Well, as of at least a couple days ago Chip Kelly was apparently serious about coming back to coach Oregon.
We know this because in a Tweet on Wednesday morning, offensive tackle recruit Nico Falah seemed pretty surprised by the news that Kelly had taken a job to coach the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles:
The shocking news that Kelly had left Oregon 10 days after calling athletic director Rob Mullens to tell him he would stay spread quickly, and Oregon players voiced their opinions on Twitter.
Mostly, the feedback was positive for Kelly from current and former Ducks:
Coach Kelly!!! Thank you for everything you've done! I only have the best of wishes and hopes for you in the future! #goducks
— Karrington Armstrong (@KarringtonA) January 16, 2013
Coach Kelly gonna be LIVE in the league tho !!#GoodLuckCoach — Byron Marshall (@ByronMarshall_9) January 16, 2013
Sorry to see you go wish you the best...always bleeding the green and yellow
— Josh Kaddu (@JoshKaddu) January 16, 2013
Well Mike Vick may be the happiest man in America if he stays in Philly — Michael Clay (@mikeclay_46) January 16, 2013
Thanks coach Kelly for everything
— Evan Baylis (@E_Bayyy19) January 16, 2013
Everyone has a dream andThe NFL is the ultimate challenge.Any real competitor would take the opportunity to try their craft at the top level — Tyson Coleman (@TysonColeman33) January 16, 2013
You can be upset, but if you're not truly happy for Chip after what he's done for this program, you're not a true duck fan.
— Dylan Ausherman (@DuckPunter30) January 16, 2013
As with any large group, we can't expect every member to feel the same way about an issue. And there were a couple current and former Ducks that were stunned by the news, like former Oregon linebacker DeWitt Stuckey:
Chip took the money and ran??? Someone fill me in because I swear he said he was staying #SMDH — DeWitt Stuckey™ (@Dstuckey52) January 16, 2013
Oregon defensive lineman Arik Armstead seemed like he was a bit stunned:
I wake up to this news smh I was just at the man house the other day
— Arik Armstead (@arikarmstead) January 16, 2013
And that led to this exchange with Oregon recruit Tyree Robinson, who then retweeted many messages from fans of other teams begging him to come to their school:
Then Oregon receiver Josh Huff talked Robinson off the ledge:
@huff_era_1 bruh I'm committed and I wanna know is everything gonna be good I wanna stay a DUCK — Tyree Robinson (@HumbleDuck_2) January 16, 2013
So that probably runs the full gamut of emotions from all corners of the Ducks football world. And the majority opinion, based on some tweets right after the news, is that the Ducks don't really hold it against Kelly for leaving for the NFL, even after saying he would stay.
Running back Kenny Bassett put it best, and most simply, in his only tweet in the immediate aftermath of the Kelly news:
We'll be alright.
— Kenny Bassett (@KennyBassett) January 16, 2013
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