Welcome to the 2014 FISHIES

Kim Hastings FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. That’s why FishDuck.com was so pleased when ESPN scheduled the ESPYs during the same week as our more prestigious award show. FishDuck.com’s crack staff and stable of high quality production assistants … … looked through the last year of sports highlights to find the best and the brightest. Then we remembered …

Chip Kelly Update: Problems on Special Teams

Mark Saltveit FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

Chip Kelly and the Eagles did better last year than anyone but the biggest Eagles homer imagined. One big disappointment, though, was special teams performance. This is puzzling because, by all accounts, Kelly put a lot more effort into STs last year than Andy Reid ever did. He added some players (such as Jason Phillips) to the roster primarily for their special …

Division Powers: Pac-12 North

Pat Pannu FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that the Pac-12 is one of the best conferences in the country. The conference has changed vastly since its conception, but one thing has always stayed the same: winning. With the addition of Utah and Colorado three years ago (how time flies), the Pac-12 was split into two divisions: North and South. Though the North …

Kani Benoit: The Small Division Underdog

Laura Brehm FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

Kani Benoit*, a redshirt freshman from Phoenix, Arizona, thought it was over. His dream of playing football for a top-tier program seemed unattainable. Though he received initial offers from 10 schools, he had trouble keeping them. And Oregon was really the only one in the running for the BCS National Championship. Benoit’s head coach from Phoenix Thunderbird High School, Brent …

Devon Allen Speaks with FishDuck on Recent Success and Future With Ducks

Rob Liggins FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

The last few months have been nothing short of spectacular for Oregon track and field freshman-sensation Devon Allen. In 2014, Allen has both made a name for himself and solidified his place in University of Oregon history as a star hurdler for the men’s track and field team. Allen finished second at the Pac-12 Track and Field Championships in both …

Recruiting Update: “Taj-ma-Wall” Working on 4-Star Merritt

Mark Flores FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

Football Recruiting News Recently-minted Oregon commit Travis Waller (4-Star/Anaheim, Cal./Rivals250) entered July with something to prove. Even in the highly scrutinized world of prep recruiting, a large contingent of fans and pundits had yet to cast their evaluation on the Duck’s new signal caller. That all changed this past week. Waller not only turned heads, but led his 7-on-7 Apocalypse …

It’s Only Been a Year, But Tyner Is on Pace for Something Special

Joey Holland FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

The Oregon football program has an extremely impressive resume when it comes to running backs, especially over the past 10 or 15 years. Among the greats that have come out of the Duck backfield are Maurice Morris, Jonathan Stewart, LeGarrette Blount, LaMichael James and Kenjon Barner. However, there is a new Duck in town who has the potential to be the …

Spill It and Kill It! How the Oregon Defense Shuts Down the Run

Joe Daniel Analysis

The Oregon ‘hybrid’ 3-4 Defense is a well-designed, precision machine — as any well run defense is. Oregon defenders don’t just chase the football around like a rec league soccer game. Every player on the field has a job to do, and all of those jobs fit together like a choreographed dance that will shut down the opponent’s rushing attack — …

College Football Nation: How Do the Gators Do It and Penn State Tweets

Jeff Hostetler FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

  With the NCAA trial all finished up and media days about to begin, the news was a little slow this week. The news in the college football world might be slow but it is never dull. It will really pick up when you put a bunch of coaches and players in front on a microphone for media day. Great news …

The Conference That Almost Was, and the Conference That Almost Wasn’t

Nathan Roholt FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

All of the attention this fall is going to be on the outcome of the four teams “The Committee” picks to play in the first-ever college football playoff. Even if those four spots are distributed evenly across the power conferences, there will still be at least one conference that will miss out on the inaugural playoff. This, of course, did …

Scott’s Turf: Character Matters

Scott Reed FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

Over the past five recruiting classes, dating back to the 2009 recruiting class, Oregon leads the nation in an unregistered recruiting category – percentage of prospects signed that make it to campus. Contrast that with South Carolina, which will reportedly have eight players of 24 signed to this class who are not eligible. In Oregon’s case, this is not by some …