championship in 2019 and 2020 and are considered among the nation’s best football programs. Accolades and championships are nice, but it’s the day-to-day grind to get better and the potential he sees for his team that motivates the Oregon head coach.