The true identity of the Oregon Duck

Seeing the Oregon Duck run around Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Ore. either in person or on TV, it's fairly common to hear, "Hey, he kind of looks like Donald Duck."

The truth? Well, he is Donald Duck.

Per The New York Times, after adapting the Ducks nickname in the 1940s, Oregon was looking for a more consistent Duck image to move the team's brand forward. In 1947, Leo Harris, Oregon's athletic director at the time, was also a friend of Walt Disney who told him that the university was free to use Donald Duck as the mascot as long as it was in good taste.

Following Disney's passing in 1966, officials realized that there was no formal agreement between Oregon and Disney to use the image of Donald Duck. However, Oregon shared a photo of Disney wearing an Oregon letterman's jacket with the Donald Duck logo and a written contract was finally signed in 1973.

Part of the agreement with Disney limited the sale of the Donald Duck logo to the local area around Eugene and Portland. Oregon's primary logo eventually became the yellow "O" and the Donald Duck image became more obscure and difficult to find over the years.

And then there's the mascot himself  the Oregon Duck.

Despite his official name being Donald, the Oregon Duck shares some similarities and differences with his twin. For example, both their navy-esque attires are intact with different colors but the biggest difference is in their eyes as the Duck has big, round pupils while Donald has small oval pupils at the bottom of his big eyes.

Oh and another thing, you won't hear the Oregon Duck trashing Huey, Dewey or Louie in his signature quacky voice because he doesn't speak.

Cool, huh?