Like a lot of Oregon fans, I was surprised when I heard the news that Brock Thomas, a quarterback from Eugene’s Sheldon High School, committed to the Ducks as a preferred walk-on. After all, Thomas was not only not recruited by any of the “big-boy” programs, he was not offered a scholarship from any Power Five school. His list of …
The 2022 season might be over, but college football is undoubtedly a 24/7/365 institution. Here we are in mid-January and all kinds of interesting stuff is happing. Let us jump to it. Ducks Hire New Defensive Coach The offense certainly was not in short supply this past season for the Ducks. But, the defense, while talented, did not always play …
For the first time in three months, outside of a bye week, the Ducks do not have a game this weekend. Of course, they should have had one last night, but they did not. Last Saturday’s soul-crushing meltdown in Corvallis has left us gameless this first weekend in December. Personally, I do not like it. So, I’m going to ramble. …
I am not much of a gambler. But, back in August I hit the local Indian Casino and put down a few bucks on Oregon winning over nine regular season games for this season. Of course, with their record currently at 9-2, the Ducks have to beat the Beavers for me to win my bet. More than me winning my …
As we enter the holiday season, it occurred to me that some Oregon victories are like a beautiful Christmas gift. For example, let us look at the BYU game. What was supposed to be a close game between two ranked teams turned into the Ducks completely overwhelming the Cougars. It is like in one of those Christmas car commercials where someone looks out …
I woke up Sunday morning, quickly grabbed my phone, and immediately brought up my ESPN app. I went to the college football section to check the Top 25 scores only to discover that the nightmare I had experienced on Saturday evening was in fact a harsh reality. Washington 37, Oregon 34. I was texting my Husky cousin in Seattle during …
I never experience writer’s block. But, it is funny how I find it much more difficult to come up with something to write when the Ducks play up to their talent and expectations and play, well, as they “should.“ When the Ducks play lousy it is easy for me to come up with a couple of thousand words of criticism …
In June, I wrote a little conversation-starting piece titled, “Is Bo Nix Winning the Heisman a Total Pipe Dream?” And, while at the halfway mark of the season it is generally accepted the trophy is C.J.Stroud of Ohio State’s trophy to lose, Nix still has a chance to be “in the conversation” or possibly invited to New York for the …
Oregon took care of business in the desert on Saturday night. For the second week in a row, they put to bed a “curse” that had befallen them from Stanford and now Arizona. Oregon’s offense was explosive and the defense held a high-powered Wildcats’ passing attack in check by putting a lot of pressure on Arizona quarterback Jayden de Laura. …
On Saturday, the Ducks exorcised some demons against a Stanford Cardinal team that has proven to be Oregon’s biggest thorn in the side over the past two decades. Well, if Stanford has been Oregon’s biggest pain in the neck, I think it is safe to say that the Ducks’ next opponent, the Arizona Wildcats, have been Oregon’s second-biggest headache in …
I was done with the Ducks. Washington State had just scored a touchdown with just over six minutes left after an inexplicable roughing the passer penalty on 3rd and 18 to take a 34-22 lead. I threw down my remote control and stormed upstairs, yelling at a dog or two in my path and cursing all the way. I ripped …
Getting walloped by Georgia did not tell us much about this Oregon team, other than the broad diagnosis of needing to improve across the board. Walloping Eastern Washington did not tell us much about this Oregon team, other than, “OK, we do not have a Georgia hangover.” And, thankfully, unlike the 2015 game against Eastern, the Ducks did not surrender …