Having spent the past few summers in Eugene, it’s always easy to tell when football season is drawing near.

For most of June and July, Eugene — campus in particular — is a ghost town for weeks on end. Around August a few people start to trickle back, maybe float the river a few times before they’re forced to think about class again.

When September hits, campus is rejuvenated in the best of ways. Students return to their apartments, anxious for Saturdays to roll around as they gear up for Oregon football at its finest. The faithful Autzen Stadium student section was on full display in the home opener against Nevada, and from the looks of things it will only increase in volume for Missouri State this week — for the first half, anyway.

Campus has started to come alive the past couple weeks, and for those of us who spent of our summers here, it couldn’t have come sooner. But why am I writing this column now, three weeks into the season? Well, for a couple reasons, but one stands out more than most:

The return of “Kash” Cliff Harris.

Yes, the All-American kick returner and cornerback was reinstated hours before kickoff last Saturday. So was Kiko Alonso. Though both played sparingly, we at least now know that both Harris and Alonso appear to be on their way back to consistent playing time.

And for us as fans, well, is there really anything better than watching the human highlight reel do his thing?

I didn’t think so.

Following Oregon’s practice on Wednesday afternoon, third-year head coach Chip Kelly was asked if he expected Cliff Harris to have a bigger role this week.

“I don’t know,” the coach replied, as he’s done so many times recently. “He’s gotta practice,” Kelly said. “Participate in practice and show our coaching staff that he deserves to get on the field just like the other guys.”

Kelly went on to say Harris has been “good” in practice this week and that both he and Alonso have met all their respective requirements within the football program to play on game day.

Just how good either of the defensive standouts has been in practice remains unclear. But we know they each saw limited action last week, and barring anymore off-the-field issues, their playing time will only increase from here.

Though Missouri State is a far cry from a formidable opponent, both Harris and Alonso could use a game like this to get their feet wet.

Oregon opens Pac-12 play at Arizona next week (wow, already?), which still features one of the most dynamic passing quarterbacks in the league in senior Nick Foles. In case you’ve forgotten, when Arizona came to Autzen Stadium late last November, Harris let All-American wide receiver Juron Criner score two first-quarter touchdowns, the latter an 85-yarder.

Before I get too far into next week’s matchup, let me circle back to the original thought. Harris, an absolute fan-favorite regardless of the individual outcome, and Alonso, the bruising linebacker still trying to get it right, both need a light game like Missouri State to get back into the flow of things.

Could they both step onto the field for the first time against Arizona and be successful? No doubt. But having this one complete game under their belt will only help in the long run.

We’re eager to see what kind of swag Harris has for us this week, and he’s eager to get back onto the field where he belongs.

You, the fans, have returned to Eugene early to see it, and it finally looks like everyone will get what they came for.