There are just 13 seniors on Oregon's roster this season. Just eight are scholarship players, and of those eight, only six have been on campus longer than one year. Breaking down a little more, of those remaining six players, only Justin Hollins, Jalen Jelks, Mattrell McGraw and Tony Brooks-James have been on the roster for a bowl victory. And even more precisely, only Hollins has played in a bowl win.

Hollins played in both the 2014 Rose Bowl and CFP National title game. He had one tackle in the team's 59-24 win over Florida State in Pasadena.

Since the Ducks did not win bowl games in 2015 (Alamo Bowl loss to TCU) or 2017 (Vegas Bowl loss to Boise State), and the team missed a bowl in 2016, this will essentially be one final shot for those seniors to leave Oregon with a bowl victory.

“This senior class hasn’t won a bowl game," senior safety Ugo Amadi said. "I feel like that’s a huge chip on our shoulder to get that job done.

“It means a lot to us. It’s what we’ve worked for since we came in 2014 or 2015. We worked for this moment. We worked for great satisfaction and a good ending story for us."

Writing that ending will require beating Michigan State in the Redbox Bowl on Dec. 31. This is not the most talented Spartan team of the past decade, but beating MSU is no easy matter. That's a fact players like Amadi know all too well since taking a loss in East Lansing in 2015.

For the 13-man class, leaving without a bowl win would be considered a disappointment, several said during Tuesday's media availability. As Jalen Jelks explained, the expectations when they enrolled back in 2014 or 2015 was to contend for national titles just like the team did in 2010 and 2014.

“We kind of set ourselves short," he said. "The Redbox Bowl is fun and everything, but we wanted to get out of here with a national championship. That’ll always be in the back of my mind, and I’ll always push myself to be better."

It's unclear whether Jelks or fellow senior defensive starter Kaulana Apelu will play on New Year's Eve in Santa Clara. Both players are working through injuries that cost them games down the final stretch.

Each player also said it would take a lot to keep them off the field. Jelks took it a step further adding that if he was given the chance to play another season with Oregon, he'd take it.

"If I had an opportunity to come back another year, I would," he said. "I love being around this team.

"I love this team. I have never been around a program like this. The culture is great. Of course I’d come back if I could."

The Ducks and Spartans will play at Levi's Stadium on Dec. 31 at Noon. The game will be carried on Fox.