Oregon's Innovation Comes Into Focus In Savannah Bananas' Autzen Stadium Takeover

The Savannah Bananas prepare to take over Autzen Stadium for a historic weekend of baseball in Eugene.

The Savannah Bananas play their second of three games against the Indianapolis Clowns at Great American Ball Park on Saturday June 20, 2026. The Bananas won the game with a final score of 7-3 after a long night of dancing, flipping, behind-the-back catches, juggling and of course, baseball. | Phil Didion/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Autzen Stadium has seen historic crowds over the years – whether it was 60,129 fans filtering in to watch the Oregon Ducks take on the Ohio State Buckeyes in Oct. 2024 or the first 60,000 crowd against the Washington Huskies in Nov. 2010. Autzen prepares to host another full house in 2026 – but this time it’s in June, and it’s not for a football game.

 The Savannah Bananas baseball team traveled approximately 2,800 miles from their home base to take on the Party Animals for a historic pair of games in Eugene. Autzen Stadium sold out for the ‘Banana Ball’ games on June 27 and June 28, and the visitors have more in common with the Ducks than what meets the eye.

Autzen Stadium Makes History With the Savannah Bananas

Oregon fans line up for autographs from Duck players after the Oregon Spring Game at Autzen Stadium in Eugene April 25, 2026 | Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Savannah Bananas and the University of Oregon announced back in Oct. 2025 that the fan-focused baseball team would play two games in 2026 in Eugene. The Bananas, which started in 2016, has played in NFL and MLB stadiums over the past decade. In April 2025, they broke their attendance record with 81,00 fans at Memorial Stadium at Clemson University.

Now the Savannah Bananas head to the Pacific Northwest, where they’ll learn what it's like to play in front of an Eugene community full of diehard fans for the Ducks team that typically plays at Autzen Stadium.

Savannah Bananas Bill Leroy (1) signals safe during a call challenge during the Savannah Bananas game held at Covenant Health Park in downtown Knoxville on May 21, 2026. | Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Savannah Bananas creator Jesse Cole posted a video on his Instagram on June 27 ahead of the games, reflecting on the milestone for the Savannah team, which played in front of fans for the first time under its ‘Banana Ball’ new format on June 26, 2020.

Cole claimed that the team is prepared to get the crowd involved and “Shouting” at Autzen Stadium. The first game at 5 p.m. PT on June 27 is set to be on ESPN, with the June 28 game scheduled for 1 p.m. PT on ABC, where the team expects one of its largest television audiences so far.

Savannah Bananas Draw Inspiration From Oregon Ducks

The Savannah Bananas play their second of three games against the Indianapolis Clowns at Great American Ball Park on Saturday June 20, 2026. The Bananas won the game with a final score of 7-3 after a long night of dancing, flipping, behind-the-back catches, juggling and of course, baseball. | Phil Didion/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Both the Savannah Bananas and the Ducks are known for flexing their creativity and their unorthodox approach to game day.

Cole pointed to what Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight did at Nike with “putting the athletes first” as being a key piece of attracting talent with the unique experience of being an athlete in Eugene.

“It's not about the name. It’s what you do with the name, and what they’ve done here is truly special,” Cole said. “We have to go big. We have to do it over the top by continuing to put the fans first – just like Oregon has put their athletes first and created something truly special in this community.”

Jun 10, 2015; Eugene, OR, USA; Nike co-founder Phil Knight at the 2015 NCAA Track & Field Championships at Hayward Field. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Cole wasn’t the only member of the Bananas organization who was eager to credit Oregon for its innovative edge. Savanah Bananas coach Tyler Gillum posted his own video on Instagram about “how Oregon changed college football forever.”

Gillum donned a green and yellow Bananas uniform while rewinding history to the time when the Ducks’ approach to wearing new uniforms every week was unpopular. The Bananas coach pointed to innovation, looking “strange before it's obvious” and “how the thing everyone criticized became the thing everyone copied,” with college football programs across Division I having alternate uniforms.

Former Cincinnati Reds Adam Dunn takes the plate for the Bananas. The Savannah Bananas play their second of three games against the Indianapolis Clowns at Great American Ball Park on Saturday June 20, 2026. The Bananas won the game with a final score of 7-3 after a long night of dancing, flipping, behind-the-back catches, juggling and of course, baseball. | Phil Didion/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Like the Ducks, Gillum says the Bananas haven’t been afraid to do things that other sports teams haven’t – whether that’s flashy uniforms in Oregon’s case, or having fun and dancing on the diamond like the Bananas.

The same weekend that the Savannah Bananas take over Eugene, the Oregon football program is simultaneously across the sea, making waves with a new community. Oregon coach Dan Lanning, quarterback Dante Moore and the Ducks’ stars spent the week in Japan. The Ducks brought American football to a new continent and expanded their global reach in the latest example of the creative edge stemming from the University of Oregon.

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