— The No. 13 Oregon Ducks (3-1, 1-0) and Stanford Cardinal (1-2, 0-2) have their 86th matchup on Saturday at Autzen Stadium (The Ducks first played Stanford in 1900). Stanford holds the upper hand at 54 overall wins. Last year, the Cardinal spoiled then-ranked No. 3 Ducks’ dreams of a College Football Playoff birth, handing Oregon one of just two conference losses. In 2018, Stanford also rained on the Ducks’ parade in their conference opener in front of a national ESPN Game Day crowd.
For some reason, the Cardinal always give Oregon fits. But instead of another “Palo Alto Hell Ride” in Eugene, the Ducks jumped out to a 31-3 first-half lead over Stanford and coasted to the finish…GO DUCKS!
— Oof. Former Ducks head coach Mario Cristobal is feeling the heat in Miami…Cristobal, who left Oregon for the top coaching job with his alma mater Miami Hurricanes (2-2), is on a hot seat with fans just four weeks into the season.
Miami head coach Mario Cristobal facing a new stormfront — Canes fans.
Apparently, Canes fans don’t dig Cristobal’s conservative brand of football, dragging the coach on social media after last week’s embarrassing 45-31 home loss to Middle Tennessee State (Miami was 25 1/2-point favorites). There’s a storm brewing in South Florida and it isn’t Hurricane Ian. Here’s what some fans were saying about Cristobal — the 10th highest paid head coach in college football this year at $8 million — after the loss:
“Miami fans getting a taste of that sweet, sweet Mario Cristobal Game Management ™ that Oregon fans enjoyed so much.” (@alex_kirshner)
“Everything makes sense when you realize Mario Cristobal is from the Willie Taggart coaching tree.” (@NotThatRawlings)
“Mario Cristobal just Willie Taggart with a salsa routine.” (@UnkleSilk)
I was told Mario Cristobal was the second coming of Christ? Was this info wrong? I mean he made Justin Herbert look average at Oregon and constantly lost to bad teams but Miami told me he was Nick Saban? 😂 hilarious
— CB (@Cbake1090) September 24, 2022
— Several Class of 2023 recruits were at the Stanford game on Saturday night: Five-star wide receiver — No. 2 in nation — Jurrion Dickey (East Palo Alto, Calif.), four-star wide receiver Ashton Cozart (Flower Mound, Texas), four-star safety Tyler Turner (San Antonio, Texas), four-star DE Jaeden Moore (Visalia, Calif.) and four-star linebacker Blake Purchase (Englewood, Colorado). A talented group — all but Dickey have committed to play in Eugene.
— Thumbs down to Oregon’s slew of penalties against Stanford — 10 penalties for 90 yards in the first half alone, including fighting, unsportsmanlike conduct, facemask and a handful of false starts. Last week against Wazzu, Oregon racked up eight penalties for 87 yards. Ducks head coach Dan Lanning has to be banging his head against the wall. Nothing like yellow flags and whistles to kill a drive. Clean it up, boys. This ain’t it.
— Hats off to the Oregon offensive line, with just one official sack (a one yard loss) in five games. Will they be the best in FBS?
Jordan Ingram
San Diego, California
Top Photo from Harry Caston
Jordan is a lifelong Duck fan currently living in San Diego. Jordan graduated from The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington, after serving a prestigious fellowship with the Washington State House of Representatives. Upon graduation, he worked as an English language teaching assistant for the Spanish Ministry of Education’s Ambassadorial Program in Monforte de Lemos, Spain. Jordan has worked as a journalist, writer, and editor in Oregon, Washington, Montana, and California, covering a wide range of topics, including sports, local politics, and crime. He is VERY excited to be writing about his beloved Oregon Ducks.