Learn about the UO and Big Ten through a popular word game

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As part of the University of Oregon’s move to the Big Ten, Duck fans and the UO community can test their knowledge of facts about the university and the new athletic conference by playing a new word game, UO Connections.

It’s based on the popular New York Times game Connections, a word game where players categorize 16 words into groups of four based on a common theme or connection. The UO’s version features words and categories about Oregon athletics, academic programs, the Big Ten, other schools in the conference, the Big Ten Academic Alliance and more.

Games will be released weekly following the university officially joining the conference on Aug. 2. Links to the games will be posted below on each Friday along with the answers to the previous week’s game.

Learn about the UO while getting a mental health boost

While the games spotlight the UO’s move to the Big Ten, they may also offer positive benefits for mental health.

Recent research from the UO’s School of Journalism and Communication found games like Wordle and Sudoku can provide a positive boost to players’ mood and sense of well-being. Researchers found that tackling games that provided a sufficient challenge could help restore the psychological well-being of players.

The study was conducted with the help of David Markowitz of Michigan State University, another member of the Big Ten Conference. Learn more about the study in Oregon News.

UO’s connection to NYT Games

While Connections is currently only the second-most popular game from The New York Times, the most popular game has a special tie to the UO. Wordle, the most popular NYT game, was created by a UO alumnus, Josh Wardle.

A 2011 Master of Fine Arts graduate in digital arts, Wardle created the game for his partner, Palak Shah, as a digital love letter for her interest in word games. Read more about the origins of Wordle.

UO Connections Editions

Game 1

Game 2

Game 3

Game 4

Game 5

Game 6

Game 7

Game 8

Game 9

Game 10

UO Connections Answers

Game 1

Game 2

Game 3

  • Yellow 
    • Topic: Big Ten schools starting with a vowel 
    • Words: Oregon, Ohio, Illinois, Iowa 
  • Green 
  • Blue
    • Topic: Ducks wearing #10 
    • Words: Person, Uiagalelei, Swarthout, Gould 
  • Purple 
    • Topic: UO CAREER Award Recipients 
    • Words: Ruef, Mazzucato, Erickson, Widom

Game 4

Game 5

Game 6

Game 7

Game 8

Game 9

  • Yellow 
    • Topic: ______ball (Oregon Sports) 
    • Words: Base, Basket, Volley, Soft
  • Green 
    • Topic: Game Day Traditions in Autzen Stadium 
    • Words: Shout, Coming Home, Motorcycle Ride, Push-ups
  • Blue 
  • Purple 
    • Topic: Names of Mascots in the Big Ten 
    • Words: Brutus, Sparty, Bucky, Harry

Game 10